ASTROS REPORT
Here's how the Astros put together an impressive 6-game winning streak
May 17, 2021, 5:22 pm
What a week for Houston! Composite image by Jack Brame.
3 reasons the Houston Astros newest lineup is raising eyebrows
After sweeping the Rangers in a four game series, The Astros have secured their longest winning streak of the season.
Houston has won 6 consecutive games and have earned wins in 9 of their last 11 contests.
Their recent success has come on the heels of stellar hitting performances by the top 5 hitters in their lineup and a recent resurgence in power from one outfielder as well.
The Astros ended last week winning 2 of 3 against the Toronto Blue Jays and looked to face off against their division rivals the Los Angeles Angels for a three-game series.
Monday's game with the Halos was the worst game of the week, as the Astros took their lone loss of the series.
Houston did not have an answer for Jared Walsh as he connected on a solo home run and matched a career high with four hits to lead the Angels to a 5-4 victory over the Astros.
Tuesday night's game proved to be a very anticipated matchup as it showcased Lance McCullers vs. Shohei Ohtani.
Both pitchers gave strong performances on the mound and combined for 19 strikeouts.
Neither Ohtani nor McCullers qualified for the win, as both pitchers gave up solo shots and left the game at 1-1.
Once Ohtani left the game, the Astros were able to take advantage of the Angels bullpen to win the contest.
Outfielder Michael Brantley hit an RBI single to score Jose Altuve and send Aledmys Díaz to third. Thus giving the Astros their first lead of the game 2-1.
Yordan Alvarez grounded into a fielder's choice which put Brantley at third and Diaz was thrown out at home.
This set up one of the Astros' hottest hitters Yuli Gurriel. He took Angels' pitcher Alex Claudio deep to secure the Astros a 5-1 victory.
The rubber match of the series proved to be the best game for the Astros' bats as they blasted a season-high five home runs.
Altuve and Gurriel both homered in the first inning to give the Astros a quick 3-0 lead.
Houston starter José Urquidy allowed two hits and struck out four in 3 2/3 innings before leaving with posterior shoulder discomfort.
Brandon Bielak picked up where Urquidy left off and threw a season-high 3 1/3 innings in relief and gave up just one run.
Kyle Tucker added a little bit of insurance as he hit a two-run shot in the 6th inning to give the Astros a 5-0 lead.
Yordon Alvarez and rookie Chas McCormick both hit homers in the bottom of the 8th to give the Astros a 9-1 victory.
"Guys are getting good pitches to hit and keeping pitchers in the stretch," Astros manager Dusty Baker said. "Hitting's contagious and just keep them coming."
After winning two consecutive series in a row, the Astros looked to continue this momentum against their in-state rivals, the Texas Rangers.
Thursday's game was a nail-biter as it took extra innings for Houston to come away victorious.
Texas took an early 2-0 lead before Jose Altuve hit a three-run double to put the Astros on top 3-2.
Rangers outfielder Joey Gallo tied the game at 3 with an RBI groundout in the 3rd inning. The game remained tied going into extra innings.
In the bottom of the 10th the Astros loaded the bases but were unable to score a run.
A similar situation happened in the bottom of the 11th as Chas McCormick came to the plate with all three ducks on the pond.
He was facing Brett Martin, when a 1-2 pitch got away from the catcher Jose Trevino. The passed ball led to Myles Straw scoring from third base to win the game.
"I was ready, especially with two strikes there," Straw said. "I had a feeling they would bounce a breaking ball, so I stayed ready and sure enough, I saw it kind of get away a little bit. I was going to be overaggressive there with two strikes. Even if it was a little bit closer than that, I was probably going to go."
The second game of the series took place Friday night and was the best game for two Astros players in quite some time.
Catcher Martin Maldonado hit a homer and drove in three runs to help the Astros win 10-4, their best offensive output of the week.
Pitcher Zack Greinke had one of his best games of the season as he threw seven innings, gave up three runs and received his 3rd win of the season.
Game number three on Saturday was much closer, as Texas put up their best fight of the series.
The Astros got off to a quick start against Texas pitcher Dane Dunning. They scored four runs capped off by a Carlos Correa two-run homer to give Houston a 4-1 lead.
Kyle Tucker continued his torrid home run pace as he hit a two-run shot to give the Astros a 6-1 lead.
Tucker has now tied his career high for homers in a season at 9 and leads the team in this category as well.
The Rangers almost made a comeback behind an 8th inning three-run homer by Joey Gallo and Andy Ibanez driving in an additional run to cut the deficit to one at 6-5.
This would be as far as Texas would get, as Ryan Pressly earned his 7th save of the year in the top of the 9th inning to secure an Astros victory.
Houston looked for their 2nd four-game sweep of the season (their first being in Oakland to start the year).
Alex Bregman and Carlos Correa drove in the first two runs of the game to give the Astros a 2-0 lead.
Lance McCullers took the mound and threw six scoreless innings.
This is his 5th consecutive game in which McCullers has thrown more than five innings in a start.
Andre Scrubb came into the game after McCullers and gave up a two-run homer to Rangers outfielder David Dahl to tie the game 2-2.
Shortly after, the Astros took the lead in the bottom of the 8th behind a sacrifice fly from Gurriel and singles from both Chas McCormick and Myles Straw to give the Astros a 6-2 lead.
Enoli Paredes made his return from the injured list to close out the game.
The Astros have now won six games in a row and four Astros players are hitting over .300 six weeks into the season. (Altuve, Alvarez, Bregman and Gurriel).
Kyle Tucker has increased his batting average from .192 on Monday to .225 by Sunday.
UP NEXT: The Astros look to continue their winning ways as they start a six-game road trip Tuesday, May 18th against the Oakland A's for three games then three games in Arlington against the Texas Rangers.
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Former major-leaguers are rising to prominent front office roles throughout MLB. Composite Getty Image.
Shortly after his playing career ended, Jerry Dipoto took in a game at Wrigley Field with former big league manager Jim Fregosi. After a particularly nasty strikeout by Eric Gagne, Dipoto laughed.
Fregosi promptly slapped Dipoto on the back of his head.
“He said, ‘I’m just going to remind you today. ... Don’t ever forget how hard that it is to play,’” Dipoto recalled. “And that’s what I think is the thing I remember most, and I think the benefit of the guys who have gone through it, is that they recognize that it is a really hard game.”
That lesson stayed with Dipoto as he made his way to his current job with the Seattle Mariners — and membership in an exclusive club. Dipoto is one of five former major leaguers serving as the top baseball executive for a big league franchise at the moment.
Dipoto, 56, has been the president of baseball operations for Seattle since Sept. 1, 2021. Like Dipoto, Chris Young, 45, was promoted from general manager to president of baseball operations for the Texas Rangers on Sept. 13. Craig Breslow was hired as the chief baseball officer for the Boston Red Sox on Oct. 25, 2023, and Chris Getz was promoted to GM of the Chicago White Sox on Aug. 31, 2023.
Buster Posey, 37, joined the list when the former All-Star catcher was hired as president of baseball operations for the San Francisco Giants in September.
“There are a ton of incredibly successful executives who didn’t play baseball,” said Breslow, 44. “I don’t think it’s a prerequisite, but I do think it provides a level of credibility and empathy given I’ve kind of been on every side of a transaction, or every side of a conversation I’ve had to have with a player or coach. And credibility in terms of really being able to understand what players are thinking about, what they’re going through.”
Under Breslow's leadership, Boston used a complicated contract structure to add Alex Bregman in free agency. Bregman also was being pursued by the Cubs and Tigers before he agreed to a $120 million, three-year deal with the Red Sox.
San Francisco had been struggling to land a major free agent before shortstop Willy Adames agreed to a $182 million, seven-year contract with the Giants in December. Adames said Posey played a major role in his decision.
“My meeting with the team, it was me and him, basically. No agent. Nobody,” Adames said. “So we had a really, really good conversation, and I bought into his plan for this organization, for what he wants to build here in the near future.”
Breslow has a degree from Yale and Young graduated from Princeton, so the five players in charge of major league teams doesn't exactly represent some sort of counterrevolution when it comes to Ivy League grads in baseball.
But today's major-leaguers are increasingly savvy when it comes to the business side of the game, and they have firsthand experience with the data used by front offices as part of their decision-making process.
“Where we were a decade ago to where we are now, there's just so much opportunity to make better decisions nowadays based on the information that we have,” said Getz, 41. “But being well-versed in it now, you know having a former playing background is only going to position you, your résumé is just stronger.”
While that big league career is an asset in a variety of ways, it also creates a unique set of blind spots. Building out a front office that complements one another is key, Dipoto said.
“I learned to adapt along the way to things I didn’t know and to trust people who are smarter than I am to fill in those gaps,” he said, “and to recognize when I’m allowing my want to be a good teammate and my want to love the good teammate, sometimes, you have be able to discern when that doesn’t equal best player fit for this situation.”
There are several more people in position to join the club one day. Brandon Gomes helped the Los Angeles Dodgers win the World Series last year, serving as the team's GM under Andrew Friedman. Ryan Garko was promoted to assistant GM with the Detroit Tigers in May. Cole Figueroa is an assistant GM for the Rangers.
Kevin Reese and Tim Naehring work for longtime New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, and Josh Barfield is part of Getz's front office with the White Sox.
When it comes to his discussions with players interested in working in baseball operations, Breslow said the conversations provide an indication of the potential for success.
“It becomes pretty clear, generally who has the curiosity, who asks a lot of questions,” he said. "Who wants to learn why we make decisions not just what decisions are being made. Those are the people (that could make the transition).”