Bruised but not buried, Astros continue fight for AL West title
ARLINGTON, Texas – The Houston Astros could console themselves with the notion they had put up a stern fight in losing four of the previous five games in this interminable trip. They had shown their mettle in that epic comeback against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday. They weren't caving in.
Now their main consolation is they get to go home.
It has been a miserable journey around American League West ballparks for the Astros, who have fallen off the first-place perch they occupied most of the season, and Wednesday's 14-3 shellacking by the Texas Rangers represented the low point.
After another Rangers romp Thursday night completed the four-game sweep, the question is not so much what kind of impact the four-game slide will have, but how bruised the Astros will be by the time they return to Minute Maid Park on Friday.
After all, the upcoming nine-game homestand features the same teams – the Oakland Athletics, Angels and Rangers – who took three series from Houston in what was a 2-8 trip, dropping the Astros' road record to 29-46, tied for the league's worst.
It also left them suddenly 2 1/2 games behind the Rangers in the AL West and a mere 1 1/2 games ahead of the Minnesota Twins for the second wild card slot.
"Guys are well aware of where we are in the calendar and what we need to do to make things better,'' manager A.J. Hinch said. "We've come this far, we've earned it, we're still having a good time. We're just not enjoying the defeats. But we have some time to correct it, go home to Houston and make things better.''
The comforts of home may indeed help the Astros, especially an offense that has seen its production shrink to an average of 3.3 runs over the last six games. But there are other reasons for concern.
For one, the Rangers have caught fire at the right time and not only lead the season series between the clubs 12-4 but have won their last seven meetings in a row.
More worrisome perhaps is the status of some of the Astros' starters. Staff ace Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh, the club's second-biggest winner, got shelled by the Rangers. A night after McHugh gave up five runs in 3 2/3 innings, Keuchel put up a clunker of his own, yielding nine runs in 4 2/3 innings Wednesday as his franchise-record streak of going at least six innings ended at 40 starts.
Both have surpassed their career highs for innings in a season – McHugh by 27 – with three starts each still left. Keuchel's breakout season has turned him into a strong Cy Young Award candidate, but he has allowed three homers in two of his last three outings.
"There's no panic (on the team)," says Keuchel. "It's just frustrating that we're so close in most of these ballgames in the road trip and we haven't cashed in.''
Houston had been outscored by just two runs, 39-37, in the first eight games of the trip, losing five times by two runs or less. Those are the kinds of games where manufacturing a run here or there can make a big difference, but that's not the Astros' forte.
They rely on the home run, with a record-tying 11 players reaching double figures. Houston's 199 homers rank second in the majors, but the club is only 22nd in on-base percentage. When the homers don't come, the offense typically dries up.
"We have a low batting-average team in general,'' Hinch acknowledged. "In doing that, when these games get close, some of the critical at-bats when you just need to get a hit, they've eluded us. But not always.''
The Astros have plenty of time to recapture their early-season magic, although now they'll have to be mindful not just of the Rangers and Angels but also the Twins, their closest pursuer for the second wild card.
Then there's the issue of Houston's general lack of experience in a playoff environment, the type that was felt in its four losses this week at Globe Life Park. Third baseman Jed Lowrie, a postseason participant in four different years with the Boston Red Sox and A's, said a youthful club can overcome an experience disadvantage with talent, but it helps to have been there before.
"Not having experience in that arena does not preclude you from having success,'' Lowrie said, "but you can only experience those situations by actually playing in them, and then you'll be more prepared next time.''
For most of the Astros, this is the first time, and their 4-11 September record suggests the learning process is still taking place.
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