We’re past the midway point in the season with the most boring sports week of the year ahead of us, unless you are pumped for MLB All-Star Week. Whoopee!
The Astros are three games back in the division and two games back in the Wild Card race, four games under .500 overall. They have done a decent job of erasing a miserable early-season run, but they have a long way to go. This seems as good a time as any to hand out some awards.
Most Valuable Player: Yordan Alvarez
Honestly, this should just have the description: “duh.” He’s the best hitter in baseball and has a very good shot at the Triple Crown and AL MVP. Without him, this team would be a LOT worse. Every time he is at the plate, he’s must-see baseball.
Best Pitcher: Hunter Brown
There’s another pitcher worthy of this and we’ll get to him in a minute, but despite missing time with an injury, Brown remains the best arm in the Astros stable of pitchers. He has rapidly grown into the team’s ace and someone they can count on not just for a win every five games, but a quality start, something this team has struggled to achieve much this season.
Most Improved: Christian Walker
We feel weird about this one, especially since Walker has cooled off a bit in June/July, but Walker is on pace for his best season since 2023 when he had 33 homers and 108 RBI. He’s at 20 now after hitting 27 last year in 60 more games. He’s seeing the ball better as well with strikeout numbers closer to 2024. If he can get back to where he was a few weeks ago after the break, he has a chance to give the Astros a pair of 30-home-run hitters this year.
Biggest Surprise: Peter Lambert
If Hunter Brown’s injuries had been more significant, Lambert would without question be this team’s best pitcher. It seems like every year the Astros pluck one guy from near obscurity (Jason Alexander in 2025) and turn him into a bonafide Major League pitcher. This year, it’s Lambert’s turn. His ERA is a solid 3.14 after never posting anything lower than 5.26 in his career. He’s posted 81 Ks and just 31 walks, the strikeouts a career high already. The Astros will need to monitor him as he has never thrown more than 89 innings in a season and he’s already at 86.
Biggest Bummer: Bryan Abreu
This could just as easily be Tatsuya Imai if not for his few electric starts or Mike Burrows or, frankly, Dana Brown’s pitcher signings in the offseason. But, nothing seems to come close the cliff that Abreu fell from this season. He was one of the best set up men in baseball in 2025 and considered a top contender to leave the Astros in free agency to take a closer role after this year. Now, he’s just trying to get back to being an ok reliever.
Most Likely to Improve in the Second Half: The Rotation
Don’t look now, but the Astros rotation could be full of arms by the time the break is over. In addition to Brown, Lambert, Imai and Spencer Arrighetti, Cristian Javier has returned and made his first start this weekend. Ronel Blanco, Lance McCullers, Jr. and even Hayden Wesneski (we hardly knew ye!) could be back in the majors in the next couple weeks. How they sort out who ends up in the bullpen and who makes the rotation is anyone’s guess, but the more healthy arms, the better.
Most Likely to Struggle in the Second Half: The Bullpen
The pen has been under tremendous pressure all season long. Both Steven Okert and Bryan King have already thrown more than half as many innings as at anytime in their careers. AJ Blubaugh is at 60 innings pitched. Enyel De Los Santos is at 43.2 (his career is 66). Either the starters need to start eating a bunch more innings and quickly, or the team is going to need fresh arms for the bullpen fairly soon.
Best Story: Alimber Santa
To watch a rookie with no MLB experience close out a multi-pitcher no hitter was incredible. To see it done by a kid named Santa who embraces the name by wearing Christmas-themed items is a joy. He’s only thrown in 15.1 innings, but he has a 1.17 ERA and has not looked out of his element at all. Ho ho ho!
Worst Story: Jake Meyers
What a disaster of a few years for Meyers who remains elite at catching the ball in the outfield if not throwing it. The now former Astros center fielder just cannot string together any level of consistency at the plate and the Astros are better off playing younger players with brighter futures. It’s one thing for Meyers to struggle, but to wind up demoted is just brutal.
