Houston Not Throwing in the Towel

The Houston Astros added a former number one pick to their organization today, claiming Cesar Carrillo off waivers for the San Diego Padres. Carrillo, a first round pick by the Padres in 2005, has never lived up to his draft spot. In 6 minor league seasons, he has a career ERA of 5.06. Carrillo’s still just 26 and I’m sure possesses the stuff that made the Padres so high on him just 5 years ago. However, the Astros have already stated he won’t be in Houston this year and I see him as an injury-induced spot starter next season with an outside shot of making the bullpen.

I like to see the Astros still being aggressive on the waiver wire late in a season that is all but over for them. The organization has added to fairly-promising young pitchers to their minor league system in the past week. The activity is encouraging for Astros fans as all signs point to GM Ed Wade’s claim of rebuilding with a ‘youth movement’ being true.

Another piece of evidence supporting his claim is Houston’s willingness to run out their young players on a daily basis. Manager Brad Mills continues to pencil in Brett Wallace at first base despite his .208 average. And honestly, if Brett Wallace doesn’t gain more experience against major league pitching and receive a chance to become the middle-of-the-order bat they need, the Astros won’t stand a chance for quite a while.

Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn are both experiencing soreness and both got a day off today against the Nationals. Jason Bourgeois and Jason Michaels started in their absence. Bourgeois stole 2 bases and now has 12 BBs to just 11 Ks. If Bourgeois continues playing the way he’s been, he could be a clone of Michael Bourn with better plate discipline.