Last year, Brett Myers had a fine year for the Astros. He pitched in 33 games (all starts) for the Astros last year and he was 14-8 with a 3.14 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP as he finished 10th in the voting for the N.L. Cy Young Award. For that, the Astros signed him to a 2-year, $23 million dollar deal with a vesting option for the 2013 season. Myers’ reward for the Astros’ faith in him has been a dismal 2011 season. Myers has pitched in 27 games (all starts) for the Astros this year and he is 3-13 with a 4.95 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. He has given up 191 hits (29 of them are homers) in only 172 2/3 innings this year, as he has gotten hit hard. The Astros have tried to trade Myers, but they have found no takers due to the combo of his lack of performance and big paycheck. The Astros better hope that Myers turns things around soon because they appear stuck with him now.

The Astros have placed 27-year old lefty reliever Sergio Escalona on the 15-day disabled list due to left elbow tendinitis. Escalona has pitched in 48 games (0 starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. He has only given up 23 hits in his first 27 innings pitched this year while whiffing 25 batters, so he has been impressive. But, he has walked 11 batters this year, so he will need to tighten up his control in the near future.

The Astros dealt Michael Bourn and Hunter Pence at the trade deadline, leaving LF/1B Carlos Lee pretty much alone in the batter order among the veterans. He has not hit well at all in August for the Astros this month, as he has played in 17 games in which he is 10 for 58 (.172 avg, .556 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 1 homer and 8 RBIs. He has now played in 121 games for the Astros overall this year and he is 119 for 459 (.259 avg, .729 OPS) with 48 runs scored, 11 homers, 68 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Lee is likely to get walked a lot the rest of the year because he’s not going to have much protection in the batting order going forward.

The Astros have released 37-year old righty starter/reliever Nelson Figueroa. Figueroa pitched in 8 games (5 starts) for the Astros last year and he was 0-3 with a 8.69 ERA and a 2.10 WHIP. He pitched in 26 games (15 starts) in his two years with the Astros and he was 5-6 with a 4.88 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. The Astros are in rebuilding mode, so Figueroa didn’t fit into their plans anymore.

22-year old switch-hitting 3B Jimmy Paredes came into this season as the Astros’ #7 prospect according to Baseball America. Paredes played in 93 games in AA-ball this year and he was 104 for 385 (.270 avg, .726 OPS) with 69 runs scored, 10 homers, 41 RBIs and 29 stolen bases. The Astros called up Paredes recently to replace Chris Johnson (he was demoted to AAA) as the starting 3B, and he has not been overwhelmed by any means. Paredes has played in 15 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 16 for 54 (.296 avg, .826 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 1 homer, 6 RBIs and 1 stolen base. The Astros hope that Paredes finishes the 2011 strongly.

23-year old righty swinging 1B Kody Hinze wasn’t a very highly thought of prospect heading into this season but that’s about to change. He has played in 115 games in A+AA-ball so far this year and he is 131 of 411 (.319 avg, 1.023 OPS) with 79 runs scored, 28 homers, 88 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He has also walked 85 times already this year as he has a good eye at the plate. Hinze has now played in 353 games in his first four years in the minors and he is 352 of 1,249 (.282 avg, .883 OPS) with 213 runs scored, 60 homers, 245 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. The Astros are going to probably put Hinze on the fast track to Houston to see if he can handle better pitching.

23-year old righty swinging J.D. Martinez took over for Hunter Pence after he was dealt and he is taking off. Martinez has played in 11 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 11 for 39 (.282 avg, 1.016 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 4 homers and 12 RBIs. He has also played in 88 games in AA-ball earlier this year and he was 107 for 317 (.338 avg, .959 OPS) with 50 runs scored, 13 homers, 72 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Martinez came into this season as the Astros’ #6 ranked prospect according to Baseball America. He has played in 298 games in his first three years in the minors and he is 382 for 1,118 (.342 avg, .958 OPS) with 199 runs scored, 43 homers, 217 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. The Astros hope that Martinez keeps rolling along with the bat for them because they have had a hard time scoring runs this year.

Sure, the Astros have sucked so far this year, as they are 38-79, but you can’t blame that on 32-year old lefty starting pitcher Wandy Rodriguez. In his last four starts, Rodriguez is 2-2 with a 2.88 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP as he hasn’t let the recent trading off of Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn bother him on the mound. Rodriguez has now pitched in 21 games (all starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 8-8 with a 3.52 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. Don’t be shocked if Rodriguez is the next guy to go in a deal, but here’s to hoping the Astros keep him unless they get exactly what they want back.

The Astros have designated 28-year old righty swinging infielder Tommy Manzella for assignment. Manzella played in 109 games in AAA-ball last year and he was 83 for 361 (.230 avg, .679 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 7 homers, 48 RBIs and 10 stolen bases. Manzella played in 90 games in his first two years with the Astros and he was 59 for 263 (.224 avg, .528 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 1 homer and 21 RBIs. This is no loss for the Astros.

The Astros have placed 25-year old righty reliever Enerio Del Rosario on the 15-day disabled list due to a right shoulder strain. Del Rosario has pitched in 44 games (0 starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA and a 1.70 WHIP. The Astros have called up 31-year old righty reliever Jeff Fulchino to replace Del Rosario in the bullpen. Fulchino pitched in 30 games (0 starts) earlier this year for the Astros and he was 1-3 with a 4.88 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP.