Post by bstros on Apr 19, 2007 8:37:35 GMT -5
Yes, Jason Lane is toast. Oh wait, maybe tomorrow.
SportsJustice
A sports blog with Richard Justice
Houston Chronicle
April 18, 2007
Why does Phil Garner keep running Jason Lane out there? Why is Jason Lane on the roster? Come to think of it, why is he allowed on earth? If Phil Garner knew one thing about baseball, he would have gotten rid of Jason Lane yesterday.
Yes, you wanted Jason Lane gone. Don't sit there and tell me you didn't. Don't make me go look up all those posts you published. You know I'll do it, too. We won't, though, because we're in a forgiving mood here at Houston's most popular sports blog. We're hoping you'll use Jason Lane as a lesson about the importance of not giving up on players too quickly.
Some of you will misinterpret what I'm saying. You will read this as some sort of ringing endorsement of Jason Lane. It's not that. Truth is, I have no idea what Jason Lane is still capable of. I just know a couple of things. One is that he has had 1,063 career at-bats. That's not enough to evaluate a guy's career. Let's talk again after No. 1,500.
I know, too, what scouts in this great game say about Jason Lane. They remind me over and over that he was a major contributor on a World Series team. Remember that home run in Game 6 of the 2005 NLCS? That was a big one, friend. Tim Purpura says some of his guys tell him Jason Lane is capable of being a 40-home run player.
I'm just not sure. Jason has had trouble clearing his mind and dealing with failure. He has tons of physical gifts, but he sometimes gets eaten up by the mental side.
So let's just stick to the facts. He had a tremendous season in 2005. He stunk up the joint in 2006. He had lunch with Purpura last fall and asked for a chance to come to spring training and prove himself again. He got a contract that was only partly guaranteed.
Purpura brought him back for a variety of reasons. One is, frankly, that he feels a closeness to these guys who've come up through the system, who he has helped nurture along and has seen through good times and bad, on the field and off. Jason Lane is one of those people that everyone, absolutely everyone, likes.
It would be silly to say that the first 13 games of this season are an indication that Jason Lane is out of the woods and on his way back to being a major contributor. All we know is that he's on the right road. He had a double, a home run and three RBIs in Wednesday's 7-2 victory at Cincinnati. He's hitting just .227, but he's paid to hit home runs and drive in runs. So far he's doing that despite limited playing time.
• • •
Okay, let's go to the good news:
• The Astros have won seven of nine since that 0-4 start. They're tied with Milwaukee for first place in the NL Central pending the outcome of the Brewers-Pirates game.
• Chris Sampson was terrific again, allowing two runs in seven innings. He's 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA.
• Garner again mixed and matched his lineup. Mike Lamb got two hits, Lance Berkman drove in a run and Mark Loretta had a run-scoring pinch hit.
Now for the other side...
• Craig Biggio is hitting .237, Luke Scott .235. Chris Burke was on the bench with a .200 batting average.
• • •
Pitching depth? Juan Gutierrez pitched seven shutout innings for Round Rock on Wednesday. He retired 13 straight hitters at one point. Fernando Nieve pitched six shutout innings on Tuesday. Hunter Pence doubled in two runs in the ninth on Wednesday.
• • •
This is why you have to love the NFL. Because in a week when we could all use a reason to smile, when so much of the news has been horrifyingly bad, the NFL has come through for us with word that Bears LB Brian Urlacher was fined $100,000 for wearing a cap promoting an unauthorized sponsor. Shame on you, Brian. You better not bring that vitaminwater this way again.
• • •
Rutgers women's basketball coach Vivian Stringer has signed a deal to write an autobiography. It's title: "Stepping Up and Standing Tall.''
Posted by Richard at April 18, 2007 09:26 PM
SportsJustice
A sports blog with Richard Justice
Houston Chronicle
April 18, 2007
Why does Phil Garner keep running Jason Lane out there? Why is Jason Lane on the roster? Come to think of it, why is he allowed on earth? If Phil Garner knew one thing about baseball, he would have gotten rid of Jason Lane yesterday.
Yes, you wanted Jason Lane gone. Don't sit there and tell me you didn't. Don't make me go look up all those posts you published. You know I'll do it, too. We won't, though, because we're in a forgiving mood here at Houston's most popular sports blog. We're hoping you'll use Jason Lane as a lesson about the importance of not giving up on players too quickly.
Some of you will misinterpret what I'm saying. You will read this as some sort of ringing endorsement of Jason Lane. It's not that. Truth is, I have no idea what Jason Lane is still capable of. I just know a couple of things. One is that he has had 1,063 career at-bats. That's not enough to evaluate a guy's career. Let's talk again after No. 1,500.
I know, too, what scouts in this great game say about Jason Lane. They remind me over and over that he was a major contributor on a World Series team. Remember that home run in Game 6 of the 2005 NLCS? That was a big one, friend. Tim Purpura says some of his guys tell him Jason Lane is capable of being a 40-home run player.
I'm just not sure. Jason has had trouble clearing his mind and dealing with failure. He has tons of physical gifts, but he sometimes gets eaten up by the mental side.
So let's just stick to the facts. He had a tremendous season in 2005. He stunk up the joint in 2006. He had lunch with Purpura last fall and asked for a chance to come to spring training and prove himself again. He got a contract that was only partly guaranteed.
Purpura brought him back for a variety of reasons. One is, frankly, that he feels a closeness to these guys who've come up through the system, who he has helped nurture along and has seen through good times and bad, on the field and off. Jason Lane is one of those people that everyone, absolutely everyone, likes.
It would be silly to say that the first 13 games of this season are an indication that Jason Lane is out of the woods and on his way back to being a major contributor. All we know is that he's on the right road. He had a double, a home run and three RBIs in Wednesday's 7-2 victory at Cincinnati. He's hitting just .227, but he's paid to hit home runs and drive in runs. So far he's doing that despite limited playing time.
• • •
Okay, let's go to the good news:
• The Astros have won seven of nine since that 0-4 start. They're tied with Milwaukee for first place in the NL Central pending the outcome of the Brewers-Pirates game.
• Chris Sampson was terrific again, allowing two runs in seven innings. He's 2-0 with a 1.20 ERA.
• Garner again mixed and matched his lineup. Mike Lamb got two hits, Lance Berkman drove in a run and Mark Loretta had a run-scoring pinch hit.
Now for the other side...
• Craig Biggio is hitting .237, Luke Scott .235. Chris Burke was on the bench with a .200 batting average.
• • •
Pitching depth? Juan Gutierrez pitched seven shutout innings for Round Rock on Wednesday. He retired 13 straight hitters at one point. Fernando Nieve pitched six shutout innings on Tuesday. Hunter Pence doubled in two runs in the ninth on Wednesday.
• • •
This is why you have to love the NFL. Because in a week when we could all use a reason to smile, when so much of the news has been horrifyingly bad, the NFL has come through for us with word that Bears LB Brian Urlacher was fined $100,000 for wearing a cap promoting an unauthorized sponsor. Shame on you, Brian. You better not bring that vitaminwater this way again.
• • •
Rutgers women's basketball coach Vivian Stringer has signed a deal to write an autobiography. It's title: "Stepping Up and Standing Tall.''
Posted by Richard at April 18, 2007 09:26 PM
