This trade seems fine from the standpoint that we didn't give up much, if anything. But I wonder how this guy fits strategically into our 40 man and 25 man rosters. In other words, is this guy a better option than what we have internally? Things are scary if that's the case. Reading between the lines, I'm wondering if this is a sign that maybe Harris is more significantly dinged up than they've stated, and there is a chance that he's not coming back this season (I did read he is supposed to have some rehab starts this week, but his last round of rehab starts put him right back on the DL).
Have you seen some of the players we have on our 40 man? Have you seen us roll out like Guduan, Hoyt, Feliz?
And we don't want to burn options on some of those not on the 40-man if we have to shuttle that 6th/7th reliever back-and-forth AAA. That's the sole reason Tolliver managed to hangon as long as he did.
Have seen them all. Hoyt, for as horrible as he's been, has a better WHIP than Clippard. Guduan is a rookie experiment that we all know may not work out, but hell, the ceiling is pretty high if he does work out. Feliz had stretches where he looked like a world beater, until he melted down after the all star break. We're supposed to feel better about Clippard?
To be fair, most of those runs were given up over a 2 week stretch in June. He could've been hurt, mechanics could've been off, etc. Other than those 2 weeks that had a couple of clunkers, he's been pretty good. Not great, but solid.
http://www.chron.com/sports/astros/...d-broke-news-of-his-own-trade-to-11819151.php PHOENIX --- Tyler Clippard has been traded a lot. Six times in the last decade, in fact. In the last four weeks alone, the veteran reliever been a member of three different teams. On Sunday night while watching the latest episode of HBO's "Game of Thrones" in a Chicago hotel room, Clippard's cell phone rang. On the other end of the line was Chicago White Sox general manager Rick Hahn, who informed the 32-year-old righthander he had been traded to the Astros. According to Clippard, this was the first time he learned through a team he was traded rather than first hearing the news through media reports. Which is why on Sunday night before the deal was formally announced he changed his personal Twitter and Instagram profiles to reflect that he was a member of the Astros, a subtle and playful way to spread the word. "It was just fun to kind of be the guy who broke the news," he said on Monday after joining the Astros at Arizona's Chase Field. Clippard indicated he heard from Hahn about 35 minutes into "Game of Thrones," which starts at 8 p.m. CT. The Astros then also got in touch. The teams didn't announce the trade until 10:30 p.m. They actually had planned to wait until Monday morning to make it official. Clippard's reveal accelerated the timeline. Clippard, who's been living out of a suitcase in recent weeks, flew from Chicago to Phoenix on Monday. He arrived to the visitors' clubhouse at Chase Field in the afternoon, received his Astros apparel and met his new teammates before their series opener against the Diamondbacks. And because of his hectic schedule, he had still yet to finish "Game of Thrones." "The first 35 minutes of the episode was great," he said, "but I still need to watch the rest."
Clippard has a career 3.04 ERA and 1.12 whip in 10 seasons. Personally, I feel better about him than Guduan and his career minor league 4.88 ERA and 1.76 whip.
He gave the Astros a good inning Wednesday night. I was impressed, not having heard of the guy before the game.
I like his approach with runners on base. He doesn't seem to get rattled at all. Seems to be pitching with a lot of confidence right now.
