The Pallilog

Charlie Pallilo: Astros, Yankees and Red Sox are on historic pace

Charlie Pallilo: Astros, Yankees and Red Sox are on historic pace
Jose Altuve and the Astros are on a roll. Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images

It should be a tremendous summer-long race among the Astros, Red Sox, and Yankees to see who winds up with the best record in Major League Baseball. The Mariners are showing that while plucky, they are just not good enough to keep up with a pace looking more and more likely to produce an unprecedented three teams in the same league with 100 or more wins in the same season. Only six times have three teams between the American and National Leagues won 100+. The Dodgers, Indians, and Astros did it last year. The Astros should again cruise to the AL West title while the Yanks and Bosox slug it out trying to avoid facing one game elimination via the Wild Card game.

Before 1995 there were no Wild Cards. 1993 was the last postseason before the Wild Card (the 1994 strike forced cancellation of the playoffs). The Giants finished 103-59 and got nothing for it, finishing one game behind the Braves in the NL West. Before 1969 there were no Divisions meaning you either won the pennant and went to the World Series, or you went home. The 1942 Dodgers finished 104-50, two games behind the Cardinals.

Little big man

On May 14 Jose Altuve was one out away from seeing his batting average dip below .300. He singled in his last at bat that day to keep his average above his personal Mendoza Line (in the 70s there was a crappy hitter named Mario Mendoza whose batting averages over five straight seasons were .180, .185, .198, .218, and .198. So .200 became a reference line for awful hitting). In 33 games played since that hit Altuve is batting .403 with an OPS of 1.078. Last year Altuve won his third American League batting title and first AL MVP award with a batting average of .346. He starts the weekend at .347. Context alert: Altuve is astoundingly good, pretty much on top of his game (still down a little overall from last season), and on a clear Hall of Fame track. His OPS this season is closer to waaaaay over the hill Albert Pujols’s than it is to Mike Trout’s.

Draft stock falling?

The NBA Draft just isn’t as big a deal as it used to be. It’s still hugely important and will produce All-Stars and probably Hall of Famers. It’s just reality that with the top selections dominated by one and done college freshmen the players are much lesser known, are more boys than NBA men, and with few exceptions are ill-equipped to enter the league and be standouts early on.

Judging it from the greatest players in the class, the 1984 NBA Draft has to be considered the best ever. How about four-fifths of a starting lineup comprised of John Stockton, Michael Jordan, Charles Barkley, and Hakeem Olajuwon. We need a small forward for that quintet so the nod goes to second round pick, the late Jerome Kersey. All of those guys played at least three years of college basketball.

Another mention-worthy draft class, especially since generously Rocket-tinted, the class of 1970. Your starting five : Nate Archibald, Pete Maravich, Rudy Tomjanovich, Dave Cowens, and Bob Lanier. For a sixth man how about Calvin Murphy? Rudy-T is the only one of those six not in the Basketball Hall of Fame. Rudy’s non-election remains an annual disgrace.

Top of the list

Picking first overall for the first time in their franchise history the Phoenix Suns hope they got a franchise center in DeAndre Ayton out of Arizona. His career production probably comes in somewhere between that of Olajuwon and Michael Olowokandi. Back in 1969 the Suns could have had the number 1 pick, but they lost a coin flip for it to the Milwaukee Bucks. At number two the Suns took center Neal Walk, who had a few solid seasons. But the grand prize the Suns lost out on was Lew Alcindor, soon to become Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. The Suns still have yet to win an NBA Championship. Kareem won six.

In 1983 the Rockets won the coin flip that got them Ralph Sampson. The second pick was Steve Stipanovich. The next year the Rockets won the flip again and took Olajuwon. Portland made Sam Bowie the second selection. Pick three, Michael Jordan. Trail Blazers fans who were alive back then, are sick about that to this day. Portland has blazed no championship trail since. Jordan won six.

The next year, the NBA ditched the coin flip system for the draft lottery.

Buzzer Beaters

1. Lame as Dwight Howard’s career arc has become, if Dikembe Mutombo was deemed Hall of Fame material, then isn’t Howard?  2. The World Cup means more globally than any other sporting event. But soccer simply has too many ties and 1-0 games to ever really breakout as a mainstream sport here.   3. Best “Summer” songs: Bronze-DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince “Summertime” Silver-Bananarama “Cruel Summer” Gold-Don Henley “Boys of Summer”

 

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The Texans wrap up the preseason this Saturday in Detroit. Composite Getty Image.

What were the takeaways from the Texans-Panthers preseason game?

We’re getting close to cuts, so the stakes are high with one last chance to make a lasting impression in the final preseason game. In the Texans’ win over Carolina, the biggest takeaway was the offensive line and running game — they looked good. Pass protection held up, and C.J. Stroud put together a nice touchdown drive capped off with a fourth-down throw to Nico Collins. Both rookies Jayden Higgins and Jalen Noel caught passes, and Nick Chubb looked sharp running with the starters.

How did the O-line look?

The line already looks much improved from last season. Pass protection was solid, run blocking was effective, and they were able to grind out yards while giving Stroud a clean pocket. Rookie Aireontae Ersery continues to impress, and there’s a real chance he ends up as the starting left tackle over big ticket free agent Cam Robinson. Robinson is back at practice, but Ersery has looked good with the first unit — and he was drafted to take Laremy Tunsil’s spot anyway, so why not speed up the process?

In practice the starters have been LT Ersery, LG Laken Tomlinson, C Jake Andrews, RG Ed Ingram, and RT Tytus Howard. If Robinson slides back to left tackle, Ersery could move to right tackle with Howard shifting inside to guard. It’ll be interesting to see what combo the Texans roll out against the Rams in Week 1.

Did the running backs impress?

Chubb looked good behind the line, finishing with 5 carries for 25 yards and a reception. He seemed comfortable in the scheme and showed some burst — it’s obvious he knows what he’s doing. If Joe Mixon isn’t ready for the start of the season, Houston should be in good hands with Chubb.

Damien Pierce is still out, which has given rookie Woody Marks more opportunity. He made the most of it with 40 yards on 7 carries against Carolina. He’s also shown he can help on third down with his ability in the passing game, which could earn him a real role.

How did the receivers look?

Rookie receivers Jayden Higgins and Jaylin Noel both caught passes. Nico Collins, Christian Kirk, and Justin Watson each added a couple of grabs too. Based on last year, Stroud tends to funnel targets to his top two options. A season ago it was Collins and Stefon Diggs before injuries hit. This year, Kirk looks capable of filling that Diggs role out of the slot. He just fits.

Reaction to the John Metchie–Harrison Bryant trade

The Texans needed more tight end depth with Brevin Jordan hurt, and Metchie wasn’t going to make the team. Bryant gives them another option, and it looks like tight ends may play a bigger role in the offense after Irv Smith Jr. led the team in catches and yards against Carolina.

Special teams also factored in. Metchie doesn’t play there, while Braxton Berrios and Justin Watson do, which gives the Texans more flexibility. Collins, Kirk, Higgins, Noel, and Hutchinson all look like locks at receiver, so moving Metchie made sense. It will be interesting to see who the final pieces will be in the Texans receiver room. Will they keep Watson and/or Berrios? We'll find out on Tuesday when the final cuts are made. Stay tuned!

What to watch for against the Lions

It’s all about the offense at this point. The defense is expected to be elite, so the spotlight shifts to Stroud and the rest of the unit. If the offensive line holds up against Detroit and the operation looks sharp, the Texans should be well-positioned to open the regular season on the right foot.

There's so much more to break down! Don't miss the video below as we examine the topics above and much, much more!

The NFL season is almost upon us! Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Texans on Tap podcast, which drops each Thursday during the preseason! More episodes will ramp up when the regular season begins! We'll go live on YouTube after every regular-season game.

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