Houston Astros Ride Hot Streak To Best Record Since Early April
The next few days are massive for the Houston Astros and their playoff chances.
Houston's horrid start to the season has been talked about extensively, mostly because of how shocking it was. Right now though, they look like a new team that could be building up confidence at just the right time.
After securing a series victory against the Baltimore Orioles on Saturday afternoon, the Astros now sit at 37-40. The last time that they were just three games under .500 was on April 8 when they were at 4-7.
The Seattle Mariners' lead in the AL West had reached 10 games but now sits at just seven, still a tough hill to climb. The real chance for Houston to make the playoffs will be in the Wild Card race. They're now just 4.5 games behind the streaking Boston Red Sox and five games behind the reeling Kansas City Royals.
The Astros are entering a potentially season-deciding stretch. Sunday will see their final matchup against Baltimore. A two-game series against the Colorado Rockies, who own the third-worst record in the league, begins on Tuesday. If Houston wins all three matchups, they will be at .500 for the first time this season.
After Colorado, will be the red-hot New York Mets before facing another dwindling team in the Toronto Blue Jays for a four-game series. By the second week of July, the decision could be made on whether they should start selling off players or bulking up for a playoff run.
At one point in the season, Houston was sitting with a depleted roster and double-digit games under .500. The team is now playing with newfound confidence that makes it seem attainable.
The re-emergence of superstar slugger Yordan Alvarez has played a huge role in turning the season around. The normally reliable hitter had reached a slash line of just .239/.323/.420 when the season was at it's worse.
In the month of June alone, he has an absurd .359/.417/.797 line while hitting seven home runs with 19 RBI. Houston is just 8-18 in games that Alvarez has gone hitless. His bat is a huge part of this team's success.
Another player that can be thanked for turning things around is pitcher Hunter Brown. Amongst constant chaos with the pitching staff, Brown has been able to put together a career-best stretch.
He looked like a cause in April, when his ERA had ballooned to 9.78. Over his last nine outings, he has a 2.45 ERA and batters are slashing just .207/.277/.346 against him.
While they haven't reached contender status yet, the Astros are finally beginning to look like themselves again.
DYLAN SANDERS
Dylan Sanders graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree from the Manship School of Mass Communication in 2023. He was born in raised in Baton Rouge, LA but has also lived in Buffalo, NY. Though he is a recent graduate, he has been writing about sports since he was in high school, covering different sports from baseball to football. While in college, he wrote for the school paper The Reveille and for 247Sports. He was able cover championships in football, baseball and women's basketball during his time at LSU. He has also spent a few years covering the NFL draft and every day activities of the New Orleans Saints. He is a Senior Writer at Inside the Marlins and will also be found across Sports Illustrated's baseball sites as a contributing writer. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram @dillysanders