That Jeff Luhnow talent pipeline had been drying up for a while, but this season so far kind of puts an exclamation point on it.
Following the disappointments known as the 2024 and 2025 seasons, I have long felt that the 2026 season would determine the Astros’ long-term trajectory. A successful season likely meant Joe Espada and Dana Brown would hang around. I use “likely” as even a World Series title didn’t save James Click’s job in 2022, so you never really know with Jim Crane. But another disappointing season almost certainly means the end for Espada and Brown in Houston. I mean, they’re both on the last year of their current contracts. Crane was noticeably noncommittal about them past this season. It doesn’t take much to see that this year is a make-or-break year for the club’s current leaders.
We’re only 22 games into the season, so it may be a tad premature to make any grand assumptions about the Astros’ future. The 2024 team is a recent example that proved a rebound is certainly possible, although the circumstances and, more importantly, the roster were better in that season than this one. But it is increasingly difficult to reconcile how this pitching staff can make any substantial improvement in the coming weeks to warrant much optimism about this team’s current predicament. Truthfully, with this staff, I don’t think this team has a viable path to the postseason, much less a winning record. This series against the Cardinals only reinforces that thought.
Like nearly every other game this season, the Astros troubles begin with the pitching staff. This time, Lance McCullers Jr. couldn’t make it out of the first inning without giving up a pair of runs. He also couldn’t get out of the third without allowing two more. While this start was far from one of McCullers’ worst, it also wasn’t one of his best. But, in typical fashion, it was another inefficient and ineffective start for him, allowing four runs on four hits, three walks, and two hit by pitches across five innings. Colton Gordon wasn’t any better, allowing three earned runs himself in 2 2/3 innings. On the plus side, at least AJ Blubaugh looked better this time around, striking out two in 1 1/3 innings.
Other than a run in the first and eighth innings, the Astros’ lineup was relatively quiet. Following a hot start to the season, the bats have cooled off at the most inopportune time, as the pitching staff still hasn’t figured out its issues. Shay Whitcomb did provide a spark in the ninth inning with his three-run home run to decrease the deficit from 7-2 to 7-5. But it ultimately didn’t matter as the Astros only had two more outs to spare, with Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez failing to keep that rally alive.
The truly interesting development from today was the postgame comments from Isaac Paredes.
There is no doubt that Paredes is struggling this season, with only 11 hits and a 75 wRC+ on the season. Of those 11 hits, four are doubles with no additional extra-base hits. For a hitter with Paredes’ profile, that isn’t something that you’d like to see for a prolonged stretch. I have expressed doubt about the long-term viability of Houston’s plan to use Paredes at multiple positions, especially when Jeremy Peña is also healthy. Odds are that Paredes will improve at the plate in time, though his comments suggest this arrangement will be problematic until something changes.
How the Astros play over the next six weeks might determine how the rest of the season unfolds from an organizational perspective. With an 8-14 record and no signs of an immediate rebound incoming, it’ll be fascinating to see how Crane reacts if the losses continue to pile up. All we know is that the seat entering this season was already warm for both Espada and Brown. I have a feeling those seats aren’t cooling off anytime soon.
Feature photo courtesy of Pixel Pete
More stuff between players and coaches. First was Hunter rebuking Dana’s comment about his health. Now Paredes mentions, in summary, sporadic playing could be what’s bothering him at the plate. The season is young, but we can already see the writing on the wall, and it isn’t even May yet….