I am not a huge fan of many of the managerial decisions made by Astros manager Phil Garner. Most of that is accounted for by his determination to use Orlando Palmerio as a pinch-hitter, in an offense that struggles to score runs, over the power bat of Jason Lane.
Because of this bias, I could not leave the following blurb from this mornings' Houston Chronicle uncommented upon:
So he is going to sit the rightfield duo of Jason Lane/Luke Scott and thirdbaseman Morgan Ensberg in order to make room for Mark Loretta and Garner favorite Mike Lamb? Am I the only one who now sees Lane, Scott, and Ensberg being passed over in pinch-hitting situations by Orlando Palmeiro?
A possible hitting solution could come from an examination of the 2000 Mets who immediately began to win ballgames when Rey Ordonez was replaced by the much better-hitting Melvin Mora. Should the Astros try to double their chances by doing the same with their SS, Adam Everett, and their catcher, Brad Ausmus?