The Astros may still be sitting on top of the AL West, but the road ahead is anything but forgiving.
As of August 20, Houston owns first place in the division with less than six weeks left in the MLB season, yet it hasn’t managed to build the kind of cushion that would let it breathe easy. That matters now more than ever, because the schedule is about to turn sharply uphill.
The stretch begins at home against the last-place Athletics, but that’s the last soft landing for a while. After that, Houston heads to New York on a Monday travel day and opens a brutal run with three games in the Bronx against the Yankees, then three in Queens against the Mets to close out August. The Astros then return home for back-to-back series against the White Sox and Diamondbacks.
From there, the grind keeps coming. Another Monday travel day sends Houston to Philadelphia for three games, followed by a trip to Tampa to face the Rays.
Then it’s back home again for the Royals and Braves, before one final Monday travel day takes the Astros to Seattle for two against the Mariners. They finish the regular season with four games in Sacramento against the A’s.
The next three weeks look like the real separator. Houston has had trouble putting together consistent series wins, and this stretch leaves no room to hide.
The Yankees are still in the division race and battling for the top wild card spot. The Mets, though out of the playoff picture, have won 11 of their last 15.
The White Sox are trying to hold first place in the AL Central, while the Diamondbacks sit as the first team out of the NL Wild Card spots.
The challenge only gets steeper in Philadelphia, where the Phillies are fighting for a Wild Card position and have heated up. Then comes Tampa, where the Rays are the top team in the American League this season.
That six-series run will go a long way toward deciding Houston’s season. If the Astros can play .500 or better through it, the playoff spot should be theirs.
If not, they’ll almost certainly be on the outside looking in.
There is at least a brief break in the pressure after that. The Royals, who are the 5th-worst team in MLB, come to Houston. But the schedule tightens right back up with the Braves, then two games in Seattle against a Mariners team Houston is 2-9 against this season, before the season-ending four-game set in Sacramento.
Overall, the Astros have the 19th-hardest remaining strength of schedule in baseball, though that is softened by the two series with the A’s and the Royals series at home. The Rangers have the 13th-hardest remaining schedule, while the Mariners sit at 29th.
Houston already let a chance slip away when it couldn’t make the most of a stretch that included the Giants, Mariners and Angels. Now the Astros have to be sharp every night, because the schedule is going to demand it.
In Other News...
Joe Espadas Mound Visit Led To A Brutal Astros Surprise
Hunter Brown was rolling at Daikin Park when a routine-looking mound visit from Joe Espada turned into an unexpectedly expensive detour for Houston. Brown had worked 5 2/3 innings and allowed just one run, and he was a pitch away from finishing the sixth before the sequence on the mound shifted the night in a way nobody in the dugout seemed to want.
What should have been a simple visit instead sent the Astros into an awkward ruling once the umpires got involved, and Brown had to come out to a standing ovation after another strong outing. It left Houston with a strange midgame surprise and a reminder that even the most ordinary-looking trip to the mound can carry bigger consequences than anyone intended. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Finally Have A New Reason To Watch Alex Santos
Alex Santos has reached a new stage in his development, as the Astros organization has promoted the right-hander to Triple-A Sugar Land for the first time in his professional career. It is the latest sign that his steady climb through the system is starting to pay off, and it gives Houston another arm worth watching as the season enters its next phase.
Santos earned the move after a strong run at Double-A Corpus Christi, where he put together a 3.38 ERA across 39 games. For an Astros farm system that always seems to have a few pitching names worth tracking, this is the sort of step that can change how quickly a player gets onto the major league radar. [Read more 🡒]
Cristian Javier Is Becoming An Astros Problem At The Worst Time
Cristian Javier gave the Astros a reminder of both sides of his value in a start that began with four solid innings before the game slipped away in the fifth. Houston got the version it needed early, the one that can shorten at-bats and keep a lineup off balance, but the outing also underscored how fragile things have become every time he takes the ball as the club tries to stay on track in a crowded playoff race.
Since coming back from injury in July, Javier has not looked like a pitcher who can carry a workload the way Houston needs right now. The command has wavered, opposing hitters have had more success than usual, and the Astros have been forced to lean harder on a bullpen that is already under pressure when games get tight late in the season. [Read more 🡒]