The Houston Astros have been one of, if not the best, team in the last 5-6 years. They have set the expectation every year that they will be in contention for a World Series Title. That hasn’t been the case so far this year.
The Astros are off to a horrible start to the regular season. At the time of this writing, the Astros are 8-19 and have lost 3 series in a row. Their place in the standings is the worst Astro’s start to the season since 1969. So, is it time for Astros fans to be concerned or will the team turn it around?
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The first problem with the club is pitching. The Astros bullpen should be considered one of the best in baseball, but they haven’t been performing like it. Josh Hader and Ryan Pressly have ERA’s over 7.0. I fully expect those players to turn it around and return to form. More concerning is Astro’s starting pitching, but there is a huge caveat to this. They simply aren’t healthy. The majority of the pitching rotation has missed time due to injuries. Justin Verlander and Framber Valdez are both back so that should help bring the Astros out of their current funk. However, Cristian Javier, Lance McCullers Jr, Jose Urquidy, and Luis Garcia are all still on injured reserve. Once these players start getting healthy, Astros pitching should return to form.
Another major area of concern for the Astros are their corner infielders. Alex Bregman is off to slower start than normal. He is hitting .204 with 0 home runs in 24 games played. Bregman is simply in a slump to start the year and throughout his career he has shown no reason for fans to doubt that he can turn it around. Off to an even worse start is first baseman Jose Abreu. The former All-Star is hitting .104 through 21 games with 0 home runs. The Astros will likely need an upgrade at 1st base as the season progresses.
Even with those slow starts, the Astros offense is not necessarily struggling. The club is top 5 in the majors in hits. They haven’t struggled to get on base, but simply haven’t had timely hitting with runners in scoring position. That will change over time.
If they can get healthy, I fully expect the Astros to turn it around and once again be in contention at season end.
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