The Houston Astros were seven games out of first place in the American League West going into Tuesday’s play, with a record of 12-22. They were defeated 10-3 by New York in the Bronx.
For a club that many predicted would be a contender for the World Series, it has been an awful season. This is largely due to injuries that have affected Houston’s starting lineup. Cristian Javier and J.P. France are not available right now. Justin Verlander and Framber Valdez have also lost time due to injuries.
In spite of everything, Houston is essentially in a state of despair. It just cannot afford to drop any lower in the American League standings before making a run at it.
Just recently, general manager Dana Brown was questioned about his team’s performance and whether the Astros will sell before the July MLB trade deadline. He responded without hesitation.It will take the Astros around three months to get up in the standings. The good news in the AL West is that nobody is giving up. With a 21-16 record after their victory over the Oakland A’s on Tuesday, the Texas Rangers, the reigning World Series champions, are in first position.
“Winning this series, winning this series, winning this series, and getting back to.500, I think is the key here,” Brown stated. “After you recover to.500 and get rolling, you’ll have winning streaks of five, seven, ten, and so on. Before you know it, you’ll be eight or ten games above.500.”
Getting fit and watching the starting lineup start to deliver are crucial.
Houston had a.259 team batting average going into their game against the New York Yankees on Tuesday. Alex Bregman has had difficulty; his average is.202. Jose Abreu hit.099 in 71 at-bats before being sent down to the lower leagues.
Right now, the Astros are designed to succeed. To completely destroy the roster is absurd. However, manager Joe Espada’s situation is the more significant one here. He’s firmly under investigation.
