WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. – They dug themselves a hole, deployed a flawed roster and dismissed their general manager in the middle of a playoff race. Being in first place and below .500 at the time distilled the essence of this bizarre season.
It laid bare that the Houston Astros, with an aging core and absent depth, are no longer the dominant force of years past. Their season resembled a six-month ordeal. Self-belief that bordered on obstinacy still proved sound, with American League dysfunction serving as a saving grace.
Advertisement
The Astros are returning to the playoffs, a year after their streak of eight straight appearances ended, to attempt another run at October glory. It will mark their 10th postseason appearance in the last 12 years; only the Los Angeles Dodgers have more in Major League Baseball in that span.
ALSO SEE: Astros-White Sox wild-card series schedule
The Astros won the American League West on the final day of the season. A loss by the Rangers, with whom they entered Sunday tied atop the division at 80-81, made it official as the Astros were on their way to a 9-0 rout of the A’s at Sutter Health Park. It is their eighth AL West title in the past 10 seasons.
Dubious history belongs to Houston. The Astros are MLB’s first division champion – and first postseason qualifier – to finish with a non-winning record in a full-length season. They logged their fewest wins in a full season since 2014, the final year of a rebuild, when they incurred 92 losses.
Advertisement
They are, still, a playoff team. They will host an AL wild-card round series against the Chicago White Sox, with Game 1 on Tuesday at Daikin Park.
The formula was far from elegant. The Astros entered Sunday with a negative-41 run differential in a division in which no club had a positive one. They employed one of baseball’s shakiest pitching staffs and least productive outfields. They used a franchise-record 19 different starting pitchers. They formed a top-heavy offense, albeit one that led the majors in home runs.
But buoyed by a slugging MVP candidate, a sparkplug shortstop, a stalwart bullpen and a starter signed to a minor-league deal – and under the direction of a manager not under contract beyond this season – the Astros met the mandate put forth by their owner in late August.
“The expectation that I have is that we’re in the playoffs every year,” team owner Jim Crane said on Aug. 25, a day after he dismissed general manager Dana Brown. “It’s hard to win every year, but you’ve got to get to the playoffs.”
Advertisement
For the second time in three years, it required the Astros to overcome a brutal start. They sat 11 games under .500 on May 21, scuttled by injuries and a pitching staff that owned baseball’s worst ERA at that point. They are the seventh MLB team since at least 1900 to start 20-31 and reach the postseason, and the first since the 2019 Nationals, who defeated Houston in the World Series.
Ace Hunter Brown made two starts before a shoulder strain sidelined him for 2 ½ months. Cristian Javier, the highest-paid pitcher on the roster, missed three months with the same injury. Josh Hader, the Astros’ $95 million closer, missed the first two months recovering from biceps tendinitis.
In the lineup, shortstop Jeremy Peña played in 10 games before losing five weeks to a hamstring injury. Carlos Correa, the Astros’ third baseman and de facto captain, tore a left ankle tendon May 5 – surgery ultimately ended his season. Still, the club managed a midsummer upswing.
From May 22 through Aug. 2, only the Brewers won more games than Houston. Peña and Yordan Alvarez fueled an offense far too reliant on them and Isaac Paredes. Peter Lambert, an unheralded minor-league signing called up from Triple-A in mid-April, provided stability to the rotation. Hader’s return reinforced a stalwart bullpen, in which Steven Okert and rookie AJ Blubaugh emerged as key pieces.
Advertisement
Alvarez, the Astros’ only All-Star, authored the eighth 40-homer season in team history and a legitimate bid for a Triple Crown. He settled for a batting title. He could join Jeff Bagwell and Jose Altuve as players to win Most Valuable Player with the franchise. For months, the slugger anchored a top-heavy offense – one that started to crater in August, threatening the club’s playoff aspirations.
Only four teams began Sunday with fewer runs scored since Aug. 1. Altuve, the face of the franchise, authored his least productive 162-game season in over a decade. Christian Walker, the $20 million first baseman, fell off offensively after May. No hitter who logged at least 30 games in their outfield had an OPS-plus at or above MLB average, including Daulton Varsho, the Astros’ lone deadline acquisition.
A disastrous homestand against division teams preceded Dana Brown’s dismissal on Aug. 24, during his fourth season as GM. How the Astros will treat that role will be a primary question this offseason. After that move, the Astros won four of their next five series, a response that furthered their playoff push.
On Sept. 11, the Astros owned a three-game lead in the AL West. Ensuing sweeps by the Rays and Braves erased that lead and cast into doubt their status as contenders. Uncertainty lasted until the final game of the season. A winning final road trip to Seattle and West Sacramento dispelled it.
Advertisement
The outcome defies myriad issues. Houston’s front office acquired six pitchers on major-league deals last winter. They’ve compiled a 5.54 ERA with the Astros this season. Three were designated for assignment. Marquee free agent Tatsuya Imai lost his rotation spot. So did trade addition Mike Burrows.
Two starters threw more than 100 innings for the team: Hunter Brown and Lambert. Hayden Wesneski, who returned in late July from elbow surgery, boosted the rotation down the stretch. The trio will form the backbone of a playoff rotation, for as far as the Astros go.
Fittingly, Lambert drew the start in game 162. Pitching on two days’ rest, after throwing 62 pitches on Thursday, the right-hander gave Houston two scoreless innings. He logged nearly 50 more innings this season than any other Astros pitcher. Their lineup struck for four runs in the third inning, capped by a two-run triple from center fielder Lucas Spence, playing in his 19th major-league game.
Thursday, Spence had become the third player to hit his first three MLB home runs in the same game. Saviors can arise from anywhere in a playoff race. Ethan Pecko, in his eighth major-league appearance, followed Lambert with three scoreless innings. Miguel Ullola, in his 11th, added a scoreless frame. The Astros led 8-0 when Texas‘ loss went final, securing their spot in the playoffs.
Advertisement
The road there resembled none of those before it. But once again, the Astros are postseason-bound.
There’s more to Houston with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.
This article originally published at Houston Astros are back in the MLB playoffs after winning AL West to cap a long, trying season.
