Almost a year ago, Sports Illustrated baseball writer Ben Reiter declared that the Houston Astros would be the 2017 World Series Champions. The issue’s cover featured the Astros’ top prospect at the time, George Springer, who is now one of the team’s main pieces. Most readers looked at this as just another journalist making an educated opinion on a certain topic, but it may be possible that Reiter was on to something.
The 2015 regular season is almost a month old and so far the Astros are in first place in the American League West. Some will say that it’s too early to deem this team as the best in its division, but the other four teams in the West do not seem to be nearly as good as the Astros. Many thought the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim would win this division easily as they did last season, but they are currently seven games behind the Astros in the division. The Oakland Athletics and Seattle Mariners are also slumping, while the Texas Rangers are not an impressive team at all. What this all means is that the Astros, who have been the worst team in the majors for the past two or three seasons, have an actual chance to make the playoffs this season.
The Astros’ success starts and ends with one player: Jose Altuve. The second baseman from Venezuela broke out in the 2013 season, but he had an even better year in 2014, when he led the majors in hits, batting average and stolen bases. Altuve is also hitting the ball great again this year, as he already has 19 runs batted in with a .361 batting average. This all shows that the Astros would not be nearly as good if Altuve was not a part of their team. If he keeps playing this well throughout the season, he could be a legitimate contender for American League MVP.
Another reason for the team’s success so far is their effective starting pitching. Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh are as good as any one-two starters in the majors right now. Keuchel is 3-0 with a stellar 0.73 ERA, while McHugh is 4-0 with a solid 3.41 ERA. These two need to stay healthy; if the Astros want any chance to make the postseason. The team’s bullpen is also solid, with guys like Pat Neshek, Tony Sipp, and Luke Gregerson all effective in the late innings of a game.
Besides Altuve, other players have been swinging the bat well, which has helped the Astros on their current 10-game winning streak. Catcher Evan Gattis, who was acquired this offseason from the Atlanta Braves, hit five home runs and drove in 12 runs during last week. Mentioned earlier, George Springer is playing well, as are others, such as Colby Rasmus, Luis Valbuena and Jake Marisnick. The team’s offense is very impressive and if they can combine that with good pitching, they have a real chance to be a dominant team all season.
The Astros have not scared any other teams in the majors for a couple of years, but it may be time for other teams to start taking them serious. A team that won 70 games last year and only 51 in 2013 now is tied for first with the St. Louis Cardinals for most wins in the majors with 18. Altuve may be the best pure hitter in the majors and if they ride him all year, he may win the MVP. Do not be surprised to see the Astros still playing baseball in October, because they definitely have the pieces to do so.
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