ASTROS REPORT
Let's discuss the top 5 reasons for the Astros' recent success
Jun 7, 2021, 6:02 pm
Kyle Tucker has improved tremendously at the plate. Composite image by Jack Brame.
The Astros finished the week with a 5-2 record and back-to-back series victories over the Boston Red Sox and the Toronto Blue Jays.
As it currently stands, Houston has a 33-26 record, one game behind the Oakland A's for first place in the American League West.
The Astros recent success can be attributed to both starting pitching and great offensive stretches by certain players.
Zack Greinke is showcasing he is still a legitimate ace for this pitching staff. On Friday he tossed his first complete game since April 19, 2017 and seems to be settling into a nice groove as the season progresses. The veteran pitcher has a 6-2 record with a 3.38 ERA and has only given up two runs in back-to-back starts, as he continues to prove he is one of the best pitchers in the league. With Greinke at the top of this rotation, Houston has a pitcher they can rely on to go at least six or more innings in every start.
After starting his season with a 0-3 record, Astros' pitcher Luis Garcia has earned a victory in his last five starts. Garcia has a 1.82 ERA during that span and has proven he fits right into this rotation. On Sunday, he pitched six innings of work for his third consecutive start and lowered his ERA to 2.75 for the season. Garcia was a spot starter filling in for Framber Valdez and Jake Odorizzi when they were on the injured list. Little did the Astros know that this spot starter would turn into one of their most formidable pitchers of the year.
Chas McCormick has hit safely in seven of his last eight starts, batting .250 (7-for-28) with three extra-base hits and six RBIs over that span. The fourth outfielder has played well in the absence of Michael Brantley and has proven he can be a contributing factor for the Astros in the field and at the plate as well.
Kyle Tucker and Myles Straw have improved tremendously at the plate. Tucker is batting .354 (35-for-99) with seven doubles, a triple, six homers and 21 RBIs in his last 25 games. He has drastically improved after starting the month of May with a .173 batting average and leads the team with 11 homer runs. Straw has steadily been increasing his average as well. On May 1st, he was hitting .213, but now has a .242 average. The Astros already have a stout lineup with Jose Atluve, Carlos Correa, Yordan Alvarez, Alex Bregman and Yuli Gurriel. If they can get great production from both Tucker and Straw on a consistent basis, the sky is the limit for this offense.
Injury bug
Aledmys Diaz was hit by a pitch that subsequently fractured his hand. He will miss 6-8 weeks according to reports, but the move comes when Michael Brantley is set to return to the Astros on Tuesday, June 8th. Brantley's bat returning to the lineup will help the Astros tremendously and could further emphasize just how potent this offense could be. Before the veteran outfielder went on the 10-day injured list, he had a .305 batting average with three home runs and 15 RBIs. Slotting him back into the second spot in the Astros batting order will do nothing but enhance this already tremendous offense.
Up Next: The Astros head to Boston to play their final series of the season against the Red Sox on Tuesday.
Framber Valdez, Jake Odorizzi, and Zack Greinke should take the mound for the Astros this series.
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I left for vacation on April 14. Came back home on April 24. Eleven days in England and Germany.
Astros first baseman Jose Abreu went 0 for my vacation.
The last time Abreu reached base via a real-life hit was April 13 when he got two hits (fully half of his season total) and his batting average soared to a robust .122.
Since then, while I was dining on shepherd’s pie and schnitzel, Abreu has gone hitless in 21 at bats and his batting average has plunged to a squinty .065.
There’s an expression in baseball when a player is having a horrible, dreadful season: “He ain’t hitting his weight.”
Abreu ain’t hitting his uniform number. If you’re keeping score at home, Abreu weighs 250 pounds and wears number 79.
Abreu is chasing history. The record for suckiest single-season batting average for a player with enough plate appearances (502) to qualify for the batting title is held by former Orioles slugger Chris Davis.
In 2018, Davis batted .168. Despite being in the middle of a wildly overpaid 7-year, $161 million contract, the Orioles essentially fired Davis and his career was over in 2020.
Abreu is in the middle year of a guaranteed 3-year, $58.5 million, money down the toilet contract. Will he be an Astro next year when owner Jim Crane chokes on signing yet another $19.5 million paycheck for Abreu? Unlikely.
Other modern era batters have turned in disastrous single-season averages. Dan Uggla batted an unattractive .179 for the Braves in 2013. Rob Deer was a deer in the headlights swatting .179 for the Tigers in 1991.
Abreu is turning futility into an art form. If he continues his .065 pace he will obliterate every record for crummiest season in baseball history.
He has appeared in 19 games and has 4 hits in 62 at bats, with no home runs and one measly RBI. He had his latest oh-fer Tuesday night against the Cubs.
Fans are clamoring for Astros manager Joe Espada to open his eyes, stop looking at the back of Abreu’s baseball and bench the flailing, failing first baseman.
I say the opposite. In fact move him back to fifth in the batting order. If Abreu stays focused on doing what he does best this season - striking out with runners in scoring position - fans can witness the worst batting stats anybody’s ever had.
Oh, by the way, Abreu is a horrible fielding first baseman. We don’t know if he’s a good base runner. He’d have to get on base for us to tell.
Abreu is on pace to get 502 plate appearances. So this counts.
There actually is a player who’s having worse time at the plate than Abreu., though.
Abreu’s meager stats look positively Ruthian compared to what former Astro catcher Martin Maldonado is putting up for the White Sox. Maldy has 2 hits in 42 at bats for a subterranean .048 batting average with no homers and no RBI in 15 games. Maldonado won’t get to 502 plate appearances, however.
Who will end 2024 with a lower batting average: Abreu or Maldonado? This epic battle could go down to the final game of the season.