How these last hopes for Astros must repair unlikeliest of foundational cracks
FIXING THE ASTROS
04 June
Can the Astros turn this season around? Composite Getty Image.
The Houston Astros are coming off another crushing series loss and now sit 7.5 games behind the division leading Seattle Mariners.
And while things haven't been going well for the club this year, some areas of the team are showing improvement. Despite all the injuries to the starting rotation, the pitching has been excellent as of late.
Hunter Brown and Spencer Arrighetti appear to be developing into quality back of the rotation starters. Which is key with the injures to Jose Urquidy and Cristian Javier.
Alex Bregman seems to have found his power stroke at the plate, but now that he's hitting, Jose Altuve, Kyle Tucker, and Jeremy Pena are struggling. It's just been one of those years for the Astros. They can't seem to get hot at the same time.
And when the pitching and hitting give the bullpen a late-game lead, they've struggled to hold it. Josh Hader and Bryan Abreu seem to have overcome their early season issues, but Ryan Pressly is another story. His command has been a problem for most of the year. His walks per nine innings (3.2) haven't been this high since 2015. When he makes a mistake, there's often a runner on base, which has cost the Astros several games.
Look at the bright side
One possible saving grace for this team is their schedule. If they can start stacking up series wins against the Cardinals, Angels, Giants, Tigers, and White Sox, maybe they can get back to .500 and put themselves in striking distance of the Mariners.
Be sure to watch the video above for the full discussion!
Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
NFL insiders hint at eye-opening future for Houston Texans offense
Dec 7, 2024, 2:38 pm
One of the nuggets that came out of Nick Caserio's press conference this week, was his thoughts on the job Bobby Slowik has done as an offensive coordinator. When asked if the team has considered sharing the offensive play calling, Caseiro responded with an emphatic, “absolutely not.”
Caserio went on to praise the job Slowik has done this year, and to say the team's struggles in the second half this season is due to execution.
This stance is consistent with what we've heard from Texans insiders that believe Slowik will be back next season. As much as many Texans fans believe a change at OC could help CJ Stroud, who's shown regression this year, it doesn't appear Slowik is going anywhere.
To be fair, most teams aren't looking to replace their coordinators when they're leading their division and marching toward the postseason for the second straight year.
Number crunching
When comparing Stroud's stats to last season, there is a clear dropoff in 2024. But a lot of that has to do with the addition of Joe Mixon, especially when it comes to touchdowns.
Mixon is third in the NFL with 11 rushing TDs, while Dameon Pierce and Devin Singletary only combined for 6 over the entire 2023 season. One could argue the passing offense has regressed, but one could also argue the offense overall is more balanced.
Stroud is still Top 5 in passing yards, heading into this week's games. And even if we account for the bye week, Stroud will still be Top 10 after this week's slate of games.
The most concerning number to keep an eye on is sacks. Only one QB has been sacked more than Stroud, who's been sacked 41 times. CJ's protection has gotten better since Juice Scruggs was moved to guard, and Jarrett Patterson was inserted at center.
If Stroud starts getting hit again at a high level, that may be the one factor that could make the front office rethink their plans at coordinator. However, if the Texans do make a change, we expect them to address their o-line coach before any changes at OC.
Be sure to watch the video above for our full breakdown of the Texans offense, the coaching staff, and our thoughts on how the Azeez Al-Shaair suspension will impact the team.
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