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It’s pretty clear that the Houston Astros admired what the St. Louis Cardinals were doing for the past few years. After snatching up Jeff Luhnow as their general manager, the Astros went back to the Cardinals’ system to grab Brent Strom for the position of pitching coach.
It was a quick turn around too, given that Doug Brocail was moved last week.
Strom had been the minor league pitching coordinator for the Cardinals since 2007. In that time, he had helped such pitchers as Shelby Miller, Joe Kelly, Lance Lynn and Michael Wacha on their way to the pros. That’s a pretty impressive resume.
He has experience working with young pitchers, that much is certain, and if their is one thing the Astros have a surplus of, it’s young pitchers. Strom will be stepping into one of the most promising young pitching crops in the MLB. Nine of the Astros’ top 20 prospects are pitchers, and the first two picks in last years draft for the Astros’ were pitchers as well.
With guys like Jarred Cosart, Bretty Oberholtzer and Brad Peacock anchoring the rotation, there is plenty of room for growth and improvement, and Strom is the man for the job. Mark Appel and Mike Foltynewicz are getting closer to making the Majors, so Strom’s previous resume of working primarily with minor league pitchers will be incredibly beneficial when dealing with MLB pitchers who are fresh up from the minors.
Cosart, Oberholtzer and Peacock showed tremendous composure in their rookie season, and the addition of a young pitcher specialist like Strom will only make them better. As owner Jim Crane and Luhnow have shown, they know what their doing, and this most recent move just reinforces that point.
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Related:
Houston Astros: Removing Doug Brocail As Pitching Coach The Right Move?
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