Astros Extend Streak to Five on My Last Day in Kissimmee

It is such a bummer going home from Spring Training. In a more perfect world (one where the Dow is at about 14ooo, where deer don't eat all the bulbs you planted last fall, and where there's no need for security checks in airports), I'd be able to stay until the Astros' equipment truck heads back to Houston. But in the Real (and less perfect) World, after 8 days it was time to go back to the office. Tuesday was the last day of my annual pilgrimage to Kissimmee for Astros Spring Training.

I did get a cheerful sendoff, however, as the Astros extended their winning streak to five games by shutting out the much-hated Mets 8-0. (It's a long story, dating back to my childhood.) While I make no pretense of having magical powers, it was great fun to arrive just in time for the big turn-around. My presence in Kissimmee, just as the Astros started to win, even earned me a reference in RoundRock15's excellent Misplaced Astros Fan blog. But before I talk about the game - which featured the first appearance of the Rodriguez and Rodriguez battery - I need to acknowledge the other fans who contributed to the spirited team support on Tuesday.

The first Fans of the Day are Maria and Alfred from Houston, who were there all decked out in Astros jerseys and hats. This is their first-ever Spring Training, and they are having a great time. I am sure that this will be the first of many March trips to Kissimmee for them.

The other Fan of the Day is Tony from Melbourne, who sat next to us at the game. For those of you who are not familiar with Florida geography, Melbourne is where the ubiquitous US 192 (AKA Irlo Bronson Highway) deadends at the Atlantic. Tony and some of his pals from Melbourne were playing hooky from work on a gorgeous sunny day - who can blame them? An amateur shortstop, Tony wasn't totally sure that he qualifies as an Astros fan, but after I offered him this place of honor in my blog, he decided to convert (at least for this game). Hopefully, his boss won't read my blog and figure out that Tony wasn't home with tonsillitis after all.

Now let's talk about baseball... A couple of years ago, the Astros featured a "Q and Q" (Qualls and Quintero) battery. This year, they have "Rodriguez and Rodriguez" - Wandy and Ivan. Given the dominence of Latino players in the big leagues, the Q Battery is probably more rare than a R and R one, but it might be the first time that the Astros have actually had a pitcher throwing to a catcher with the same name. (I sent a question to Alyson to ask about that - if you know the answer, comment on this blog.) I don't think that anyone will get them mixed up though, since both of them go by their first name or nickname - Wandy and Pudge. At any rate, the first appearance of R and R together was a great photo opportunity, and I snapped quite a few shots of them before and during the game: warming up, pitcher-throwing-to-catcher shot from behind home plate, and a little tete-a-tete on the mound. (These will all make their way into my Photo Album as I have time to post them.)

The first pairing of the R and R battery was good for both of them. Wandy R, coming back from his strained intercostal thingy, pitched a terrific game - 4 shutout innings, giving up 2 hits and 2 walks, and striking out 2. Meanwhile, Pudge R had a crowd pleasing day at the plate, hitting his first homer as an Astro, with a single thrown in for good measure.

Wandy was backed up by a very fine collection of relief pitchers: Hawkins (welcome back from the WBC!), Valverde, Brocail, Brydak, and Arias, each of whom threw one scoreless inning. Arias came the closest to giving up a run, allowing two hits and a walk, before wiggling out of the ninth inning without letting the Mets get on the board. The pitchers were backed up by some very nice fielding work, including four double plays that erased the few Mets players who dared to get on base. Even if it was the traveling squad of Mets players, not all their starters who got out of the long bus trip, kudos go to the pitching staff for shutting them down completely.

The Astros did a nice job at the plate to keep this from being another down-to-the-wire 1-0 game. While either of their single-run innings (the 3rd and 6th) would have sufficed to win, the big six-run inning in the middle made this game quite entertaining. The fifth inning featured Pudge's home run and Blum's 3-run double. It also included a crazy run that resulted when Bourn singled, then made it all the way home on a fielding error. (His OBP could be better, but that guy sure can fly!)

Anti-Sampson Watch: Berkman was clean-shaven and went 2 for 3 - two singles and a walk. After leaving Kissimmee, I'll be able to use the box scores to assess Berkman's hitting but it will be hard to link it to his facial hair quotient without regular photos. I wonder if Alyson would be willing to post a daily mugshot?

Two other notables at Tuesday's game: Ex-President Bush was back again, sitting behind home plate with team owner Uncle Drayton. I particularly enjoyed the way that Hunter Pence stood right in front of the former Leader of the Free World to take his on-deck swings. But for me, while I applaud Bush Sr's taste in baseball teams, the bigger thrill was seeing Jeff Bagwell at the game. (Hey, I'm a lifelong Democrat.) In uniform -- not the usual flowered cotton shirts -- Bagwell spent much of the game sitting with the coaches.


Okay, enough blogging. I have a couple of thousand photos to go through, and to pick a hundred of so to post on the Astros Fan in Exile Photo Album. It will probably take me a couple of weeks to go through all of them - keep checking back on the website to see new pictures.