IT'S ALL ABOUT DISCIPLINE
Texans take major precaution at the start of training camp during COVID-19
Aug 3, 2020, 6:34 pm
Texans make major changes to keep everyone safe. Photo by Getty Images
What does normalcy look like in 2020 for the Houston Texans? It's walking into your team's facility using face recognition to avoid touching door handles. It's giving your teammates air high-fives to avoid unnecessary physical contact. And it's witnessing your weight room getting sanitize half a dozen times on a daily basis.
In an ordinary year, the Texans would have been preparing to start the first of four preseason games — originally scheduled to take place on August 14, against the Minnesota Vikings. Instead, Houston's head coach and general manager Bill O'Brien finds himself thankful to have no players test positive for COVID-19 with the season set to begin in a little over a month.
"So far, it's been good," O'Brien told reporters on Friday. "I know it's really early. We feel really good about where we are at. We have zero positive tests. I think that's a good sign."
The Texans began training camp on July 25 facing the same unenviable challenge the remaining 31 teams around the league and the rest of the sports world have encounter since mid-March — adjusting to the effects of the coronavirus.
But even before the start of training camp, teams around the league have already dealt with the effects of COVID-19. The NFL has provided an option to give players the opportunity to opt-out who do not feel comfortable taking the field in 2020. It's an option almost 40 players around the league have taken advantage of, including Texans' defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes. Despite the risk, some players felt the award is worth the gamble.
"At first it was just, of course, a lot of different stories coming out about the protocol and things like that," Houston's quarterback Deshawn Watson said. I feel like safety and health is always first. We all want to play football. We all want to do the right things, but at the same time, we have to make sure because we're going home to our families and people that might have a health condition or might have some type of problem."
"For us, to be able to come in and take the precautions and do the right things is very important. I know that this organization from when I came in have changed everything and put in the right safety precautions – the sanitizing to the locker room to the way we manage things. The first couple days of camp have been great and what we've seen has been a big change. We're going in the right direction, especially for this organization."
The Texans have taken extreme measures to keep their players and team personnel safe, in particular, by providing a wrist sensor that will alert an individual when they are standing less than six feet apart. O'Brien, who has endured 20 COVID-19 test, says all players are obligated to wear a mask when they are in the building, and does not understand the political uproar among citizens who choose the latter.
"I don't understand why it has been as politicized as much as it has been," he said. "Mask wearing has been scientifically proven to reduce your chances of getting the coronavirus."
With no players testing positive for the virus, the most significant hurdle for Houston right now is getting their rookies accustomed to the NFL level. As they prepare for their first season, O'Brien says this year's class has a tough road ahead of them after a late start to training camp and no preseason games. How will they adapt? The team is making preparations to hold two intrasquad scrimmages while O'Brien stressed the importance of his rookies leaning on their veterans i.e. Deshaun Watson, J.J. Watt and Justin Reid.
"I told somebody the other day that this is the cleanest building in Houston. You could eat off the floor in here... I think the most disciplined team away from the building will have the best chance to win." — Bill O'Brien
It’s May 1, and the Astros are turning heads—but not for the reasons anyone expected. Their resurgence, driven not by stars like Yordan Alvarez or Christian Walker, but by a cast of less-heralded names, is writing a strange and telling early-season story.
Christian Walker, brought in to add middle-of-the-order thump, has yet to resemble the feared hitter he was in Arizona. Forget the narrative of a slow starter—he’s never looked like this in April. Through March and April of 2025, he’s slashing a worrying .196/.277/.355 with a .632 OPS. Compare that to the same stretch in 2024, when he posted a .283 average, .496 slug, and a robust .890 OPS, and it becomes clear: this is something more than rust. Even in 2023, his April numbers (.248/.714 OPS) looked steadier.
What’s more troubling than the overall dip is when it’s happening. Walker is faltering in the biggest moments. With runners in scoring position, he’s hitting just .143 over 33 plate appearances, including 15 strikeouts. The struggles get even more glaring with two outs—.125 average, .188 slugging, and a .451 OPS in 19 such plate appearances. In “late and close” situations, when the pressure’s highest, he’s practically disappeared: 1-for-18 with a .056 average and a .167 OPS.
His patience has waned (only 9 walks so far, compared to 20 by this time last year), and for now, his presence in the lineup feels more like a placeholder than a pillar.
The contrast couldn’t be clearer when you look at José Altuve—long the engine of this franchise—who, in 2024, delivered in the moments Walker is now missing. With two outs and runners in scoring position, Altuve hit .275 with an .888 OPS. In late and close situations, he thrived with a .314 average and .854 OPS. That kind of situational excellence is missing from this 2025 squad—but someone else may yet step into that role.
And yet—the Astros are winning. Not because of Walker, but in spite of him.
Houston’s offense, in general, hasn’t lit up the leaderboard. Their team OPS ranks 23rd (.667), their slugging 25th (.357), and they sit just 22nd in runs scored (117). They’re 26th in doubles, a rare place for a team built on gap-to-gap damage.
But where there’s been light, it hasn’t come from the usual spots. Jeremy Peña, often overshadowed in a lineup full of stars, now boasts the team’s highest OPS at .791 (Isaac Paredes is second in OPS) and is flourishing in his new role as the leadoff hitter. Peña’s balance of speed, contact, aggression, and timely power has given Houston a surprising tone-setter at the top.
Even more surprising: four Astros currently have more home runs than Yordan Alvarez.
And then there’s the pitching—Houston’s anchor. The rotation and bullpen have been elite, ranking 5th in ERA (3.23), 1st in WHIP (1.08), and 4th in batting average against (.212). In a season where offense is lagging and clutch hits are rare, the arms have made all the difference.
For now, it’s the unexpected contributors keeping Houston afloat. Peña’s emergence. A rock-solid pitching staff. Role players stepping up in quiet but crucial ways. They’re not dominating, but they’re grinding—and in a sluggish AL West, that may be enough.
Walker still has time to find his swing. He showed some signs of life against Toronto and Detroit. If he does, the Astros could become dangerous. If he doesn’t, the turnaround we’re witnessing will be credited to a new cast of unlikely faces. And maybe, that’s the story that needed to be written.
We have so much more to discuss. Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!
The MLB season is finally upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday!
*ChatGPT assisted.
___________________________
Looking to get the word out about your business, products, or services? Consider advertising on SportsMap! It's a great way to get in front of Houston sports fans. Click the link below for more information!