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SirGreatWhite · 06-20-2019, 06:47 PM

The Astros have officially clinched the AL West division! And were fortunate enough to do it the day before heading to our final series of the season against the Angels!

The cluster that was the AL West all season long finally has a winner. While the Astros were in 1st place (or tied for it) for pretty much all of June & July, they hit a rough patch in the middle part of August (losing 5 in a row and 7 of 9) led to teams like the A's, Angels, and even Rangers, with an outside chance down the stretch. But a 22-11 record in their last 33 games following a 4 game sweep at Oakland back in the middle of August has propelled them to this point.

The Astros won 5 straight games against the Angels and Mariners to clinch the division. We still have a 4 game series at LA Angels to finish the regular season. We will give plenty of AB's to our September call ups and prospects. Our starting pitching rotation will all likely be on shorter pitch counts and will even give a day off to guys like Alex Reyes who have had some minor injuries throughout the year - but has been red hot of late. Justin Verlander is scheduled to pitch in the opening game of this 4 game series and has 19 wins on the season. We will let him pitch his regularly scheduled day and have his normal pitch count to allow him an attempt to get win #20 on the season.

We will still give a couple of regular at bats to our every day guys for at least the next 2 games - probably 2-3 AB's each game and pull them off the field for the last couple of innings; then for the final 2 games let them sit out entirely while we figure out the postseason roster. Speaking of...

The postseason roster will definitely have some tough choices to be made...both Will Harris and Joe Smith have pitched quite well since returning from injury. Will Smith, acquired from the Giants in a trade, has been pretty bad for the most part. Hector Rondon was very inconsistent for most of the season and has been solid down the stretch. Even Kimbrel was inconsistent down the stretch. So it will be challenging to see who gets the bullpen spots. We will probably carry 8 bullpen arms and 3 bench players for the first round series.

From the lineup side of things, Yuli Gurriel has had a very subpar season. First baseman need to have a good OBP or high Slugging % and he has neither. His average is in the .220's and has been since July. Michael Brantely and Yordan Alvarez can both play first base if needed, but neither are very good defensively there. Jake Bauers has been getting regular playing time since August...rotating between first base, left field, and occasionally DH. But his numbers this year against left handed pitching are worrisome. Catching prospect Andrew Knizer (acquired in trade with St. Louis for utility infielder Tony Kemp) has done an awesome job in September and has likely earned himself the backup catcher's spot for the playoffs, taking it from Max Stassi. Francisco Cervelli (acquired in Jake Marisnick trade with Pittsburgh Pirates) maintains the lead catching spot - though his bat has cooled off of late.

Should be a fun postseason run!

#TakeItBack #GoAstros

06-20-2019, 06:47 PM	#23
SirGreatWhite Minors (Single A) Join Date: Jun 2019 Location: Texas Posts: 59	Astros clinch the AL West!!! The Astros have officially clinched the AL West division! And were fortunate enough to do it the day before heading to our final series of the season against the Angels! The cluster that was the AL West all season long finally has a winner. While the Astros were in 1st place (or tied for it) for pretty much all of June & July, they hit a rough patch in the middle part of August (losing 5 in a row and 7 of 9) led to teams like the A's, Angels, and even Rangers, with an outside chance down the stretch. But a 22-11 record in their last 33 games following a 4 game sweep at Oakland back in the middle of August has propelled them to this point. The Astros won 5 straight games against the Angels and Mariners to clinch the division. We still have a 4 game series at LA Angels to finish the regular season. We will give plenty of AB's to our September call ups and prospects. Our starting pitching rotation will all likely be on shorter pitch counts and will even give a day off to guys like Alex Reyes who have had some minor injuries throughout the year - but has been red hot of late. Justin Verlander is scheduled to pitch in the opening game of this 4 game series and has 19 wins on the season. We will let him pitch his regularly scheduled day and have his normal pitch count to allow him an attempt to get win #20 on the season. We will still give a couple of regular at bats to our every day guys for at least the next 2 games - probably 2-3 AB's each game and pull them off the field for the last couple of innings; then for the final 2 games let them sit out entirely while we figure out the postseason roster. Speaking of... The postseason roster will definitely have some tough choices to be made...both Will Harris and Joe Smith have pitched quite well since returning from injury. Will Smith, acquired from the Giants in a trade, has been pretty bad for the most part. Hector Rondon was very inconsistent for most of the season and has been solid down the stretch. Even Kimbrel was inconsistent down the stretch. So it will be challenging to see who gets the bullpen spots. We will probably carry 8 bullpen arms and 3 bench players for the first round series. From the lineup side of things, Yuli Gurriel has had a very subpar season. First baseman need to have a good OBP or high Slugging % and he has neither. His average is in the .220's and has been since July. Michael Brantely and Yordan Alvarez can both play first base if needed, but neither are very good defensively there. Jake Bauers has been getting regular playing time since August...rotating between first base, left field, and occasionally DH. But his numbers this year against left handed pitching are worrisome. Catching prospect Andrew Knizer (acquired in trade with St. Louis for utility infielder Tony Kemp) has done an awesome job in September and has likely earned himself the backup catcher's spot for the playoffs, taking it from Max Stassi. Francisco Cervelli (acquired in Jake Marisnick trade with Pittsburgh Pirates) maintains the lead catching spot - though his bat has cooled off of late. Should be a fun postseason run! #TakeItBack #GoAstros Attached Images Last edited by SirGreatWhite; 06-20-2019 at 06:52 PM.