00:00It's Stock Up, the arrow's pointed up, Stock Down, on The Drive with Sterner and Hughley.
00:10That's right, Stock Talk right here on The Drive.
00:12Sterner, Hughley, myself, Tyler Milner with you, Drive family.
00:16Today's flavor, today's edition of Stock Talk, Stock Up, Stock Down.
00:20We're talking about the Houston Astros as the second half of their 2026 baseball season
00:24will get started tomorrow, I believe, or is it Friday, with the Orioles coming into town for the Astros.
00:32But we're talking second half baseball in H-Town.
00:35Clint Sterner, I want to get this thing started with you.
00:37Let's go Stock Down for the second half of Astros baseball, Clint.
00:42Well, Tyler, you know, this is not a difficult one for me.
00:47I do have some personal emotions attached to this
00:50because I think there's several folks we could pick for Stock Down, to be honest.
00:54I'm going with Brian Abreu.
00:56And, look, I don't need to – I know he had a little run there where he was better.
01:03And I know that, you know, there may be some stats or some advanced stats
01:08that may say that, hey, he's coming around this.
01:11I mean, a year ago we were having conversations about, hey, man, you know, look,
01:16Brian Abreu could be a closer.
01:18Brian Abreu is – I mean, look, I love Josh Hader, but Hader, you know, if he goes out,
01:22boy, Brian Abreu slides right into that closer role,
01:24you may have one of the best in the league.
01:26I mean, Brian Abreu better be lucky that we've had the injuries that we've had this year
01:32or he would be much more center of attention.
01:36So this is just a personal deal.
01:37Like, I mean, this guy has broken my Astro heart.
01:40I thought we would be able to depend on him.
01:42And I'll be honest, when he is on the mound right now,
01:46I'm as nervous as when anybody in an Astro's uniform is out there.
01:48Yeah, so is Joe.
01:49He doesn't put him out there very much.
01:51Oh, my, rightfully so, I would say.
01:53I mean, I am – I'm shocked of how bad he's been.
01:59I'm shocked that he hadn't shook it off and come back to who he once was.
02:06The stock for me of all Astros right now has never been lower than it is right now
02:11for Brian Abreu.
02:12That's my stock down.
02:13Well said.
02:14That was stock down for Clint Sterner.
02:16You are tuning in to The Drive.
02:17Sterner Hughley, Tyler Milner with you.
02:19Stock up, stock down.
02:20Stros, second half of the season starting Friday with the Orioles in town.
02:24Ron, stock down for you for the second half, Stros.
02:27My stock down is to the ace, Hunter Brown.
02:32Diesel, huh?
02:33Yeah, man.
02:34My expectations are different for you.
02:36I think Clint made an excellent point his fifth one of the week.
02:41An excellent point yesterday.
02:43We should start keeping counters for each of you.
02:46I mean, three days, only five?
02:49I mean, that's pretty good.
02:52I'm fine.
02:53It was his fourth of the week.
02:56No, no, no.
02:57You already said five.
02:58You're on the record.
02:59He said yesterday, like, it's nothing if Jordan, Hader, and Brown don't play like themselves.
03:09And not just themselves.
03:10They got to play like the best of themselves, to be honest.
03:14And I think even though what happened to end the first half, Josh Hader blowing the save against the Rangers,
03:21I think Hader, since he has come back from injury, has been Josh Hader.
03:26And the Josh Hader you need.
03:28Jordan Alvarez is the best player on the planet right now.
03:31He is nasty.
03:32Hitter, at least, on the planet right now.
03:34So, of course, he has done his thing.
03:36Shout out to him for getting that hit.
03:37Thank God that he was on third base and there was no having to leg anything out from second to
03:42home.
03:43And he was able to just trot his ass on him.
03:45And thank God that wasn't him that got hit in the hands on a 98-mile-an-hour fastball.
03:51Take it easy on them knees, fella.
03:52You can keep your ass in your own dugout.
03:55Don't come over here.
03:56Just stop throwing the ball 98 in my damn hands.
03:59Anyway.
04:00Anyhow.
04:01But Hunter Brown, man, since he's returned, it hasn't been awful.
04:06But it's not where they need him.
04:08He's got 11 earned runs, 11 walks, and 11 strikeouts in his last three starts.
04:15My buff boy, Hunter Brown.
04:16Not ideal.
04:17That can't be right.
04:20He's got to pick it up.
04:21So, his stock, 11, 11, 11.
04:25All the way through walks and earned runs to go with those strikeouts.
04:28So, Hunter Brown is my stock down.
04:30Yeah.
04:31I couldn't agree.
04:31I was going to be playing in October.
04:33Need that ace.
04:34Need Diesel to be pitching his ass off.
04:36All right.
04:36We got the stock downs out of the way.
04:38You are tuned in to Stock Up, Stock Down live right here on The Drive.
04:41Stock Up time as we talk the Strohs in the second half starting Friday.
04:47Back to you, Clint.
04:48Stock Up for the second half Strohs.
04:51I'm going to go with Peter Lambert, boys.
04:53I'm starting to believe this.
04:54I'm starting.
04:55You look at.
04:56You look.
04:56I believe he's had 15 starts.
04:58And I know it's hard to believe.
05:00But, Ron, he's given up two or fewer runs in 11 of those starts.
05:06I mean, he's only given up more than three runs, I think, three times.
05:10Maybe four.
05:10But, I think, three times.
05:12He's labored a few times, but he holds it down.
05:14Yeah.
05:14Yeah.
05:15I mean, there is.
05:17With every outing, this Peter Lambert thing becomes more and more real.
05:21And we can get into the stock being high because of how bad we as Astros fans absolutely needed
05:26Peter Lambert.
05:27Think about what kind of shape we'd be in right now.
05:29Ron just gave Hunter Brown the ace, his stock down.
05:32How bad a shape would we be in right now if Peter Lambert wasn't a real thing for the
05:38Astros?
05:38So, I think the stock right now, as I said, for Abreu, I think there's not an Astro out
05:44there that it's lower right now on for me.
05:47I don't know that there's an Astro out there with the stock higher right now than Peter Lambert.
05:54And it becomes more and more real every time he touches a mound.
05:57The arrows point it up.
05:58No, he has been enormous.
06:00Enormous for this team.
06:01And I know, we've got to stop looking at the Colorado numbers at some point.
06:05We've got to stop because it's being real.
06:08But Spencer Erighetti has ruined it.
06:12Because those eight starts were so convincing and then he's done this.
06:17But that's a good stock up.
06:18Yeah, I mean, Spencer Erighetti was very much so on track to be playing some baseball on
06:23the All-Star festivities we saw last night to start this season.
06:27And now it is gone to hell.
06:28Ron, the show, put a lid on this thing for us.
06:31Stock up for you and your view for the Strohs in the second half of baseball this season.
06:35I will admit, I think this player, I can't help it, I think has a special place for some
06:40reason.
06:41A special place where?
06:43In old show's heart.
06:44Oh.
06:44But my stock up is Yiner Diaz.
06:4712 games since he's been back.
06:49Average is not great hitting .244.
06:53But he's got three homers, six RBIs in his last 12 games.
07:00And it feels like just by watching him, he looks more confident and he looks good at the
07:08plate.
07:08He's actually thrown out a couple of runners, too, since he has been back.
07:12I mean, that's just going to be bad, but that's better than what he has been.
07:16But I have not given up the thought that he is still somebody that could be a dependable
07:23hitter for this team.
07:25And I think he's starting to come around on that.
07:28So, Yiner Diaz, to me, is my stock up going into the second half.
07:32And if he could be, you know, there's that bat that you're looking for behind the top
07:38six, or the top five, excuse me.
07:40You'd hope it'd be Cam.
07:42It's just been up and down for Cam.
07:44You'd hope maybe it'd be, you know, somebody else.
07:48Maybe it's Yiner Diaz.
07:49Maybe Yiner Diaz, I think he was a couple of years ago when he was a Silver Slugger Award
07:55finalist in the American League.
07:57So, my stock up is to Yiner Diaz.
Comments