AUG. 7: Springer has a sprained wrist, manager Dusty Baker said Friday (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle).
AUG. 6: Astros outfielder George Springer departed the team’s loss to the Diamondbacks on Thursday with a right wrist strain, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic was among those to report. Fortunately, X-rays came back negative, so he shouldn’t sit out for a significant amount of time, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
Although Springer seems OK, even a few days off could be damaging to a Houston team that’s off to a 6-6 start. The reiging AL champions have already had to go without ace Justin Verlander and slugger Yordan Alvarez for most or all of the season because of health problems, and their bullpen has taken a beating from injuries. Those troubles have helped lead to an early 2 1/2-game deficit in the AL West, a division the Astros have won three years in a row. They’re now staring up at the Athletics.
Of course, a great deal of Houston’s recent success has been on account of Springer, who has slashed .269/.360/.488 with 163 home runs in 3,398 plate appearances since he debuted in 2014. He’s one of the premier pending free agents in baseball, and with such a short season, any missed time could hurt the 30-year-old’s earning power heading into the offseason.
The Astros replaced Springer with Myles Straw in center field on Thursday. Michael Brantley, Kyle Tucker and Josh Reddick represent the rest of the healthy outfielders on their roster.
dtrain138
Looks like there is a typo in the first paragraph.
datrain021
Poor Astros
Said no one ever
swinging wood
*Said someone probably before November 2019.
pc01
Ever is a really long time.
goldenmisfit
The baseball gods unleashing more karma. This is a minor injury but this is just a sign of things to come this season for the HoustonAstrisks
slowcurve
A “sign of things to come” is how they got into this mess to begin with.
trendysayings
+1
fox471 Dave
Well played, slow curve. Well played.
SalaryCapMyth
You know gold, you might consider taking on a shtick. Change your username to Baseball_Shuami or something and stay in the character of a prophet or seer and just keep talking about the baseball Gods, karma and what not.
Halo11Fan
One of the few Astros to handle this cheating scandal like an adult was Springer.
I don’t like the team, they disgraced baseball, but he is not one of the players I disdain.
beisbolista
@Halo11Fan Funny, I didn’t see Springer apologizing to the teams he helped to steal the pennant or world series from, not did I see him advocating for player accountability. Cheating to get what you want and then keeping what you got by cheating does not qualify as adult behavior.
Halo11Fan
beisbolista
I’m not going to tell you how to feel, A-Rod stole an American League Pennant from the Angels, his response. “It was a Grey Area”.
Springer actually gave one of the better answers, it was not a full mea culpa but it was better than most. I wish A-Rod would have given such a response.
Orel Saxhiser
One of the better answers? That’s setting the bar really low. Are you sure you’re not giving Springer a pass for some other reason?
Halo11Fan
Cey Hey. I can’t really disagree. But when it comes to cheating, the bar set by players admitting their guilt is so low a cockroach couldn’t scurry under it.
I’m not giving Springer a pass, it’s just that I don’t have the disdain for him that I have for those other cockroaches. If he resigns with the Astros. I may change my mind.
gtb1
Do you have equal disdain for the Red Sox and Yankees? Caught doing the same thing.
Many more teams not caught…..yet. It will all come out
Dorothy_Mantooth
What the Sox and Yankees did is no where in the realm of what Houston did. Both the Sox and Yanks needed to have runners on 2nd to take advantage of any information they had (if it was even correct) which is what all other teams do as well…they just use other means to do it. Houston was using technology to decode signs in real time and sent that info to the batters directly from the dugout, and they did it during the playoffs too. This is 100x worse than what Boston, NY and all the other teams who didn’t get ‘caught’ doing the same thing.
case
Springer seemed like one of the worst culprits… I remember looking at his stats as the A’s struggled to overtake the Astros and thinking this looks like video game numbers. Altuve is the only one I wouldn’t help boo at a live game.
all in the suit that you wear
There is no actual evidence that I see of the Yankees and Red Sox doing anything wrong so far – no video, no accounts of events from specific games. Manfred’s report on the 2018 Red Sox failed to document a single actual instance of cheating happening after months of investigation. There is zero evidence that even a single at bat was affected. Without evidence there is just speculation about what really happened. This has become the bottom line for me regarding cheating. If I am to believe cheating occurred, I need to see evidence of actual events occurring.
JRW 2
Please tell us when the Yankees were caught stealing signs
Prospectnvstr
There is ONLY ONE GOD. He DOESN’T CARE one iota about baseball. He cares about people’s souls. We all have sinned (cheated) in are lives. I’m no preacher, however all of the self righteousness hypocrisy is downright absurd.
Javia
There is only one God? What is his name? God? Jehovah? Elohim? Krishna? Yahweh? Jah? Allah? I believe your religious opinions belong in church.
SalaryCapMyth
@Prospect- Why are you taking the conversation in this direction? Do you think it’s not okay for us to have a baseball site where we talk baseball? Does God not allow that? Is it okay if WE care an iota about baseball?
bhambrave
Self righteous hypocrisy? Wow.
McGurk
Asterisks fans are really reaching for straws if they have to invoke God to whitewash their disgrace. Where is the rest of the spin brigade?
Dumpster Divin Theo
Hey- check out George Springer’s wiki.
Valkyrie
You really don’t have much of a life other than spewing bile do you son?
coupofthecentury
There are so many people on the IL b/c of injuries and covid-19. Logic doesn’t stick
philsark94
Maybe the Astros are off to a bad start because they don’t know which pitches are coming anymore.
jleblang
Or maybe it’s because they don’t have pitching… they have the best offense in the game in 2020 so I doubt that’s the issue… averaging more runs per game than anyone else in the MLB
fox471 Dave
And still 6&6.
beisbolista
I guess it doesn’t matter at all that in clutch situations they have no idea what pitch is coming. Thanks for the hot take.
jleblang
No hot take just dropping facts. Yes they cheated yes they got caught. Not making any excuses, just saying their offense hasn’t fell off, it’s the pitching that ain’t there.
Melvin McMurf
Must have hurt it banging on a trash can
harms1124
Damn, you beat me to it
SalaryCapMyth
You gotta be early to get off the first trash can joke.
brandons-3
The jokes are overkill. Just log off buddy. (The Astros need your computer next anyways)
99 Captain Judge
@Melvin McMurf- The Trash Can ‘Stros
99 Captain Judge
@philsark94- It definitely sounds like he didn’t know which pitch was coming for a change. Maybe that’s how he got hurt? If they don’t cheat then the Stros’ get hurt & lose.
burrows_ ghost
The question is why is Correa having a good year
Javia
He sacrificed an actual LIVE chicken to Jobu.
pc01
Don’t bring facts into play on this board that don’t fit the narrative.
Halo11Fan
Here is a fact PC01, they cheated. These are talented players. Top picks. But they cheated. And like A_Rod and Bonds, they didn’t have to cheat.
wild bill tetley
Extra rest for his back or something potentially related to MLB rule violating.
empirejim
He’s a good ballplayer, which makes the cheating all the more infuriating. Too bad he lacks the personal character to make things right.
McGurk
Joe Kelley said he had a nice swing.
Joggin’George
How is Springer’s CF defense? He’s a free agent soon, and as a Mets fan, I’m wondering.
Ironman_4life
Funny all these yahoos who wont let it go, will be rooting for these guys once there on other teams.
fox471 Dave
Probably not, Ironman.
jjd002
He’s right. Nobody is booing someone like Marwin.
HalosHeavenJJ
Yeah,the Twins likely took the worst of this scandal. dumping big money into a guy who could never replicate his cheating enabled stats.
bhambrave
2017 was a pretty strong outlier for Marwin.
BobGibsonFan
I would say he’s better than average. He’s not like Billy Hamilton out there chasing everything down, but he’s quick and has a very strong arm. He is a solid major league CF. He is moved to right every now and again because they have Miles Straw who can play a very good CF also.
Orel Saxhiser
Springer turns 31 on September 19. It would be like the Mets to pick him up just in time for the downside of his career. Jim Fregosi, Mickey Lolich, Joe Foy, George Foster, Roberto Alomar, Mo Vaughn, Jason Bey, Juan Samuel, Robinson Cano, and others. The list goes on.
Halo11Fan
In all due fairness to Jim Fregosi, he had cancer. He had a tumor removed from his foot in 1971. Jim Fregosi was the second best player in the American League in 1970. He couldn’t move after the surgery.
After the Mets traded him to Texas they moved him to first base and he had an OPS+ of 118, 121, 125.
Orel Saxhiser
Good call on Fregosi in 1970. Second-best player to Yastrzemski, MVP went to Boog Powell by virtue of him being the perceived best player on the best team. And most people didn’t blink an eye at the time because we went by counting numbers. Yaz with a WAR of 9.5 OPS+ 177), Fregosi 7.7, and Powell 5.1. Powell won the award, Yaz was 4th, Fregosi tied for 12th. The Orioles’ best position player WAR was 5.9 by Paul Blair, who didn’t get a single vote. Similarly, Sam McDowell didn’t get the Cy Young Award despite a 8.3 WAR, finishing 24-game winners Jim Perry (the winner) and Dave McNally, both with a WAR of 3.8. Interesting how things have changed in that regard.
Joggin’George
Cey Hey, I tend to agree with your assessment based on Springer’s age. Many fans don’t get that very few players carry their prime beyond age 31. I’d probably say no to signing him, but he’s intriguing enough that I’m curious.
HalosHeavenJJ
Mets and Angels are too similar. Both the “other” team in a large market, both known for bringing in players who turn into a shell of themselves, both had Mo Vaughn….
bhambrave
Guessing is harder than knowing.
Vizionaire
good news upon good news!
MarinerMiner
I think their trash cans are broken as well, 6-6 record huh….
BobGibsonFan
Altuve .246/ .255/ .292
Bregman .213/ .315/ .404
Springer .195/ .340/ .439
Without trash cans
oldoak33
Prove Altuve used a sign stealing system ever.
Show us the data for these same players on the road in 2017.
skip 2
Seriously? What more is there to prove??
shortytallz
It’s been proven and admitted. stop living in denial.
oldoak33
Shorty
Where is the proof that Altuve used the trash can system? When did anyone admit/claim that he used the system?
What were the road stats for the above mentioned players during the 2017 season?
oldoak33
Skip,
That Altuve used the system, and that Astros hitters (specifically the ones mentioned above) were better at home than on the road in 2017.
empirejim
I’ve seen enough video of Altuve at bat and you can hear the can banging. I dont know how you can be so willfully ignorant. You love the guy, I get it. But at least love him honestly. He cheated. Period.
oldoak33
That’s interesting, because any empirical observation of the footage shows the opposite, including Tony Adams’ thorough review of the data found here:
signstealingscandal.com/
I don’t have an axe to grind or personal bias towards any individual position players on the 2017 Astros. All I hope for is the recognition that a person, like Altuve, be treated fairly in review of what happened. If Altuve did not cheat, I think it’s vital information moving forward, because it not only helps to judge his career/2017 season as a player, but also where he stood morally and ethically while over 95% of the position players on the team had requested the information.
Halo11Fan
Don’t rip my shirt off. That’s evidence he didn’t need trash can banging. It’s not proof, but it’s evidence.
The fact that he appeared to be sitting on that pitch last year is evidence. It’s not proof, but not one hitter in ten would have sat on that pitch in that situation. Again, not proof, but it’s evidence.
And the fact the Astros team cheated, they deserve any suspicion that people have.
Dorothy_Mantooth
They used it on the road too.
oldoak33
Halo
“Don’t rip my shirt off” is at best circumstantial evidence. Some random twitter account posted that “the buzzer man in the clubhouse hallway” was signaling Astros hitters. An insane assertion, considering the Astros clubhouse had 6/7 MLB chaperones monitoring player and staff movement during the 2019 playoffs, as well as no live feeds being broadcast in any clubhouse.
oldoak33
Dorothy
The Astros used what on the road, and even if that were 100% true, where is the evidence that Altuve utilized the scheme on the road?
Javia
So, if there is no DNA or fingerprint evidence I guess it didn’t happen, right oldoak33? Was his confession deemed inadmissible due to the fact that he didn’t have a lawyer present? Did the court throw it out?
Halo11Fan
Old oak.. It’s not proof, it’s evidence.
And since we know they cheated, and since we know the Astros are more sophisticated that simply banging a trash can. Morally, they wouldn’t have an issue with it, so I suspect he was wired.
It’s not proof of anything, but in my mind, they don’t deserve the benefit of the doubt.
Tom84
oldoak, they had somewhat even splits on the home and road, but that means nothing because Minute Maid is a pitcher´s park.. They should be worse at home, but they were even. So that evidence doesnt hold up.
McGurk
Players on base to drive in, pitchers confidence shattered because they are throwing their best stuff the hitters don’t even flinch, getting into the bullpen early cuz starter got rocked… He benefited.
virginiascopist
Cardboard cutouts of trash cans don’t seem to be working.
OnlyHereToday
Can an intelligent user(s) of this site help me regards comments? I was under the impression that MLBTR was a serious baseball site – based mainly on transactional type player stories, and that its users offered, via their posts, intelligent content…at least this is how I remembered the site when I last ‘used’ it a lot. I still see that the writers do an excellent job.
In terms of comments from users – now it seems to be a mixture of rude posts (the type of things you would never say to someone else face to face) aimed at other users, bad jokes and one-liners that offer no value whatsoever – with the occasional excellent post. In the ‘old days’ I learned a lot from other users here – and was amazed at the wealth of knowledge they could pass.
Is it worth sticking around here?
wild bill tetley
If you say it with a smile over a beer they’d say it face to face. I could be wrong. I’m probably not intelligent enough to answer your question. However nobody is holding you hostage here. Having personal choice is a wonderful luxury.
OnlyHereToday
Thank you Wild Bill, however my question remains unanswered.
wild bill tetley
Wild Bill says you’re welcome and good luck.
schwender
Have you never checked out the comments of any site on the Internet ever? Why appear out from under your rock to type your nonsense on this one?
OnlyHereToday
Thank you schwender.
fox471 Dave
You were apparently wrong on all accounts, only here today.
OnlyHereToday
Thank you Fox, I think you are right.
shortytallz
You honestly can’t make this decision on your own? You should probably avoid the Internet altogether.
OnlyHereToday
Thank you Shorty.
BobGibsonFan
OnlyHereToday, Are you one of those fancy posters? Do you have your pinkies out when you type?
OnlyHereToday
BobGibsonFan – thanks for your reply. Am not sure what you mean by ‘fancy posters’? If possible, please could you be more expansive? Also not sure what having your pinkies out when typing implies – or perhaps infers? Again, please do take some time and details the answers at your earliest convenience..
YankeesBleacherCreature
The issue is there is little to no comment section moderation so the trolls have free reign. You keep the bad apples in the basket and they spoil the barrel. It’s the cultural state of this site now. It’s almost never worth the effort to make an informed, thought-out post without it getting buried by nonsense and vitriol so common under every article. IP and user banning would be help.
OnlyHereToday
Hey lowereastsider – thank you – nice to read a well-constructed and helpful comment. Appreciated greatly.
SalaryCapMyth
I can confirm some of what you have experienced. I’ve been to many baseball comment sections and this one can get pretty ugly.
Spell a word wrong, misstate a stat, make a generally innocent statement and the wolves will be all over you.
There are posters here who you can have a good conversation with, disagree with, and it remain civil. Posters like Human Rain Delay, Darkside, RunDMC, Halo11fan, Cosmodius, Javia, Dorothy_mantooth, Brandon Sans I have had civil conversations with and there are others that I don’t remember off the top of my head.
I have no doubt other posters might have unkind things to say about the posters I mentioned above and they may not have kind things to say about me as well. I have lashed out in annoyance at some of the posters myself.
This is really something you will have to see for yourself and make a judgement but in my opinion, there really are posters here who are civil and knowledgeable. You will just have to divide the wheat from the chaff if you decide to stick around.
bhambrave
You picked a thread on a topic about which people feel very strongly. Most people think the Astros are scum. Their few defenders are passionate about that defense. Naturally people are going to be more vitriolic than on most other topics.
OnlyHereToday
Thanks Salary Cap… am seeing it – quite scary. Thanks for the valuable insight.
Dumpster Divin Theo
Dogbone the sad troller saya hi from his mamas basement.
99 Captain Judge
Famous quote from the movie The Sting“ What was I supposed to do, accuse them of cheating better then me in front of the others?” The Stros’ and the Red Suks need to have their championships taken away IMMEDIATELY!!! They will never live this down, ever.
shortytallz
Dirty cheaters should be banned for life, like Shoeless Joe and Charlie Hustle.
Dumpster Divin Theo
Except Shoeless Joe is less culpable than any of the Astros. 1) Didn’t cheat. 2) Didn’t benefit from the scheme. 3) Didn’t alter his performance in the series.
Halo11Fan
From his comments, I don’t think Springer is one of the bad guys, I also don’t expect him to resign with the Astros.
Dorothy_Mantooth
I wonder if Boston will make a run at Springer to replace JBJ. While I’m hopeful that Jaren Duran will be their CF of the future, Benny looks lost out there and Verdugo is off to an auspicious start. Springer would certainly add some much need pop to Boston’s lineup as a lead off batter and if he continues to falter this year, they might be able to get him at a reasonable cost. This only happens if the league makes it past August 31st and the Red Sox CBT resets. They’ll probably need JDM to opt out as well for this to be possible as they’ll need to spend a lot of money on pitching this off season. I see Boston offering Bauer a huge deal in the offseason, pending the CBT reset of course.
HalosHeavenJJ
Walking a dangerous line using the phrase “taken a beating” when discussing the Astros bullpen.
PiratesFan1981
Another Baker attack
Dumpster Divin Theo
Dont blame him. He banged the can a bit too vociferously when encouraged to proffer more cowbell please.
Dumpster Divin Theo
First Prior. Then Wood. Now Springer. Blame Dusty.