BATTERING BUNCH
Astros’ lineup looks imposing at new season’s outset.
In the final inning of the final intrasquad game of a hurried summer camp, Alex Bregman appeared from the third-base dugout. The written lineup said George Springer was scheduled to bat, but few cared about such conventions. Bregman needed another live look, a final simulated plate appearance before Friday’s regular-season opener.
Bregman stepped in against pitching prospect Brett Conine. He belted a towering fly ball near the gas pump in left-center field. It bounced off the facade, only about two feet shy of a home run. Bregman settled for a double. Michael Brantley grabbed a bat to drive him in.
Brantley batted in place of Jose Altuve, who had ended his summer camp on a 3-for-3 streak. Brantley desired a similar good feeling and laced Conine’s first pitch into the rightfield corner. Bregman scored from second as Brantley replaced him there with a double.
“I think the boys look good,” Altuve said.
While uncertainty envelops their pitching staff early in the season, the Astros can take solace in their offense. The lineup struck a franchise-record 288 home runs last season while leading the majors in on-base percentage (.352) and slugging percentage (.495).
It enters 2020 without reigning American League Rookie of the Year Yordan Alvarez — an obvious void — but possesses more than enough depth to compensate.
“Our offense is dynamite. We can strike quickly,” manager Dusty Baker said. “We have some depth. I like the fact that our young players are hungry.”
Still, with so much of its bullpen unsettled, Houston might be better served outslugging opponents early in the season. The offense hummed throughout the final week of summer camp workouts and destroyed the Kansas City Royals during the two exhibition games at Kauffman Stadium — continuity after two weeks of interruptions.
Various workout delays and postponements scrapped some of the scheduled live atbats for hitters. Twice, Bregman stayed after workouts to get more swings with bench coach Joe Espada.
The plethora of pitching absences has made it difficult for the Astros to conduct long simulated games or live batting practice sessions. And only so much can be accomplished by facing teammates anyway.
“Usually coming out of spring training, I like to get guys 30 or 40 at-bats, and a lot of our guys are right around 20 or 25,” Baker said after Monday night’s exhibition game in Kansas City. “They’ve been working extremely hard to get to this point. You wish you had more reps, but we’re out of time.”
How a lineup fares with fewer tuneup at-bats is a mystery, one almost every major league team will face during the first week of play. The Astros’ two games at Kansas City gave a look at different uniforms and an assortment of arm angles. Such a setup was a far better gauge of regular-season play.
In 18 innings against the Royals, Houston scored 21 runs and struck 25 hits. Thirteen of the hits garnered extra bases. Springer reached base in all seven of his plate appearances. Aledmys Diaz, Josh Reddick and Martin Maldonado all hit home runs.
Both games devolved into minor league showdowns after six innings, so the overall statistics can be deceiving. Houston hammered the baseball nonetheless. Across two games, they put 30 balls in play with exit velocities harder than 95 mph. Sixteen of them exited bats at speeds 100 mph or harder.
“The last two games have shown here that the guys are pretty much locked in,” catcher Dustin Garneau said. “Obviously, it’s tough just having live (atbats) and minimal scrimmages. But seeing other pitchers, other arm slots and timing and stuff, our hitters looked pretty good the last two days.”
Competition should be considered. The Royals are mired in a rebuild, having lost 103 times last season. Their major league team is constructed to be uncompetitive, although their farm system is enviable. Houston faced a hodgepodge of undistinguished big leaguers and an assortment of talented prospects.
One of Kansas City’s prized first-round draftees, righthander Jackson Kowar, threw Tuesday. The Astros annihilated him. Springer struck a solo home run against him. Alex DeGoti, playing after Altuve exited with a left leg contusion, clobbered a three-run homer of his own.
On Monday, Maldonado and Reddick homered against veteran Mike Montgomery, an expected piece of the Royals’ rotation.
“You either spend time getting ready or you try to tell yourself that you are ready,” Baker said. “These guys can hit. They can really hit. We’re not going to do anything but get better and better and better as we get more reps. And hopefully, we win ballgames in the meantime while getting better.”