Pete Munro pitched seven shutout innings and Mike Lamb drove in three runs with a pair of doubles to lead the Stros over the Brewers 9-1 on Sunday in the rubber game of their weekend series at the Juice Box. The Stros have now won four of their last five games.
After giving up a pair of singles to lead off the second inning, Munro (2-2/4.46 ERA/0 RSAA) settled down and retired 13 of his next 15 batters. He allowed six hits, struck out a season-high five and walked none.
The Stros took a 4-0 lead in the third on Lamb’s bases-loaded double off the left-field scoreboard and Morgan Ensberg‘s two-run single. Lamb, who started at first in place of Bags, made it 5-0 in the fifth with an RBI double, and Adam Everett doubled in another run in the sixth.
In one of the more entertaining moments of the game, Jeff Kent was ejected by plate umpire Chris Guccione in the seventh after arguing a called strike two on a pitch Kent thought was low. Kent — who, as baseball people say “has a little turd in him” and yelled at Guccione “with sincerity” — kicked and threw dirt on home plate before he left the field with gusto. Jose Vizcaino replaced Kent with a 2-2 count and promptly nailed an RBI double on the next pitch. After a run-scoring wild pitch, Brad Ausmus cranked a rare yak to complete the Stros’ scoring. The Stros ended up with 12 hits, five of them doubles.
Despite the Stros’ power surge over the past week, their runs created against average (“RCAA,” explained here) continues to lag near the bottom of the National League (11th out of the 16 teams). Here are the updated individual RCAA figures, courtesy of Lee Sinins:
Lance Berkman 35
Craig Biggio 13
Carlos Beltran 8
Jeff Bagwell 7
Mike Lamb 6
Eric Bruntlett 1
Chris Burke -1
Jeff Kent -1
Jason Lane -2
Jose Vizcaino -3
Orlando Palmeiro -4
Richard Hidalgo -10
Raul Chavez -11
Morgan Ensberg -12
Adam Everett -13
Brad Ausmus -23
Thus, the Stros have only five players who are hitting above what an average player would generate and four regular players (Ausmus, Chavez, Ensberg, and Everett) who are hitting well below what an average player would produce. Inasmuch as Ensberg is the only likely candidate of those four to improve much during the second half of the season, and Bagwell is unlikely to increase his relatively pedestrian production during the remainder of the season. Consequently, I do not expect the Stros’ offense to improve enough in the second half to make them a viable playoff contender.
Meanwhile, the Stros pitchers’ runs saved against average (“RSAA,” explained here) remains in the upper half of the National League (sixth out of the 16 teams). The individual RSAA numbers are as follows:
Roger Clemens 23
Brad Lidge 13
Wade Miller 11
Roy Oswalt 9
Octavio Dotel 5
Dan Miceli 4
Andy Pettitte 3
Kirk Bullinger 1
Mike Gallo 1
Darren Oliver 1
Pete Munro 0
Chad Qualls -1
David Weathers -1
Brandon Backe -2
Jeremy Griffiths -3
Ricky Stone -3
Jared Fernandez -6
Chad Harville -6
Brandon Duckworth -8
Tim Redding -11
Although the pitching staff is performing above-average overall, the production is still a bit deceptive. Miller and Dotel, both of whom contributed above-average production, are no longer pitching for the club (Dotel has been traded and Miller’s return this season is questionable at this point due to a shoulder injury). Moreover, Harville, Duckworth and Redding are time bombs every time they take the mound, as their well-below average RSAA numbers reflect. Oswalt is a definite candidate to improve his RSAA during the second half and Redding could if he returns to his form of last season, but some leveling off of Clemens‘ incredible performance is to be expected. Accordingly, even though I expect the Stros’ pitching performance to remain above-average, I do not expect the performance to improve enough over the last part of the season to compensate for the Stros’ below average hitting and allow the Stros to compete for the wildcard playoff spot.
And, just so you will not be misinformed by the Chronicle sportswriters’ baseless criticism of Stros’ management for trading Hidalgo, Wagner, and Dotel, each of those three players has had decidedly mediocre performance this season. Although Hidalgo has a +5 RCAA since joining the Mets, he is still a -5 for the season, which makes him the best paid below average rightfielder in the National League. Dotel has a barely above average RSAA when his numbers from Houston and Oakland are combined, and Wagner has battled injuries all season while posting a relatively mediocre +5 RSAA for the Phillies. Truth be known, Stros’ management did a good job in trading each one of those players, particularly given the over-market contracts that both Hidalgo and Wagner enjoy.
The Stros send Andy Pettiitte to the hill on Monday in the first game of a four game set with the DBacks at the Juice Box. After that series, the Stros go to Cincy for a weekend series with the Reds before returning home in the first week of August for a six game homestand against the Braves and Expos.