The Pallilog
Charlie Pallilo: Rockets suddenly find themselves in a series, Astros struggle, new gig for Witten
May 4, 2018, 7:36 am
Chris Paul is slowing down. Tim Warner/Getty Images
So a series has broken out between the Rockets and Utah Jazz. If they are to win the series the Rockets now must win a game in Utah. It’s a mildly daunting challenge but one a championship-worthy 65-win team should be able to conquer. A pitifully low defensive intensity start ultimately got the Rockets what they deserved in Game 2 Wednesday -- a loss. There was also the simple fact that the Jazz shot tremendously, making 15 of 32 three point shots. Coupled with the Rockets shooting a bricky 10 for 37 behind the line, the outcome was not a surprise. If both teams drift toward their overall shooting profiles, advantage Rockets. Covering Joe Ingles would be a good idea. Some stereotypes are true. Generally, white perimeter players in the NBA can shoot well! Ingles buried seven of nine threes in game two. He’s made 44 percent each of the last two seasons.
The Jazz is very good. It closed the regular season winning 29 of its last 35 games, then dispatched Oklahoma City in six games. The Rockets winning Game 1 so easily no doubt hurt their focus for game two. Shame on them for that, but it happens. If the Rockets lose Game 3 they’re not in deep trouble. If they lose Game 3 and then also drop Game 4 Sunday…
Even a 3-1 deficit wouldn’t necessitate doom though. The Rockets would find themselves in the spot they were in against the Clippers in 2015. Chris Paul can tell you how that finished. Speaking of CP3, a concern now and if the Rockets intend to give him megadollars for four or five more seasons, is that his individual defense has slipped. Paul turns 33 Sunday. He is not as quick afoot as he used to be. So says CPme.
Whatever happens to the Rockets Friday night, they’ll be in better shape than the No. 1 seed in the East finds itself. The Toronto Raptors choked away Game 1 then cratered in Game 2, both on their homecourt. A little reminder: at 33 LeBron James remains the most devastating overall force in the game. He sure shut up Drake. God’s Plan may still include LeBron making an eighth consecutive NBA Finals appearance. Coming out of the East has been the easier path over this stretch, but there is no current player who if swapped for LeBron over the past seven seasons, would have gotten his team to the Finals every year.
No offense, Astros, but...
The Astros have a reeeeeally good team. They have virtually all of the core back from the 101 win World Series Champions, and to the starting rotation added Tom Seaver. Um, I mean Gerrit Cole. Despite a 98 win pace 20-13 start however, they just haven’t played all that well so far. The just completed homestand finished up a poor 4-6. Wiith scuffling teams, when one leak is plugged another springs open. Thursday against the Yankees the Astros’ impotent offense finally showed some life, only to have the bullpen fall apart in the ninth inning for the second time in three games.
Ten times already the Astros have finished a game getting shutout or scoring only one run. No offense has been that futile more often this season. All of last season they managed zero or one a total of only 20 times. The Astros still have yet to win a game they trailed after six innings. Last season they won 14 times when down after six. Carlos Correa is their only everyday player playing at close to the level he performed at overall last season. Not saying Jose Altuve is having a bad season, but he is thus far markedly down from his 2017 MVP level. George Springer is down too. Alex Bregman also. And Josh Reddick. Marwin Gonzalez has been lousy. Yuli Gurriel has been weak since getting a late start to his season. Evan Gattis has been flat out pathetic at the plate, which is much better than Jake Marisnick. Derek Fisher has not hit like someone who belongs in the big leagues. Over 162 games water finds its level. The Astro attack should pick up, just as the starting pitching is extremely likely to taper off some.
Catching on with a new gig
Good for Jason Witten, retiring after a 15 year career with the Dallas Cowboys for the (critics aside) safer haven of the Monday Night Football broadcast booth. Witten missed one game in his NFL career, that in his rookie season. Almost certainly a future Hall of Famer, Witten was the Cowboys third round pick in 2003. Second round of that same draft, the Texans picked tight end Bennie Joppru.
Buzzer Beaters
1. Career receptions: Witten 1152, Joppru 0. 2. Big surprise, the NHL playoffs have been terrific. 3. Best ever HBO comedies: Bronze-Veep Silver-The Larry Sanders Show Gold-Curb Your Enthusiasm
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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!
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