Clint Barmes News

Brad Mills is part of the old guard. Can he successfully bridge the gap to the new philosophies of the Jim Crane era? Since Lance Berkman and the Cardinals won the World Series, the Astros have undergone a facelift that may turn into a complete makeover over the next 12 months.

Post-Gazette beat writers This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and This e-mail address is being protected from spambots.

The Astros will not go to arbitration at all this year as shortstopA Jed Lowrie has agreed to a one-year deal worth a base salaryA of $1.15 million plus performance and award bonuses, according to his agent.

Shortstop Angel Sanchez has cleared waivers and will report to Spring Training later this month with the Astros as a non-roster invitee.

There's a question that's been nagging at me ever since Houston signed Jack Cust and Chris Snyder .

Catcher: Rod Barajas , .258 Equivalent Average . Sure, he struggles to get on base, but Barajas' modest pop at the plate -- delivering a .200 ISO last season -- and solid receiving skills makes him the acme of average from the backstop bin.

One of the many problems that has plagued the Astros over the past few seasons has been their inabilityA to get on base.

General manager Jeff Luhnow on Friday announced the signing of Houston native Chris Snyder to a one-year contract that includes a mutual option for 2013.

Jeff Luhnow's first significant acquisition as the Astros' GM brought over Jed Lowrie to help fill out the shortstop position but it also brought along another interesting piece to the puzzle, Kyle Weiland .