We all know this has been a weird year for your Houston Astros. From injuries and slumps to trades and turnarounds, it is difficult to know exactly what is coming next. Such is the case for the Astros as they begin their August schedule. After posting a whopping .680 win percentage in June, they went 14-11 in July, certainly respectable especially considering they erased a 10-game deficit in the division in June.
But since taking a series from the Dodgers, they finished July losing two of three against the Pirates, and began August with a series loss to the Rays. They are just 4-5 on their most recent nine-game homestand, just one game behind division leading Seattle and four-and-a-half up on Texas, the team they visit next. Let’s recap.
Yussei Kikuchi, welcome to Houston.
The Astros found themselves buyers during a sellers’ market, one of the toughest in years. They had hoped to come away with a starter, a reliever and a bat. As Meatloaf once said, two out of three ain’t bad. They had to give up the very popular Joey Loperfido to land Kikuchi from the Blue Jays, but it immediately paid dividends with Kikuchi striking out eight straight, 11 overall, en route to a win Friday. The Astros have always excelled at tuning up pitchers who may have not pitched well recently. In the case of their newest addition, they asked him to lean more heavily on a changeup and it worked. If the pitching staff can add some live into Kikuchi’s game, the trade will be well worth it.
Where have the runs gone?
The Astros had averaged over five runs per game during their comeback in June, but that has fallen off dramatically over the last several weeks. Since the All-Star break, they are scoring just over three runs per game, with just 14 runs in their last six games. When the Astros score four or more runs, they are a very, very good baseball team. When they don’t, well… Up and down the lineup, things have been pretty bad, but after his resurgence, Alex Bregman has regressed. Of their 1-5 hitters, only Yainer Diaz remains remotely hot. That has to change.
That’s one hell of a shin bruise.
No one would ever accuse the Astros of being an open book when it comes to acknowledging and reporting on the extent of player injuries, but the case of Kyle Tucker makes it seem like they are protecting the country’s nuclear codes. On June 3, Tucker fouled a ball off of his shin during a game with the Cardinals. In what has been called a bruise by the team, he has not played for two months and the latest report is he might not be ready in August. Listen, we aren’t physicians, but missing more than two months because of a bruise feels excessive. We’d like a second opinion, or at least a straight answer.
Lance McCullers, Jr. gone for another season.
It is beginning to be reasonable to wonder if Lance McCullers, Jr. has pitched his last game of baseball. Since signing a massive extension with the team in 2021, McCullers has pitched in a grand total of 42 games including the postseason. If he is healthy for 2025 Spring Training and can pitch in the regular season, it would be the first time for him to pitch in two-and-a-half years. The fact that he cannot seem to get healthy, never mind stay that way, doesn’t auger well for his future.
This article appears in Jan 1 – Dec 31, 2024.
