Anything is still possible for the Houston Astros this season. Even as it gets closer to the All-Star break, most of the American League honestly remains wide open—especially the AL West, which is the worst division in the sport this year according to record.
After the Astros’ last series win against the Detroit Tigers, they briefly moved into the final AL Wild Card spot. It’s been a special turnaround for this team so far, but the job is far from over. Even though the Astros still have a losing record, they have set themselves up for success heading into July 4.
How the Astros Turned Their Season Around
The Astros went 11-5 during their winning streak of five straight series wins. While it featured no sweeps, they strung together multiple successful series, which was exactly what was needed. The Astros are 42-45 at the moment after June 29 but are on pace to cross over .500 and get to a winning record.
There was hope as the schedule got much lighter in June, with multiple series against some of the worst teams in the AL, such as the Tigers, the Kansas City Royals, and the Los Angeles Angels. It also featured a series against the Toronto Blue Jays, who are also in the thick of the AL Wild Card standings. Currently, the Astros are just a couple of games back of the division and basically right there for a wild card berth.
What was the key for the Astros during this lengthy winning period of five straight series? It honestly wasn’t anything crazy; it was just both the offense and pitching coming together in key times. Here are the three reasons why.
A Timely Offense
While this group started off the season hot, they went into a slump. However, the offense has come through in some big-time spots. It’s not like they are always putting up some incredible numbers, but when the Astros need a hit or some runs, someone will step up.
There have been multiple high-scoring affairs that the Astros have come out on top of during this period. It all started against the Royals when the Astros scored nine first-inning runs. Six of those RBIs were courtesy of MVP candidate Yordan Alvarez, who made history by hitting multiple home runs, including a grand slam in the first inning. Only he and David Ortiz have ever done that.
The starting pitching has been hit-or-miss lately, but the offense will score even when the pitching is giving up runs. The Astros came back from multiple-run deficits twice in the game after that to win 8-7. They put up nine runs against the Cleveland Guardians in that series opener.
Wild Wins
In a crazy game against the Toronto Blue Jays, the Astros were up 4-0, then trailed 6-4 in the ninth before somehow tying it up to head to extras. Joey Loperfido hit a massive 3-run bomb against his former team, which proved to be the game-winning home run. In the last two games of the series against the Tigers on the road, the Astros won 8-6 and 7-5. Both were close, high-scoring affairs that Houston found a way to get on top of.
Jeremy Peña tied it up twice before Isaac Paredes delivered with a clutch, two-out, two-RBI double for the lead. The next day, the Astros were down 3-0 before Raynel Delgado hit a two-run homer in the seventh. Paredes tied it up with a solo shot in the eighth. The Astros piled on four runs in the 10th inning thanks to a Paredes RBI single and a huge three-run homer from Christian Walker.
Anyone in the lineup can join the party when needed.
Health
The lineup finally looks much more complete. Not only that, but the depth is also there now. The outfield has Jake Meyers, Joey Loperfido, Cam Smith, and Taylor Trammell. Jose Altuve and Peña are at the top of the order. The biggest health difference has arguably been closer Josh Hader, who’s been almost perfect so far. He currently has a 0.75 ERA in 12 appearances along with seven saves in seven chances. 12 innings with just one earned run and 19 strikeouts. He’s also come in on back-to-back days twice. His presence has changed everything when it comes to putting opponents away.
Ace pitcher Hunter Brown has also stabilized the rotation. He has a 2.45 ERA in three appearances since returning.
The Bullpen
Hader was obviously a big part of this, but the bullpen as a whole has been excellent. In fact, they started the season as the worst unit in baseball, but now have remarkably been ranked the best bullpen in baseball since May. Bryan King has been great all season, while Enyel De Los Santos has come through more often than not. Steven Okert has been reliable, and various other members have had their moments.
The team as a whole is starting to put it all together.
Main Photo Credits: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
