With the news of Cristian Javier and Jose Urquidity heading to surgery, Astros fans are abuzz about ways to improve the pitching staff. But as much as we want more pitching depth that the team didn’t acquire during the off-season, the fact is that’s a tough challenge during the regular season. Everyone needs more pitching because pitchers are at a premium.
Let me throw out a different idea. Suppose the Astros could concentrate on improving their defense. Wouldn’t that allow the Astros to get performances out of their existing pitching staff and whatever depth they call up from the minors?