Astros and Rangers Playing Quality Baseball
Temperatures have been quite hot in Texas of late, as usual during summer months. Something else has been hot, too: the baseball being played in Arlington and Houston.
Quality Baseball Continues in Arlington
The Texas Rangers have found, set, and kept pace since the beginning of the season, coming off an American League West championship in 2015. The Rangers are 18-6 so far in June, with four games left in the month. They will next be visiting the New York Yankees in the Bronx. To this point, the Rangers are 49-27, good for a .645 winning percentage, giving them a ten game lead in the AL West. The Rangers should have their eyes on October if they are able to keep up the pace they’ve set, or at least play .500 baseball.
The recalling of Matt Bush has proven fruitful, as Bush has thrown 19.2 innings, chalking up a 2.29 ERA while amassing twenty strikeouts with only six walks. Ian Desmond has also proven to be a valuable signing. He leads the team in batting average (.322), home runs (13), RBI (49), on base percentage (.373), and hits (95). If the Rangers are able to keep pace, expect to see them throughout the post-season.
The only major question marks for the Rangers are their starting rotation and their bullpen. The Rangers rotation has taken a major hit in the last thirteen days; three of their starting five pitchers sit on the 15-day disabled list. Ace Yu Darvish was the first to be placed on the DL, on June 14 for right shoulder discomfort. Derek Holland was placed on the DL on June 22 for left shoulder inflammation, and Colby Lewis, who started the season 8-0, was placed on the DL on June 25 for a strained right latissimus dorsi muscle.
The Rangers have since called up A.J. Griffin and Nick Martinez. The Rangers bullpen has also seen lots of shuffling in the last month. Fans saw Tom Wilhelmsen sent down to Triple-A Round Rock Express and former closer Shawn Tolleson lose his role for inconsistency. Manager Jeff Banister has begun using a platoon of Matt Bush, Jake Diekman, and Sam Dyson to close out games. Bannister had success last season using this shuffle technique in the bullpen. With the All-Star Break just over a week away, it’s unclear if “the shuffle” will be able to hold out ’til September.
Houston Won’t Settle for Second Place
The Houston Astros have also been hot recently, and look to gain on their division rival to the north. The Astros are 15-8 in June, with three games left in the month. The ‘Stros will be visiting the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. As of June 26, the Astros are 39-37 (.513), ten games back in the AL West and 1.5 games back of the American League Wild Card. Young phenom Carlos Correa continues to dazzle, having come up clutch in multiple games, including two walk off hits. Jose Altuve is currently the leading All-Star vote-getter for second basemen in the American League. He continues to show why both on the field and at the plate.
Evan Gattis has come into his own behind the plate, finding his groove defensively and offensively. The outfield platoon of Carlos Gomez, Jake Marisnick, Colby Rasmus, and George Springer may be the best in all of baseball. Their combined defensive skills and abilities at the plate makes them a deadly combination. If the Astros can keep up this momentum, look for them to be contending for the division title come September.
The Astros biggest flaw, and apparent Achilles heel, seems to be their inability to get base hits with runners in scoring position. The Astros leave an average of almost four runners in scoring position every game. Only six teams have a higher average. The team batting average is .245, good for 23rd in the Majors.
The Astros are also going to have to make smarter base running decisions. A number of those runners left have been due to poor base running choices. In previous years, the Astros have depended on the home run to win games, and it’s apparent that isn’t going to work in 2016. The Astros need to play “small ball”, similar to the Billy Beane method made famous in Oakland.
Texas-based fans would love nothing more than a showdown in the Lone Star State to determine who represents the American League in the World Series. If both teams are able to keep pace and continue the quality of play fans have been seeing recently, that may end up being more than just a dream.
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