The Bad, the Ugly, and the Good

GAME 78: Braves 3, Astros 2
GAME 79: Braves 4, Astros 0

GAME 80: Astros 6, Braves 1

GAME 81: Astros 4, Tigers 3
GAME 82: Tigers 4, Astros 3
GAME 83: Astros 6, Tigers 4

GAME 84: Mariners 10, Astros 4
GAME 85: Mariners 13, Astros 2

GAME 86: Mariners 5, Astros 2

GAME 87: Angels 5, Astros 2

GAME 88: Angels 7, Astros 6

GAME 89: Angels 11, Astros 5

GAME 90: Angels 6, Astros 1

GAME 91: Astros 12, Rangers 7
GAME 92: Astros 8, Rangers 3

GAME 93: Astros 8, Rangers 4

I went out of town and just look what happened: The Astros went on a serious losing binge, including being swept in two consecutive series. One of these series was the much anticipated matchup with my parents' team, the Mariners, while I was visiting in Seattle. The Astros were clobbered. But tomorrow is another day, and there's always another game (until October), and then of course, there's always next year. So let's just not talk about it...

I came home from my latest West Coast trip just in time to watch the Astros complete a sweep over the Rangers. Happily, that series resulted in pushing the Rangers one tenth of a percentage point below the Astros in the standings, so we're no longer the worst team in the Major Leagues -- just barely!

The most notable aspect of the Rangers series was the run production - the Astros scored 28 runs in 3 days, including 7 more home runs. At 100 homers so far this season, the Astros are third in the league for long balls. That's a fun change for a team that hasn't been noted for power hitting in a while. (But alas, we're in the cellar for Team BA - just .239 - and are leading the league in strikeouts.) Altuve went 5 for 13 with 3 steals, breaking the Astros' record for most hits before the All Star Game.

With all this offensive support, the Astros managed to win all three games quite decisively. The starting pitching, while not lights-out, managed to hold their own, and all three starters inked the wins. Cosart got his ninth season win, pitching 5 innings, giving up 6 runs (5 ER) on 9 hits. Peacock had a very nice start, earning his third win with 2 runs in 5 2/3 innings. Keuchel gave up 4 runs in the first 2 innings and then settled in for 4 2/3 scoreless innings, for his ninth win. One notable plus in the starting pitching was the dearth of walks - only 3 BB in the series. With somewhat short outings for the starters, the bullpen got quite a bit of action, and the relievers accounted very nicely for themselves. They gave up only 2 runs in 9 2/3 innings.

Meanwhile, in other Astros news...

The Astros have been experimenting with some of the minor league prospects, with mixed results.  One game in Seattle featured the ML debuts of both Domingo Santana and Enrique Hernandez (with the unfortunate nickname "Kike," although it's pronounced "Kee-Kay"). The much anticipated Santana went on to go 0 for 13 with 11 strikeouts, many of them painfully ugly. That got him a ticket back to OKC, with Robby Grossman called back up to replace him. Meanwhile, after 9 games, Hernandez is still in the bigs, batting .345 with a homer, a triple, and a pair of doubles. 

Altuve was voted into the AL All Star Team by the players. It was kind of a "Duh!" choice, since he's leading the league in BA, total hits, and steals. That's only good enough for 4th place among fan voters, given the Astros' poor national visibility, but hopefully the ASG manager will have the sense to let him come in sometime during the game. Dallas Keuchel is still in the last round of voting for the final ASG position, but I don't hold out much hope that he'll get in.

In the bad news department, Fowler has been on the on the DL for the past 2 weeks, with a right intercostal strain. The good news is that Springer has been playing CF quite athletically. Take a look at this catch for a sample!

One more piece of not-so-good news: The Astros are still negotiating with Brady Aiken, their first draft pick from this year. The holdup seems to be a health issue - some problem with his elbow ligament. It would be a huge shame if they couldn't sign him, but a bigger shame if he never makes it to the big leagues because of a health problem.

DUST EATERS COUNT: 1! 

The Astros record is now 39-54 (.419). There is just 1 team worse than the Astros -- the Rangers (.418). There is also one NL team that is tied for our sad placement - the DBacks (.419). Unless we can get a boost off of that sweep in Dallas, we might start thinking about our next first pick in the draft...

2005-2014 ASTROS COMPS

I think it's about time to drop this feature, since the 2005 team is well on its way in its phenomenal ascent from the cellar to the pennant, while the 2014 team is pretty much treading water. But, as they say, "There's always next year..." 

2005 Game 93 W/L record: 47-46 (.505) (tied for 7th best in the NL); 13 1/2 games behind in NL Central

2014 Game 93 W/L record: 39-54 (.419) (2nd worst in the AL); 19 games behind in AL West