Turnin 2 SS 2b
07-19-2002, 10:00 AM
MILWAUKEE -- Without question, most of the attention surrounding Jeff Bagwell this year has focused on the negatives -- his sore shoulder, his low average, his drop in power production. But through the criticism, what many may not have noticed is that the Astros first baseman has spent most of this month quietly improving his numbers to look more like the ones we've been used to seeing for the past 12 years.
Bagwell was responsible for the majority of his team's offensive production during the Astros' short two-game series in Milwaukee. His three-run homer on Wednesday led to a 7-3 win over the Brewers, and on Thursday, he accounted for three more runs with an RBI single and a two-run double to lift Houston to a 4-2 victory.
Including his 2-for-4 performance in the series finale, Bagwell is batting .362 (17-for-47) this month. Since July 1, he has raised his batting average 13 points from .261 to .274 over a span of 15 games, during which he has hit safely in 12 of those contests.
None of that would matter to the first baseman if the team wasn't winning, but not so coincidentally, the Astros just happen to be enjoying what could end up as their first winning month this season at the exact time that Bagwell's bat has come to life. Houston's victory over the Brewers on Thursday improved its July record to 10-5, and despite being below the .500 mark by two games at 46-48, the Astros are somehow only 6 1/2 games behind the first-place Cardinals.
Although the Astros were able to squeak only one hit by Brewers starter Jamey Wright through the first five innings of Thursday's game, Houston starter Pete Munro kept Milwaukee in check long enough during his five innings to give his team adequate time to generate late-game offense. Munro, in just his third start this year, held the Brewers to two runs on eight hits with one walk and two strikeouts over five innings.
Brandon Puffer, Pedro Borbon, Octavio Dotel and Billy Wagner combined for the final four scoreless frames to nail down the win. Between the four, they logged eight strikeouts, with four belonging to Puffer, who made quite an impression during his 1 2/3 innings.
While Bagwell politely addressed questions surrounding his offensive contributions to the last two games, he typically preferred to look at the wins from a team standpoint.
"Things are OK. We needed to come here and win some games and we did that," he said. "We got a great pitching performance both days. Pete did a great job today, battling. He only gave up two runs with the trouble he was in. Our bullpen came in and did a great job, held them scoreless. Good two wins for us. We needed that after losing three in a row."
As for his own accomplishments of late, Bagwell prefers to look at things from a realistic perspective.
"I don't feel great by any stretch of the imagination but this is going to be a battle for me this year," he said. "Battling my arm, battling my swing. I'm just going out there and trying to contribute. Obviously, when I do contribute, it's better for the team."
"To me, he's had very, very good at-bats because he's made tough outs too," manager Jimy Williams said. "He's lined out a few times, quite a few times where he's hit the ball hard and really hasn't been rewarded. But I understand that's the nature of the game sometimes and good hitters, they never even out for those guys. They line out more than they're going to get a bloop."
When the Astros face the Chicago Cubs on Friday at Wrigley Field, it will mark Houston's 16th straight contest against an intra-division rival during a stretch of 25 straight games versus NL Central opponents.
"We're very fortunate that no one in our division has really played that well," Bagwell said. "The Cardinals obviously are leading the division by a few games but they haven't really pulled away yet. We've been fortunate with that, it gives us a chance to maybe get back into this."
Bagwell was responsible for the majority of his team's offensive production during the Astros' short two-game series in Milwaukee. His three-run homer on Wednesday led to a 7-3 win over the Brewers, and on Thursday, he accounted for three more runs with an RBI single and a two-run double to lift Houston to a 4-2 victory.
Including his 2-for-4 performance in the series finale, Bagwell is batting .362 (17-for-47) this month. Since July 1, he has raised his batting average 13 points from .261 to .274 over a span of 15 games, during which he has hit safely in 12 of those contests.
None of that would matter to the first baseman if the team wasn't winning, but not so coincidentally, the Astros just happen to be enjoying what could end up as their first winning month this season at the exact time that Bagwell's bat has come to life. Houston's victory over the Brewers on Thursday improved its July record to 10-5, and despite being below the .500 mark by two games at 46-48, the Astros are somehow only 6 1/2 games behind the first-place Cardinals.
Although the Astros were able to squeak only one hit by Brewers starter Jamey Wright through the first five innings of Thursday's game, Houston starter Pete Munro kept Milwaukee in check long enough during his five innings to give his team adequate time to generate late-game offense. Munro, in just his third start this year, held the Brewers to two runs on eight hits with one walk and two strikeouts over five innings.
Brandon Puffer, Pedro Borbon, Octavio Dotel and Billy Wagner combined for the final four scoreless frames to nail down the win. Between the four, they logged eight strikeouts, with four belonging to Puffer, who made quite an impression during his 1 2/3 innings.
While Bagwell politely addressed questions surrounding his offensive contributions to the last two games, he typically preferred to look at the wins from a team standpoint.
"Things are OK. We needed to come here and win some games and we did that," he said. "We got a great pitching performance both days. Pete did a great job today, battling. He only gave up two runs with the trouble he was in. Our bullpen came in and did a great job, held them scoreless. Good two wins for us. We needed that after losing three in a row."
As for his own accomplishments of late, Bagwell prefers to look at things from a realistic perspective.
"I don't feel great by any stretch of the imagination but this is going to be a battle for me this year," he said. "Battling my arm, battling my swing. I'm just going out there and trying to contribute. Obviously, when I do contribute, it's better for the team."
"To me, he's had very, very good at-bats because he's made tough outs too," manager Jimy Williams said. "He's lined out a few times, quite a few times where he's hit the ball hard and really hasn't been rewarded. But I understand that's the nature of the game sometimes and good hitters, they never even out for those guys. They line out more than they're going to get a bloop."
When the Astros face the Chicago Cubs on Friday at Wrigley Field, it will mark Houston's 16th straight contest against an intra-division rival during a stretch of 25 straight games versus NL Central opponents.
"We're very fortunate that no one in our division has really played that well," Bagwell said. "The Cardinals obviously are leading the division by a few games but they haven't really pulled away yet. We've been fortunate with that, it gives us a chance to maybe get back into this."