José Altuve Has Not Recorded a Hit This Postseason, is it Time to Panic?
The Houston Astros are now 5-0 in the 2022 MLB postseason after defeating the New York Yankees 3-2 in Game 2 of the NLCS. Everything has been clicking for the Astros in terms of pitching, timely hits and great defense.
Everything except one thing: second baseman José Altuve.
The face of Houston's franchise is now 0-for-23 after Thursday night's performance. It's not ideal for an Astros offense looking for more at the dish, especially when Altuve is their leadoff hitter.
Yes, he is still a stellar defender and Houston's pitching staff has been able to pick up the lineup who has averaged four runs per game this postseason. But, at some point if the Astros want to continue to find consistent success, then Altuve will need to get going at the plate.
However, it's not time to panic just yet. This is an outlier for the second baseman who has a career slashline of .267/.343/.510 and an OPS+ of 176 over the course of 84 postseason games.
Additionally, he finished off the last month of the regular season with a 1.058 OPS. So it isn't as if he was showing signs of entering into a slump such as the one he experienced in April of this season.
Altuve is too talented, too postseason proven and has found himself too unlucky in multiple instances this postseason to remain this unproductive for much longer.
Now is not the time to begin panicking. Altuve's time is shine is just around the corner.
More From SI's Inside The Astros:
- Could Mike Trout Request a Trade to the Houston Astros?
- Report: Former Astros Pitcher Fiers' Contract Terminated By CPBL Club
- Can the Houston Astros Handle the Loss of Yordan Álvarez?
- Is There Any Hope for an Aging Yuli Gurriel?
- Grading the Houston Astros MLB Trade Deadline Transactions
- Jeremy Peña isn't Competing for Rookie of the Year, And That's a Good Thing
- Houston Astros Poised to Make Another World Series Run
- Mancini Mania: Behind the Houston Astros' Latest Streak of History
- Trey Mancini Gives Houston Astros a Much Deeper Lineup
- Yordan Álvarez Stopped Striking Out and Became the Best Hitter in Baseball
Make sure to follow Inside the Astros on Twitter @InsideAstrosSI!