Bogusevic, De Leon, Shuck elect free agency

The Astros have announced that outfielders Brian Bogusevic, J.B. Shuck and pitcher Jorge De Leon have all elected free agency after refusing their outright assignments.

Bogusevic spent most of the 2012 season as Houston's primary right fielder, hitting .203 in 404 plate appearances. Shuck hit .298 in 358 Triple-A plate appearances. Jorge De Leon spent the whole season in High-A, posting a 7.70 ERA in 40 appearances, 14 of which were starts.

Analysis: The Astros really won't be impacted by any of these moves. Bogusevic wasn't anything special, and only got playing time I'm assuming because the Astros were giving him an audition at the everyday job. I see him more as an everyday player. Shuck has some upside so a team should take a flier on him. De Leon had a solid rookie season in the minor leagues, but his terrible 2012 season will scare off plenty of teams.

Astros outright Fick to Triple-A

The Astros have announced that pitcher Chuckie Fick has cleared waivers and will be outrighted to Triple-A.

Houston claimed Fick off of waivers from the Cardinals back in July, and posted a 4.30 ERA in 23 relief innings with Houston in 2012.

Analysis: Fick's minor league numbers look good but anytime you get removed from the Astros' roster, that is sort of saying that you should consider a different profession. However, he has some upside so Houston will hold onto him.

Brewers claim Arcenio Leon

The Brewers have announced that they have claimed pitcher Arcenio Leon off of waivers from the Astros.

Leon spent the entire 2012 season pitching in Double-A, posting a 4.38 ERA in 63 2/3 innings. He has had some control issues in the past, posting a career 5.2 BB/9 ratio.

Analysis: Leon seems like a power bullpen arm, but I doubt that he'll get the call to the big leagues any time soon because he needs to get his control down. This isn't a big move for either side, but it is nice to see the Brewers making moves, regardless of how they small they are, to beef up that bullpen.

Astros claim Demel, Elmore off of waivers

The Astros have claimed pitcher Sam Demel and shortstop Jake Elmore off of waivers from the Diamondbacks.

Demel has posted a combined 4.95 ERA in 72 relief appearances with Arizona since 2010. Elmore made his MLB debut during the 2012 season, hitting .191 in 73 plate appearances.

Analysis: Demel is bullpen depth at best, but I'm surprised that the Diamondbacks let Elmore go. I thought that they were going to give him a longer look at the shortstop position, considering that it was empty when the club traded away Stephen Drew. He is a good pickup by the Astros, and could be used as shortstop depth in case Jed Lowrie is traded away.

6 Astros players clear waivers, 5 become free agents

The Astros have announced that six players have cleared waivers and five of them will become free agents.Those players are Fernando Abad, Sergio Escalona, Edgar Gonzalez, Jose Valdez, Kyle Weiland and Matt Downs. Everyone will become a free agent expect Kyle Weiland, who has been sent down to Triple-A.

Abad posted a 5.09 ERA in 37 appearances for Houston last season. Escalona last appeared in the major leagues in 2011, posting a 2.93 ERA in 49 appearances. Gonzalez posted a 5.04 ERA in 6 appearances with Houston in 2012. Valdez posted a 2.25 ERA in 12 relief appearances for Houston. Wieland posted a 6.62 ERA in three starts with the Astros before undergoing Tommy John surgery in the Spring. Downs hit .202 with 8 home runs in 191 plate appearances with the Astros in 2012.

Analysis: Hmm. Most of these players are just ALRIGHT and I doubt that the Astros will miss them. Yet again, some of them will probably be re-signed on minor league deals.

Braves claim Jordan Schafer

The Braves have announced that they have claimed outfielder Jordan Schafer off of waivers from the Astros. Schafer played in the Braves' organization from 2005-2011 before going to Houston in last year's Michael Bourn trade.

Schafer appeared in 106 games for the Astros in 2012, hitting .211 with 27 stolen bases as the team's everyday center-fielder for the most part. He spent a good part of the season on the disabled list with a shoulder injury.

Analysis: There really isn't any risk here for the Braves. They are probably just claiming him as a backup plan just in case Bourn leaves via free agency. Schafer has a boatload of talent but I believe some attitude problems, and health issues, have held back his development.  I know one thing, if the Astros give up on you, you have to really take a deep breath and think about what you are doing with your career.

Astros decline option for Snyder

The Astros have announced that they have declined the 2013 club option for catcher Chris Snyder. Snyder will earn a $500k buyout instead of the $4 million salary. He will now become a free agent.

Snyder appeared in 76 games for Houston in 2012, hitting .176 with 7 home runs in 258 plate appearances.

Analysis: The Astros are looking to get younger and cheaper, and Snyder is really not a good player. He has some pop to his bat, but not enough to really make him a starter even on a bad team like the Astros. Now we'll hopefully see Jason Castro see everyday time as Houston's starting catcher, and hopefully he can live up to his first round pick hype.

Astros designate Del Rosario for assignment

The Astros have designated pitcher Enerio Del Rosario for assignment to create roster space for Che-Hsuan Lin, who was recently claimed off of waivers from the Red Sox.

Del Rosario posted a 9.00 ERA in 19 relief innings for Houston in 2012.

Analysis: Del Rosario isn't really anything special and I am certain that he will clear waivers. Not a big deal. 

Astros claim Lin off of waivers

The Astros have claimed outfielder Che-Hsuan Lin off of waivers from the Red Sox. Boston designated Lin for assignment last week.

Lin made his MLB debut in 2012, but spent most of the season in Triple-A, hitting .247 in 445 plate appearances.

Analysis: Ok well this makes sense I suppose. Lin has a decent amount of upside and is pretty much a major league ready prospect. Is he going to be great and live up to his potential? I don't know. All I know is that the Astros are rebuilding and Lin will certainly get a chance to prove himself there.

Astros hire Bo Porter

The Astros have officially hired Bo Porter to be their manager starting in 2013. Porter, who is currently the third base coach for the Nationals, will finish out the season with them and join Houston when the season is over.

Porter has no managing experience at the big league level, and has served as the Nats' third base coach for the last two years. He served as Kirk Gibson's interim bench coach also when he was in the Diamondbacks' organization.

Houston fired manager Brad Mills last month and have had interim manager Tony DeFrancesco calling the shots ever since.

Analysis: I like this signing by the Astros. Porter has gotten into several incidents with the Nationals this season, and definitely has a fiery attitude. I'm not concerned with the fact that he has no managing experience, because hey, everyone has to start somewhere right?

Astros, Rays complete Francisco deal

The Astros and Rays have completed the Ben Francisco trade, sending prospect Theron Geith to Houston as the player to be named later.

Geith was a 39th round pick by Tampa Bay in the 2011 draft, and has posted a 2.98 ERA in 31 relief appearances for Single-A ball this season.

Analysis: I think that this will end up being a win-win situation for both clubs, regardless of whether Tampa Bay makes the playoffs this year. The Rays got Francisco, who is an ideal bench player to have. The Astros now have Geith, who, despite his 39th round draft pick hype, or lack of hype for that matter, is actually playing well in the minor leagues. He is 23 years old, so he may want to start picking up the pace in the minors if he wants to have a future in Houston. He is a relief pitcher, and could possibly end up being a nice setup man for Houston or another team in his career.

Astros release Francisco Cordero

The Astros have released veteran relief pitcher Francisco Cordero.

Houston acquired Cordero in the 10-player trade with Toronto in July. The deal also gave them Ben Francisco (now with the Rays) and five minor league prospects. Houston immediately used Cordero as their stop-gap closer, he struggled in his 5 innings pitched with Houston, and landed on the disabled list more than a month ago.

Cordero signed a one year, $4.5 million deal with Toronto in January to serve as their setup man behind Sergio Santos. Cordero has definitely had his worst season of his career in 2012, posting a 7.55 ERA in 39 1/3 innings.

Analysis: Well we had to see this coming. Cordero is obviously not part of the future and I thought that Houston would try to flip him to another team when they acquired him in July. He is definitely out of the prime of his career, but is still one of the more underrated closer's of his generation. It wouldn't surprise me if he retired because he doesn't have anything else to prove at this point.

Hamburger outrighted to Triple-A

The Astros have announced that pitcher Mark Hamburger has cleared waivers and will be outrighted to Triple-A.

Houston acquired Hamburger in a waiver claim from the Padres in July. He owns a career 4.03 ERA in six minor league seasons.

Analysis: Not surprising. Hamburger isn't really anything special considering that he put up poor numbers in the minor leagues.

Astros claim Laird off of waivers

The Astros have claimed third baseman Brandon Laird off of waivers from the Yankees. Laird was designated for assignment by New York on August 27.

He has spent the entire season in Triple-A, where he has hit .254 with 15 homers in 550 plate appearances.

Analysis: Nice move here by the Astros. I was somewhat surprised when the Yankees designated Laird for assignment because he has nice upside and some pop to his bat. Now the Astros have a bunch of third basemen with decent upside, most notably Matt Dominguez and Jimmy Paredes.

Gonzalez tears ligament in ankle, out for season

The Astros have announced that shortstop Marwin Gonzalez is out for the season following an MRI that showed that he has a torn ligament in his ankle. He has injured after landing awkwardly on first base in Thursday's game against the Giants.

Gonzalez won't be placed on the disabled list because interim manager Tony DeFrancesco doesn't believe that the injury will require surgery, plus the rosters expand today. 

Gonzalez was selected in the Rule 5 draft by the Astros a few months ago. He hit .234 with 2 homers and 12 RBI's on the season. 

Analysis: I hate when I see these type of injuries. Gonzalez is playing for a team that will struggle to get 50 wins on the season, and he puts in his full effort to beat out a grounder in a four run game. Tough break for a good guy, and hopefully he recovers nicely. He is still very young, so hopefully he has a roster spot next season. 

Rays acquire Francisco from Houston

The Rays have acquired outfielder Ben Francisco from the Astros in exchange for a player to be named later. Houston acquired Francisco earlier this year from the Blue Jays in the ten-player trade on July 20.

Francisco hit .244 with 2 homers in 144 plate appearances for the Astros and Blue Jays this season. He has a career .258 batting average.

Analysis: You had to figure that the the Astros would try and get rid of Francisco. He is a somewhat valuable bench player to have and a player to be named later is better than a soon-to-be free agent. As for the Rays, nice move here because Francisco will really help their bench. He will probably provide a spark off of the bench for them.

Yankees acquire Steve Pearce

The Yankees have acquired Steve Pearce from the Astros in exchange for cash considerations. Pearce played for the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate earlier this year, and will serve as a right handed hitter off the bench for New York for the remainder of the season.

Pearce has a career .277 batting average against left handed pitching. The Giants were previously interested in acquiring Pearce, but they apparently let him pass through waivers (they have waiver priority over all American League teams, including the Yankees.)

Analysis: Like I said yesterday, Pearce could probably be acquiring through cash considerations or a PTBNL, and acquiring him is a good move by the Yankees. He is somewhat versatile, and provides a power bat off of the bench. Houston didn't have any use for him so good trade for both sides.

Galarraga outrighted to Triple-A

The Astros announced that pitcher Armando Galarraga has cleared waivers and will be outrighted to Triple-A.

Galarraga posted a 6.75 ERA in 24 innings with Houston this year. The Astros designated him for assignment last week.

Analysis: Not a big suprise here Galarraga is probably a #5 starter on a decent pitching staff anyway. I'm not surprised that no big league team wants to waste a roster spot on him.

Astros open to signing Roger Clemens

Astros owner Jim Crane has told several reporters that he is open to signing 50 year old pitcher Roger Clemens this year. Houston's executives were in attendance at a recent workout to watch Clemens, who signed with the independent Sugar Land Skeeters last week.

Analysis: This is a huge publicity stunt. Houston is obviously not going anywhere this year and if they sign Clemens, more people will come to their games to see how he would pitch. What I don't understand is, why not give your younger players playing time? Clemens obviously doesn't have a future with the Astros, let alone the MLB, and he would be blocking some players from getting to the major leagues.

Revisiting the Michael Bourn trade one year later

Last summer, the Astros shocked the baseball world by trading their star center fielder Michael Bourn to the Braves in exchange for a bundle of prospects. Before acquiring Bourn, the Braves were desperately looking for a lead off hitter. At the time, Bourn was one of the best, if not the best, lead off hitter in the game. Let's take a look at how this trade has impacted each team this season. 

Braves acquire:

Michael Bourn- .289 batting average, league-leading 34 stolen bases, 9 homers, 52 RBI, 10 triples

Astros acquire:

Brett Oberholtzer- Triple-A stats: 5.00 ERA, 13 starts, 75.2 innings pitched, 10.8 H/9

Paul Clemens- Triple-A stats: 6.73 ERA, 20 starts, 101.2 innings pitched, 12.8 H/9
                      Double-A stats: 4.11 ERA, 5 starts, 30.2 innings pitched, 8.2 K/9

Juan Abreu- (In Blue Jays organization)- Triple-A stats: 0.00 ERA, 1 appearance

Jordan Schafer- .216 batting average, 26 stolen bases, 23 RBI


As you can see, its clear that the Braves have probably won this trade. Bourn has been fantastic for Atlanta this year, and is making former Astros GM Ed Wade look like an idiot for trading him away for practically nothing. Bourn is a free agent after the season, and even if he leaves Atlanta, and I still think that the Braves got the better end of this deal. Oberholtzer and Clemens do not look good at all, considering that they are really struggling in the minor leagues. Both of their hits per nine innings really startle me as well. Abreu is in the Blue Jays organization now after being claimed off of waivers by them a few weeks ago. Schafer was supposed to be the center fielder of the future for Atlanta, and many fans were worried when they traded him away. He was looked horrible this year, and has gotten into some trouble off the field.