Astros improve their position
But the real terror in the major leagues today is not in the east or west, but rather to the south, exactly in the mid-southwest, and it’s called the Houston Astros. In addition to its renowned power hitting ability, Houston has developed a tremendous pitching arsenal that makes it a near-perfect machine.
The Astros have won six straight games and 11 of their last 13 (a streak that includes a 7-2 run in nine straight against the Mets and Yankees) to improve to 51-27 and take a 13.5-game lead over the Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers for first place in the American League West Division.
The San Diego Padres (47-34), Atlanta Braves (46-34), Milwaukee Brewers (46-35), Boston Red Sox (44-35), Toronto Blue Jays (44-36), Minnesota Twins (45-37), Tampa Bay Rays (43-36) and St. Louis Cardinals (44-37) are near the top of their divisions and in playoff contention, but are far from resembling Houston at this point.
The Astros’ pitching, which dominates MLB with a 2.89 ERA, has a 1.96 ERA (19 CL in 87.1 innings) over their last 10 games. The starting staff, which includes the legendary Justin Verlander, Dominicans Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier, Venezuelan Luis García and Mexican José Urquidy, has an 8-0 record and a 1.33 ERA in that same stretch.
Houston’s relief corps leads both majors with a 2.64 ERA.
The Yankees, who have the second-best record in their history after 80 games (behind only the 60-20 record of 1998, when they ended up winning the World Series) control the young circuit’s powerful East Division by 13.5 games over archrival Boston, whom they will face over the weekend at Fenway Park.
Their hitters lead baseball with 403 runs and 133 home runs, while their pitchers have an ERA of 2.90, the second best in MLB. But although they won two of the last five games against the Astros, their offense could do little against the opposing starting pitching.
New York has unfinished business in the trade market, which concludes on August 2, to add at least one bat for the outfield, given the astounding inability of Joey Gallo (.602 OPS and 89 strikeouts in 194 innings) and Aaron Hicks (.284 slugging and .626 OPS) to contribute regularly.
The Dodgers have adequately managed key players on and off the injured list, their hitting has produced the second most runs (393) and their pitching is hitting 2.96, third in MLB. But the bullpen has a collective 3.33 ERA, which is above average, though not spectacular, and Craig Kimbrel (4.78) hasn’t exactly looked like the closer who could help win a championship.
The Mets, who have barely managed to withstand the Braves’ sensational rebound, are starting to get some good news from their top pitching horses. While Jacob deGrom looked great Sunday, striking out five and throwing the straight 100 mph in 1.2 innings in his first minor league rehab start, Max Scherzer is scheduled to return Tuesday against the Cincinnati Reds.
Scherzer (5-1, 2.54) has been sidelined since May 19 with a left oblique injury, while deGrom hasn’t pitched in the majors in a year due to elbow and shoulder discomfort.
The Mets trailed the Braves by 10.5 games in the National League East Division after the May 31 trade deadline, but today that lead is down to 3.5 games. The effectiveness of New York’s starting rotation is 4.08, the worst among playoff-bound clubs in the old circuit.
With Scherzer and deGrom, most likely, things should improve for Queens.
