Astros: Nori Aoki’s veteran presence will be missed

Nori Aoki was part of the deal with the Blue Jays that brought Francisco Liriano to the Astros.

An outfielder to be named. That was the first news that came out when the Houston Astros traded for Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Francisco Liriano.  Astros fans tried to guess who it could be. Neither Derek Fisher nor Kyle Tucker made sense for a player like Liriano. Teoscar Hernandez was the first name to come out of the trade.

With Fishers’ emergence and Tucker shooting up the farm system it made sense. He would have a fresh start in Toronto. Then Major League Baseball made the trade official, and Houston outfielder Nori Aoki was part of the deal with the Blue Jays that brought back Francisco Liriano.

Fisher will get more at-bats

On the surface, this does not seem like a lot to give up.  Fisher’s .317 batting average is a good reason why Aoki is not playing. Nori on the other had his hitting .272. He’s had a better month of July, but he still has not panned out the way the Astros wanted him to. Fisher will get the much-needed at-bats to give him confidence for the postseason push. All of this is very much true. The postseason is a different beast.  Houston will be in the postseason.

George Springer will be back leading off the game with more home runs. Marwin Gonzalez is still the great utility man that the Astros will rely on. The Houston bench has plenty of talent to handle the trade.

A Veteran Presence helps

Carlos Beltran has been a great veteran presence in the clubhouse. Carlos’s 19 years of experience, including the postseason, will be valuable for the young Astros core. Beltran’s .240 average shows a player at the end of his career.

Next: Astros: Deadline dud not death knell for team

Fisher has had a great season, but you can’t alway count on a rookie in October. Aoki was a veteran who has been in tough situations here and in Japan. Nori’s 2 HR’s definitely left more to be wanted.

**Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com**