HOMERS? The Astros???

So I got my first dose of Spring Training today. I watched the Astros beat up the Nats 10-2, winning a second game on the power of their ... HOME RUNS?!? CJ knocked in the winning 2-run homer yesterday, and today's blowout was courtesy of 3 home runs, including a pair of 3-run babies by two guys named Martinez (JD and Fernando). Two games (and two first-week-of-Spring-Training games at that) is too small a sample to draw conclusions from, of course. But for a team that didn't have much in the way of homers last year, it was fun to watch. The other thing that was great to see was the way that the Astros generated those runs -- mostly with 2 outs on the board. Nice thing about a young team with some competition for the roster: They aren't slacking off in Florida. 


It was a MASN broadcast, since the game was in Viera, and the Nats' broadcasters pointed out how hard the wind was blowing to left field. That was a likely factor in the Astros' homers, but the Nats had the same windy field to play on. The Astros also benefited from 8 walks (more than they had in the first couple of weeks of last season, I think), 2 Nats errors, 3 wild pitches, and a hit batter. Every little bit helps.

Given my dilemma about whether to try to switch my allegiance from my original home team (after 49 years) to my current home team, it was a good chance to see both teams. Stephen Strasburg has a good first spring start, lasting into the third inning. The Nats have a bunch of the Astros' former players -- Lidge, Fulchino, and Michaels were all in today's game.

Hi to Carole and Mitch and my other Spring Training buds - wish I were down there too!