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2021 Houston Astros Thread

Planet Houston

By Planet Houston
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henrygandorf
henrygandorf

there's so much to unpack from today, so i'll just start listing them. tuesday was devastating for oakland, today was twice as devastating for the yankees.  they had just started to play better. 

Brisketexan
Brisketexan

The boy and I were at the last ALCS clincher - we were walking on air for days after Altuve’s walkoff. Today, the boy is 5,000 miles and 7 hours away, with no way to watch. So we did a video chat, w

Helobious
Helobious

Enjoy it. Old Altuve, no more Correa means this is the very end of the road for your tainted dynasty. 

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Gourmand

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Bowden: What to believe and not to believe from the start of the MLB season

 

What not to believe

American League division leaders

Spoiler

It has been an exciting start to the season for the Red Sox, Royals and A’s, but I don’t see any of them atop the division standings come October.

The Red Sox lead the AL East thanks in large part to manager Alex Cora, who has provided elite leadership and people skills and restored the world championship culture in the clubhouse. You can feel the return of that winning karma. Some of the keys on the field have been solid top-of-the-rotation starting pitching, led by Nathan Eovaldi and Eduardo Rodriguez; a strong comeback season by designated hitter J.D. Martinez; and consistent offensive production from Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers and Alex Verdugo.

But the key to Boston’s early success has actually been its bullpen, highlighted by closer Matt Barnes converting all three of his save opportunities, Hirokazu Sawamura pitching to a 2.08 ERA, and Rule 5 pick Garrett Whitlock allowing no runs while striking out 11 in nine innings. Meanwhile, Matt Andriese and Phillips Valdez have posted ERAs of 2.00 or less. Is the bullpen’s early success sustainable? I doubt it.

In addition, there are questions in the outfield corners, with Hunter Renfroe hitting .178 and Franchy Cordero, whom the Red Sox acquired as the headliner in the Andrew Benintendi trade, hitting .214. They also have huge back-of-the-rotation questions with Garrett Richards, Martín Pérez and Nick Pivetta. The Red Sox will contend because of their solid leadership and talented top four in the lineup, but unless they can improve the back of rotation and corner outfield production, I see them more likely in the middle of the division come playoff time.

In March, I predicted the Royals would finish third in the AL Central behind the White Sox and Twins, but I did think they’d jump over the Indians and become a legitimate contending team. Their pitching staff ranks 12th out of 15 teams in the AL in ERA (4.68), but their offense ranks eighth in runs and is much improved from 2020. Still, I think the Royals are a year away from being legitimate contenders, when top prospects such as shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., left-handers Daniel Lynch and Asa Lacy, and right-hander Jackson Kowar will be major-league ready. In the meantime, they’re a fun team to watch, and I expect them to play a spoiler role in the playoff races.

The A’s became the first team in history to start 0-6 and then win 11 straight games in the same season, which is remarkable. Their starting pitching struggled out of the gate but has been dominant since. It’s a relatively young but strong rotation, with southpaws Jesús Luzardo, Sean Manaea and Cole Irvin, and right-handers Frankie Montas and Chris Bassitt. They’ll be inconsistent this year as they continue to develop. The bullpen has been solid despite Liam Hendriks’ departure in free agency and the season ending-injury to closer Trevor Rosenthal. Lou Trivino has a 1.38 ERA in 11 innings and converted both of his save opportunities, and Jake Diekman converted his only save opportunity as well. The offense has come alive lately thanks to corner infielders Matt Olson and Matt Chapman, who have combined for nine home runs and 26 RBIs. Jed Lowrie has been a huge story; he’s finally healthy and hitting .323 with 14 RBIs. On the flip side, shortstop Elvis Andrus has not looked good in the field or at the plate; he’s hitting .143 and could be a major concern.

The AL West will be an interesting, close race. Currently, the A’s and Mariners are tied for first at 12-7. The Astros and Angels are capable of winning the division or making the postseason as wild-card teams, but I still like the Astros to take the AL West, once they put their COVID-19 issues behind them and get healthy again.

....The Astros have been plagued by all types of injuries, COVID-19-related issues, and loud booing at visiting parks. That said, when healthy, they still have a dominant lineup led by Alex Bregman, Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve, Michael Brantley, Yordan Alvarez and Kyle Tucker, and it won’t be long before they’re all mashing. Their starting pitching has been mediocre thanks to poor months from Jake Odorizzi and José Urquidy, but it should turn the corner soon. Zack Greinke has looked sharp in his four starts, as has Lance McCullers Jr. in two of his three outings. Luis Garcia has been a pleasant surprise and Cristian Javier has picked up where he left off last year with a 1.32 ERA in his first three starts. This team is too good. I see the Astros going from last to first by June 1.

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