Post by bstros on Apr 18, 2007 7:54:05 GMT -5
Oswalt, Lee too much for Marlins
Astros' ace goes to 3-0 on the young season
By Alyson Footer / MLB.com
HOUSTON -- Nicknamed "El Caballo," meaning, "The horse," Carlos Lee probably finds it only fitting that his 10-man cheering section in the left field seats has named itself "Los Caballitos" -- "Little horses."
It's probably also only apropos that "Los Caballitos" presented "El Caballo" with a gift prior to Tuesday's game -- a toy horse on a stick.
Los Caballitos instructed El Caballo to ride the horse every time he hits a home run. True to his word, Lee giddy-upped in the dugout following his two-run blast in the fourth frame, which buoyed the Astros to a 6-1 win over the Florida Marlins before 38,106 fans at Minute Maid Park.
"They told me if I hit a homer, I would have to ride it," Lee said. "I promised them I would. I did."
"That," Roy Oswalt observed, "Is a big man on a horse."
The Astros were all smiles and chuckles after their win Tuesday, which sealed a modest two-game sweep over the Marlins in the shortest "homestand" of the year. The Astros have reached the .500 mark for the first time this year, they've won five of their last six games, and are finally feeling like they're coming together as a team.
This win centered around two men who will be responsible for a lot of the team's successes for many years -- Oswalt and Lee. Oswalt pitched 6 1/3 strong innings on three days of rest, and Lee was 3-for-4 with four RBIs. He is riding a six-game hitting streak, during which he's hitting .407.
And he seems to do well when Oswalt's on the mound. In Oswalt's last two starts, Lee has hit four homers and driven in 10 runs.
"He better buy me dinner," Lee joked. "But I call that coincidence. That doesn't happen very often. You have to enjoy it every time it happens."
Lee's infectious personality has fit in well with the Astros, a professional, yet tight-knit, group. Although the season is only 12 games old, the struggles the Astros fought early, when they were 0-4, seem to be fading from memory.
At that time, Lee, hitting around .200, said he wasn't feeling comfortable. It's safe to assume the slugging left field has found his groove, at least for the time being.
"I hope I feel like this for a long time, but you're going to go through periods where you don't feel that good," Lee said. "Yesterday, I didn't feel good at all at the plate. I talked to [hitting coach] Sean Berry about it and said, 'I don't feel good today, and we have to do something about it.'
"It's just a game, up and down, and hopefully, when you're down, you have to figure out a way to maintain."
Count manager Phil Garner as one who wasn't worried about Lee's slow start.
"The thing we noticed right off the bat, right early in Spring Training, is that when he swings the bat he usually makes contact," Garner said. "I think what happened, he was overswinging early and trying to somehow justify the contract in the first few days. Trying to do too much.
"He's settling in now. He's unbelievable with two strikes. He cuts it down a little bit, he makes contact and things happen."
One of the main beneficiaries of Lee's plate discipline is Oswalt, who threw 100 pitches only four days after he threw 120 in a tough win in Philadelphia. This time, Oswalt held the Marlins to one run -- a leadoff homer by Hanley Ramirez on the third pitch of the game.
Oswalt was hoping to be more efficient in this outing, but Marlins hitters were frustratingly patient with him, working to multiple full counts, especially in the middle innings.
The right-hander was able to relax, however, especially in the fifth, when Lee's two-run double contributed to a four-run frame.
"It doesn't matter who drives them in, as long as someone drives them in," Oswalt said. "It's a big plus. Once you get a cushion you can go right after guys. Before then you've got to pitch with caution and not give up too many runs. You get a cushion, I tend to go right after them, make them hit the ball."
"That's Roy," Garner said. "You expect good things out of him."
Also holding his weight was Craig Biggio, who logged two hits to bring his career total to 2,944. He now owns 30th place on the all-time hit list, passing Frank Robinson (2,943). His next target is Willie Keeler, who has 2,955 career hits.
Biggio has been racing past some of the biggest names in the game as he inches his way up the record books, and he admitted he's running out of ways to express, on a semi-daily basis, how overwhelmed he is by where he stacks up in Major League history.
"Everybody, from here on out, was an unbelievable player in their day," he said. "I truly am humbled by all this stuff.
"I don't know what to say. I'm trying to be creative and wing it. It is pretty cool stuff. I appreciate it, I respect it, I love it. I don't know what to say anymore. These guys played the game the right way, they played it for a long time. To have your name associated with these guys special stuff."
Alyson Footer is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
Astros' ace goes to 3-0 on the young season
By Alyson Footer / MLB.com
HOUSTON -- Nicknamed "El Caballo," meaning, "The horse," Carlos Lee probably finds it only fitting that his 10-man cheering section in the left field seats has named itself "Los Caballitos" -- "Little horses."
It's probably also only apropos that "Los Caballitos" presented "El Caballo" with a gift prior to Tuesday's game -- a toy horse on a stick.
Los Caballitos instructed El Caballo to ride the horse every time he hits a home run. True to his word, Lee giddy-upped in the dugout following his two-run blast in the fourth frame, which buoyed the Astros to a 6-1 win over the Florida Marlins before 38,106 fans at Minute Maid Park.
"They told me if I hit a homer, I would have to ride it," Lee said. "I promised them I would. I did."
"That," Roy Oswalt observed, "Is a big man on a horse."
The Astros were all smiles and chuckles after their win Tuesday, which sealed a modest two-game sweep over the Marlins in the shortest "homestand" of the year. The Astros have reached the .500 mark for the first time this year, they've won five of their last six games, and are finally feeling like they're coming together as a team.
This win centered around two men who will be responsible for a lot of the team's successes for many years -- Oswalt and Lee. Oswalt pitched 6 1/3 strong innings on three days of rest, and Lee was 3-for-4 with four RBIs. He is riding a six-game hitting streak, during which he's hitting .407.
And he seems to do well when Oswalt's on the mound. In Oswalt's last two starts, Lee has hit four homers and driven in 10 runs.
"He better buy me dinner," Lee joked. "But I call that coincidence. That doesn't happen very often. You have to enjoy it every time it happens."
Lee's infectious personality has fit in well with the Astros, a professional, yet tight-knit, group. Although the season is only 12 games old, the struggles the Astros fought early, when they were 0-4, seem to be fading from memory.
At that time, Lee, hitting around .200, said he wasn't feeling comfortable. It's safe to assume the slugging left field has found his groove, at least for the time being.
"I hope I feel like this for a long time, but you're going to go through periods where you don't feel that good," Lee said. "Yesterday, I didn't feel good at all at the plate. I talked to [hitting coach] Sean Berry about it and said, 'I don't feel good today, and we have to do something about it.'
"It's just a game, up and down, and hopefully, when you're down, you have to figure out a way to maintain."
Count manager Phil Garner as one who wasn't worried about Lee's slow start.
"The thing we noticed right off the bat, right early in Spring Training, is that when he swings the bat he usually makes contact," Garner said. "I think what happened, he was overswinging early and trying to somehow justify the contract in the first few days. Trying to do too much.
"He's settling in now. He's unbelievable with two strikes. He cuts it down a little bit, he makes contact and things happen."
One of the main beneficiaries of Lee's plate discipline is Oswalt, who threw 100 pitches only four days after he threw 120 in a tough win in Philadelphia. This time, Oswalt held the Marlins to one run -- a leadoff homer by Hanley Ramirez on the third pitch of the game.
Oswalt was hoping to be more efficient in this outing, but Marlins hitters were frustratingly patient with him, working to multiple full counts, especially in the middle innings.
The right-hander was able to relax, however, especially in the fifth, when Lee's two-run double contributed to a four-run frame.
"It doesn't matter who drives them in, as long as someone drives them in," Oswalt said. "It's a big plus. Once you get a cushion you can go right after guys. Before then you've got to pitch with caution and not give up too many runs. You get a cushion, I tend to go right after them, make them hit the ball."
"That's Roy," Garner said. "You expect good things out of him."
Also holding his weight was Craig Biggio, who logged two hits to bring his career total to 2,944. He now owns 30th place on the all-time hit list, passing Frank Robinson (2,943). His next target is Willie Keeler, who has 2,955 career hits.
Biggio has been racing past some of the biggest names in the game as he inches his way up the record books, and he admitted he's running out of ways to express, on a semi-daily basis, how overwhelmed he is by where he stacks up in Major League history.
"Everybody, from here on out, was an unbelievable player in their day," he said. "I truly am humbled by all this stuff.
"I don't know what to say. I'm trying to be creative and wing it. It is pretty cool stuff. I appreciate it, I respect it, I love it. I don't know what to say anymore. These guys played the game the right way, they played it for a long time. To have your name associated with these guys special stuff."
Alyson Footer is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.