Houston Astros: Bold Predictions Based On Spring Training

With Opening Day only Two Weeks Away, Here are some Bold Predictions for your Houston Astros

This might sound a bit crazy, but I’ve had a busy month of March with school and Spring Break travel, so I’m going to make three bold predictions for the Astros based on one Spring Training game that I had the fortune of attending in Jupiter, Florida on March 12. Bare with me here, as I think you’ll like my predictions.

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The game that I attended featured the Astros and the Cardinals in an essential split-squad game for both teams. The Cardinals were in an actual split-squad that afternoon while the Astros did not want to send their star players all the way down to Jupiter for just one game. I expected a boring afternoon game where Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright would dominate, but that was not the result.

The Astros lost 4-3, but there were a lot of role players who shined in defeat. I won’t mention him in my bold predictions, so I’ll go ahead and give Danny Worth credit for hitting a solo home run and RBI double off Wainwright, providing offense for the Astros when no one else could.

While sluggers like Carlos Correa, Carlos Gomez, Colby Rasmus, Jose Altuve, and George Springer did not make the trip, some players impressed me. Ok, enough of the introduction, let’s get to it.

Next: Bold Prediction #1: Mike Fiers Will Make American League All-Star Roster

Mike Fiers Will Have a Breakout Season in 2016, Becoming the Astros’ #2 Starter and Earning a Spot on the American League All-Star Roster.

While many Astros fans have turned their focus to Dallas Keuchel and Lance McCullers to anchor the rotation for years to come, Mike Fiers has slowly progressed during his time in Houston. We paid attention to Fiers one night last season in August, and he pitched a No-No against the Los Angeles Dodgers. This season, more production is on the way.

When he began his MLB career in 2012, Fiers was a valuable pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers. Throughout his time in Milwaukee, he showed flashes of greatness marked by periods of inconsistency and setbacks due to injury. After starting a full season’s worth of games in 2012, Fiers sat out all of 2013 after breaking his pitching arm on a line drive.

Since then, Fiers has put together stretches of solid performances both in Milwaukee and in Houston but has not been able to stretch out this quality starts for a full season. His potential showed through his 2.14 ERA in 2014 with the Brewers and his no-hitter for the Astros in August of 2015, but for some reason, he has not been able to stay consistently in a rotation.

In 2016, Fiers has put up great Spring Training numbers and cemented himself in the Astros starting rotation. He has now had a full offseason and spring training to work with Astros pitching coach Brent Strom, and looks as sharp as ever headed into the regular season. With Lance McCullers now starting the season on the disabled list, it looks as if Fiers could move himself up into the top half of the Astros’ starting rotation to begin the season.

In the Spring Training game that I got to watch live and in person, Fiers pitched three perfect innings against a Cardinals lineup that included Matt Carpenter, Matt Holliday, Tommy Pham, and Matt Adams. In those three innings, Fiers struck out four and possessed a superb command of his pitches. He worked through the Cardinals’ order quickly, wasting no pitches and fooling some of the minor league hitters in the lineup.

If Fiers can maintain his numbers and momentum that he has put together in the spring, he will take advantage of the great opportunity in front of him. With Dallas Keuchel as the ace of the staff, Fiers will be the unexpected pitcher to complete the 1-2 punch for the Astros in 2016. In fact, Fiers will use his impeccable command and looping curveball to propel him to the All-Star Game in San Diego.

Next: Bold Prediction #2: Pat Neshek Will Be Most Dominant Astros Reliever

Preston Tucker Will Establish Himself as Astros Designated Hitter in 2016 and Never Look Back

Besides establishing a reputation as a (Detroit) Tiger Killer in 2015, Preston Tucker became a force in the Astros lineup for a large portion of the season. Bam-Bam also became a fan favorite with his laid back personality and clutch late-inning hits and home runs.

So far, all Tucker has done in 2016 is get better. In Spring Training, Tucker is lighting it up with a .292/.346/.583 slash line, two home runs, six RBIs, and only five strikeouts. The only thing slowing Tucker down in Florida during the last few weeks is…

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With Evan Gattis sidelined to begin the season, I believe that Tucker will get his opportunity at designated hitter on Opening Day. Tucker has his issues in the outfield, but at the plate, he’s a patient hitter who can hit for a lot of power and also for contact. The Astros will look to have an elite defensive outfield with George Springer, Carlos Gomez, Colby Rasmus, and Jake Marisnick. Tucker, although he can hold his own out there, does not have nearly the defensive ability of this group.

When Gattis returns, the Astros will definitely have a decision to make, but my bold prediction is that Tucker will have the position locked up by that point. Baseball Reference projects Tucker to hit 13 home runs, drive in 39 RBIs, and produce a slash line of .254/.311/.435 in 2016.

I believe that Tucker can and will blow away these numbers, hitting 22 home runs and driving in around 70 RBIs this season. His average will hover around .270, and he will maintain a low number of strikeouts. The Astros will rely on Tucker to be a hitter that isn’t as free-swinging as the rest of the club, and Tucker will do his job.

Astros manager A.J. Hinch indicated earlier this week that Tucker is out of the mix at first base, but that does not mean that he won’t make the Opening Day roster. It would be the biggest mistake of the young 2016 season for Houston as Tucker is primed to have a breakout performance in 2016 and solidify himself as the Astros’ designated hitter of the future.

Next: Michael Feliz Should Be Next Man Up in Astros Rotation

I hope you all enjoyed these bold predictions for the half of the roster that I watched a couple weeks ago. If even one of these predictions comes true, all Astros fans will be ecstatic.