Houston Astros: Should we believe in them again?

The Houston Astros came into this season with expectations of a possible World Series run. After a rough start, the team has been playing much better of late. But is this turnaround legitimate?

Before starting their series with the Baltimore Orioles on May 24, the Houston Astros were 17-28 and one of the worst teams in all of Major League Baseball. The 2015 AL Cy Young recipient, Dallas Keuchel, had an ERA above five and a half, rookie first baseman Tyler White had cooled off considerably after a hot start and trade acquisitions Carlos Gomez and Ken Giles were not performing even close to the way the club expected, just to name a few of the team’s problems.

Since then, the Astros have made a bit of a run. After sweeping the O’s, who were possibly the best team in the American League at the time, Houston has won 14 of 19 games and now sits just four games under .500. They are also just 4.5 games out of the last Wild Card spot. But is this recent surge validating the Astros again as a serious contender? They are certainly in a better position, but looking at their roster, there are still some clear concerns.

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While their play over the past couple of weeks has been encouraging, it’s not like the Astros were beating potential playoff teams. They more or less took advantage of clubs lower on the totem pole. Over their last 19-game stretch, they have played the Angels, Athletics, Diamondbacks and Rangers. Texas is the only team not under .500 and they have lost the last two games against their AL West rivals. In fact, the Astros are only 3-9 against the top two teams in their division, the Mariners and Rangers.

In order to be the best, teams have to be able to beat the best and that’s just not something that the 2016 version of the Houston Astros have done thus far. But that doesn’t mean that there shouldn’t be reason for optimism.

Lance McCullers has been solid over his past few starts after coming off an injury. He should add some relief to a rotation that has greatly regressed from last year. Dallas Keuchel has also been much better in his last two outings, going at least six innings in each, while allowing three or fewer runs in both starts.

The lineup has seen a bit of a turnaround as well. Carlos Gomez, who recently came off the disabled list, has hit two home runs over the past three games. George Springer has reached another level of play, Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa make up the most dynamic middle of the infield in the game and there is also a duo of young hitters on the farm that could contribute at the major league level soon in Alex Bregman and AJ Reed.

But even with a solid young core, Houston is simply not the ball club they were in 2016, even considering their most recent string of wins. The likes of Luis Valbuena, Preston Tucker and Colby Rasmus were much better last season.

Their rotation is not good enough right now as well. Doug Fister, Mike Fiers and Collin McHugh do not look they are suddenly going to turn their seasons around, and the Astros need better with the type of offensive output they normally get.

Yes, the team’s recent surge should excite Astros fans since a playoff spot looks much more realistic now than a few weeks ago. But with the types of teams they have beaten recently and the regression still apparent all over their roster, Houston general manager Jeff Lunhow needs to make upgrades at the deadline if the Astros want to start seriously threatening the likes of the Rangers and Mariners. Boy, what a difference a season makes.

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What do you think the Astros’ outlook for the rest of the season is? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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