The Matt Thomas Show with Ross - Brian T. Smith: Mike Fiers Makes Astros-A's Series Even More Fascinating

Episode Date: October 2, 2020

Brian T. Smith: Mike Fiers Makes Astros-A's Series Even More Fascinating

is the Matt Thomas show. All right. Final hour, Matt Thomas show. We're bouncing back between the Texans game against the Vikings and the Astros against the Oakland days. Dusty Baker earlier today and now announcing a starter. He was however asked about how often Mike Fires is brought up in the Astros Clubhouse because at this point, during the 10 regular season games,

the Astros did not face their former teammate. Here's Dusty's response to that. I don't know. Nobody mentioned his name. I mean, nobody is even, you know, I haven't heard Mark Fier's name all here until you just said it right now. You know what I mean?

So it's like, no, it's like he's, I don't know, he's not even present. All right, Brian T. Smith, do you believe the manager of the Houston Astros when he says nobody talks about Mike Fires. No. Good. Isn't that right?

Isn't it believe it or hell no? No, it's hell yeah or not. So that would be a big fat knot. No. No, no, no. Of course he's going to say that. Yes, because coaches and managers and players lie. They don't have, they don't really have bulletin boards in Major League Baseball.

That's more for the NBA. But Dusty Baker's been doing this for a while, Matt, as a player and a manager. He's one of the most experienced people in Major League Baseball. Does anyone think that he's going to say yes, you know, Mike fires is in the back of our mind? Of course he is. Of course he is. If you're Jose L. Tuve or Alex Brighman or George Springer or Carlos Freakin Karea, give me a break. But Dusty played it right.

He was wise. He was smart. He said what you're supposed to say. We'll find out when they play. But let me say this. do they get into it during this regular season if not for mike fires and the sign stealing scandal and hinch and luno getting fired to everything that's happened of course not it's not like the a's and the astros were mortal enemies playing in the aOS in 2013 before the mike fires incident so mike fires is obviously matt at the center of all of this and it makes this series even more fascinating dusty got it right but get ready to hear mike fire's name and we've already heard it mentioned 3,000 more times if this series goes five games. Yeah, it goes without saying, BTS, that the Astros have to hit better if they're going to win this series.

But I'm most interested to see how dusty massages, maneuvers the pitching staff in terms of who starts. And more importantly, the first bullpen arm, and I told this to Ross earlier, I think the first bullpen arm that comes out will be somebody that didn't even pitch in those two wildcard games. I'm using just as an example, Blake Taylor. He can't bury those guys and put them in early because you may need him for games four and five. If that series goes that series goes that long. No offense to the Minnesota Twins,

even though they're annually disappointing and the first debate, which was horrendous, was better than the Minnesota Twins in the playoffs and has been 2004. No offense to the Twins. But that was not a real series. I mean, the Astros did not hit well. They pitched very well, but they piggybacked both games.

Minnesota was horrendous. The A's will not be horrendous. This isn't a seven-game series. You know, I mean, you add two more games every time you get the seven, and the best team, Matt, pretty much always wins. I mean, we're baseball in a seven-game series, which is why, what it matters, the LCS, the World Series, they play seven-game series.

Five-game series, anything can still sort of happen, but it evens itself out. And we'll find out. You know, what we'll find out, does this Astros team still have enough left, from 15 to 19, and you throw all in all the new names, and they get a clean break, kind of a fresh start, a rejuvenation, getting into the playoffs, because that's what we saw against Minnesota. And that worked, and they did not hit well.

You're 100% right, and everyone knows that. And they still were clearly the better team through two games. But they played sharp defense, and Minnesota continually screwed up late, meaning Minnesota lost that series because Minnesota lost that series. They blew it. They should have won game one. But if you're playing the A's with that lineup, I don't put much stock into a 60-game season, obviously, and I don't really care if you win the A-O-S. But they're A-O-S champions for a reason.

They were clearly the better team than the regular season. So this will be the first real test for Dusty Baker and what's left of the 2020 Astros. And Dusty got it right in the first two games, but it's going to be a lot harder to get it right in a five-game series against a much better team on paper if we're just going off the regular season. Yeah, because he knows he can't go to Christian Javier. He knows he cannot go to Framber Valdez. He's going to need those guys. The question's going to be, exactly.

What kind of leash does Zach Granky get? And when does he go in game one? Does he go in game two? Because you've got Lance McCuller sitting there going, hey, I'm ready to go. I want to go to one more thing on the offensive side before the Texans. Yeah. You know, part of the lazy, ill-informed narrative of the ESPN broadcast was the Jose Altoouet angle. Which is so horrible.

I know you've been tweeting it. So horrible. I mean, I like, ESPN's been horrible off and on for the last 20 years. Everyone knows that who knows sports. But that broadcast and just the coverage in general post-sign stealing scandal nationally has been so poor and so just overly biased to the point that it's political. You feel like it's red or blue. And if you love red or you hate blue, whatever it is, Democrat, Republican, down the middle, whatever. Whatever the other person does can never be right.

That's how the cover. It's been so bad. Well, the thing that bothered me was that you had three baseball people doing that baseball broadcast you thought would be a little bit more, you know, in tune with the baseball team. But they weren't. So they went with this narrative of, well, the world is on, you know, everything is weighing on Jose L. Tuve's mind. Let me tell you something. Jose Al Tuvae has played basically 40 games.

If you had the postseason in 42 games, give or take. He ain't thinking about the buzzers. He's thinking about I've got to fix my. swing or whatever I've got to do or get rid of this season, whatever. What in your mind in your crystal ball is Jose L. Tuva going to be able to provide? Are we going to see more of the same? Or does the winning of the series, a happy clubhouse, a footloose, fancy free, me against the world? Can that mentality get into that head of his, which is clearly flustered by everything that has happened so far this year?

No, it's a really good question. I mean, very simple. There's no way in the world. The Astros are winning the world, they very well might not. They may not be good enough, and they probably aren't, but there's no way in the world. The Astros are winning this world, the World Series this year, Matt, and winning four playoff rounds. Suppose Al-2, they can't, on some level, get hot

during these playoffs. Here's the thing, and I've been thinking this for two months about El-Tube, but really watching the last couple weeks. I'm sure the baseball geniuses out there, like Chandler Rome and the Houston Chronicle, some of the people that work for the athletic,

other publications can throw all the advanced stats you want. Okay. And, you know, talk about this and that and swinging at certain pitches. They can do all that. That's great. Without question, there's a little more weight on his shoulders, right? You throw all that together. But here's the thing.

I think any good Astros fan knows, especially someone who has watched this team since 11, 12, 13, 14, you know, Al-Tufe just does not look the same at the plate. and he's back to swinging at pitches kind of like he did in 13 and 14. Now, he's always extended to strike zone. But he's always had an incredible command at the plate, Matt. You know, not so much the plate discipline, but he could get to anything and to be to have his size, to hit for his power,

to be able to drive the ball to all fields, all those things you throw in the home run power he developed. He just, and it was a little better in the ALDS a little. And toward the end of the season, he looks so uncomfortable and lost in general at the plate. And that, to me, just, I don't know, no one knows what's missing. You know, I still don't think he does, whether it's a hitting coat situation, where it's A.J. Hinch, whether it's, you know, the corona type of season.

I think you've got it all together. He just does not have that, that smoothness that we've associated with him for the last five to six years. And until that comes back, I don't care what advanced numbers you throw out or you talk about the sign stealing or whatever. But until that comes back, he's not going to – until he looks like Jose Al-Tubei, he's not going to be Jose L-Tubei. Last question. Give us a rundown of what's going to happen Sunday at NRG Stadium. The Texan better win this freaking game. Right? I mean, you're playing Kurt Cousins. Deshawn Watson should be able to walk on the field and walk off the field. And he better, being the better quarterback in that game. Minnesota was wrapped in all the corona situations.

You put all that together. You're going to have somewhat of a home crowd. By the way, I was just looking on Ticketmaster. You can get pretty good tickets, face value for this game for like 125 sitting behind the end zone. They're going to have somewhat of a crowd. You put all that together. If they can't win this game and they start O'N4, the big cheese isn't going to get fired on Monday, Matt, but everyone in the world will be demanding it.

I expected Texans somehow to win this game. And maybe we see a little better Texan team. But I won't be shocked if they lose because that would be very Texans. But I will actually be surprised. I expect them to win this game. On that note, my friend, have a great weekend. We'll do this again next Friday. Take care, Matt.

We'll see it. Brian T. Smith. You can catch him on Twitter at Cron Brian Smith. And, of course, the lead columnist for Houston's leading information source, The Houston Chronicle. 2.13 is the time. And Matt Thomas show continues in just a minute. If you want to join us, you may do so.

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