You may not have figured this out yet, but I am a huge Houston Astros fan. Last season was a very painful one, other than the thrill of watching Craig Biggio pad his Hall of Fame resume. (I got to see him play one last time in Houston, which was a blast.)Today the Houston Astros made a huge trade for Miguel Tejada. Here is the trade. The Astros get Miguel Tejada. The Orioles get: Luke Scott, Troy Patton, Matt Albers, Dennis Sarfate, and Mike Costanzo. I have to say I really don’t know what to make of this trade. It seemed obvious that we were going to trade Luke Scott, but I am very surprised that Patton was a part of the deal, since we are a) desperate for pitching and b) he seemed to be the consensus best pitching prospect in our system.It is also somewhat shocking to me to notice how dramatically different our lineup will be from last year. So far, 2 (yes TWO) of last year’s starting 8 offensive players will be starting on opening day, and one of them was making his first start as a Houston Astro (they are Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee). I guess now that Biggio and Bagwell are gone it is starting to sink in more that the Astros really are like any other team, with a constantly changing lineup.I have no idea what people will say about this trade in two years after Tejada has played as an Astro, and is a free agent again. If he produces and helps the Astros contend again, it could be seen as a huge success. If he is mediocre and some of those prospects pan out, I think there is the potential that this could go down as one of the worst trades in baseball history. Not saying that it will, just that it could. Here is one interesting, and funny, take on this trade.Here’s hoping that it works out great for my Astros!
Astros Trade 5 for Miguel Tejada
12 Wednesday Dec 2007
Posted in Uncategorized
Kevin M. Watson 
*sarcasm alert* Hey guys, great idea trading five young prospects for a 31 year old power-hitting shortstop! *end sarcasm* But seriously, their pitching is a serious problem. Remember when Vern Ruhle was the pitching coach? I loved him with the Sooners (think Nat’l Championship w/Mark Redman) and with the ‘Stros.
Matt – Your reaction was my first reaction to this trade too. When I saw a headline that it was a six player deal, I was assuming we got Tejada and someone else for four players. It is amazing in how short of a time the personality of this team has been turned completely on its head. We used to have great pitching and no offense. In 2008, it looks like we will have a great offense and no pitching. It should be interesting.
(Maybe Wade is an evil genius and he is putting together an offer the Twins can’t refuse for Johan Santana!)
Tejada?
Isn’t he like… on a downhill trend?
who knows… maybe this is a rejuvenation that Tejada needs…
I still don’t think Tejada’s worth it.
But I don’t know much about baseball.
Go Red Sox!
Joseph- I am not sure you ever know what you are going to get with anyone. A lot of people were saying that about Carlos Lee when we got him last year, and he was by far our best offensive player last year. I wouldn’t be shocked if he isn’t great, but I am hopeful that not playing for a terrible team like the Orioles could be rejuvenating. The big reason I am not totally against this trade is because we didn’t give up anybody who is a proven solid major league player. (But, then again, I would not be surprised if Astros fans look back on this trade as one of the worst moves in franchise history. I really think it could go either way.)
All of this makes me realize, I definitely don’t ever want to be a GM.
Oh man, I’d love to be a GM! haha The salary cap issues would be terrible, but I would love to handle the personnel for a major league team.
I think Tejada will be fine offensively with the short porches at Enron…err whatever it is now. Especially if he’s hitting in front of Lee and Berkman.
Keven, I think you’re right. It basically depends on how the prospects pan out. If Tejada stays injury free, he should have a great year. Most NL pitchers won’t have a book on how to pitch him, especially when they’re in Houston.
Matt – Point of clarification: Are the Astros your favorite MLB team? I forgot that you were quite the lefty pitching prospect in your own time…
Actually, I’m a screwball, change-up throwing righty. But I did get a recruiting call from Dartmouth – my one claim to fame in sports! haha
No, the Astros aren’t my favorite – I just love NL baseball. I really don’t have a favorite team…even though I watched far too many Braves games on TBS as a kid. Go Dale Murphy!
I don’t know why I thought you were a lefty. If you got a recruiting call from Dartmouth, you should be an Astros fan, because as far as I know Brad Ausmus is the only Dartmouth alum in the bigs.
Dale Murphy… I miss the guys like him from that generation. They played the game the right way.
You’re right about Ausmus. There’s a good reason why he’s the only one – they don’t give athletic scholarships and charge a million dollars for tuition!
I looked him up on wikipedia to confirm that I had the right ivy league school, and it said something about it being a dream of his and working out a deal with the yankees, where he played minor league baseball when he wasn’t in class… I didn’t know that part of his story. Crazy.
I guess Tejada may be rejuvenated after all!! haha A little HGH goes a long way in extending a career. Just ask the Rocket. *sigh* I know nothing is conclusive, just had to make a jab.
I know… that was the other thing I read yesterday that I wondered about, whether the Orioles were in more of a hurry to get the trade done before the Mitchell Report came out. I think what I am most disappointed in is the fact that when Astros GM Ed Wade was asked a question about Tejada and the Mitchell report, he just brushed the question aside, saying something like “I am not going to talk about steroids.”
It would be so refreshing if some people would just come out and say, I did it. I made a huge mistake and I am sorry. Everybody knows a lot of people were doing it. If Rocket is guilty, I wish he would just own up to it and move on. But that has definitely not been the precedent set by Bonds or Clemens.