All Time Astros
Our
final AL West team is the Astros, who made the jump from the NL in 2013. This
team is coming in as another heavy favorite for the top team out there. The
team was established in 1962 as an expansion team with the Mets, initially
called the Houston Colt .45s, however when they moved to the famous Astrodome in
’65, they changed their name to Astros. With the Astrodome came the AstroTurf,
which changed the way the game was played. They've been a successful team historically, however until recently they hadn't cemented themselves as a dominant team. They won
the World Series in 2017, and got to it in 2005 as the NL pennant winners. They’ve won the AL
west the past two years (and will again this year), and won the NL central
division four times in five years from ’97 until 2001. They won the NL West in ’80,’81
and ’86. As of now they only have two players in the Hall wearing the Astros
jersey in Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio, though many more have worn the jersey,
including Nolan Ryan. This team is going to hit you from every angle and is
definitely one of the favorites to win it all.
This lineup is going to hurt you over and over again. With only two 9 OBs, and those two being in the top tier of 9 OB, they don’t
really give you an opportunity to take your foot off the gas. Hall of Famer Craig
Biggio leads it off with his great 1998 card, having 10 OB, 23 speed, a ridiculous
6 doubles, three outs and a couple of home runs. This is one of the best leadoff
cards you’ll find out there. He’s followed by Moises Alou, who brings 20 speed,
10 OB, three outs, three doubles, a triple and three home runs. These two lead
off guys set the table wonderfully for Bagwell’s ’98 card that is almost
identical to Alou’s card, just without a triple but only two outs. Altuve and
Bregman follow him with almost identical cards of 10 OB, speed, two home
runs and four doubles. This team is going to score a lot of runs.
When most other teams start to fall off, this lineup keeps on trucking. Although
the next two guys are 9 OB, their charts are ridiculous, as well as providing an
extreme amount of defense. Cedeno has two home runs, a rare two triples and
four doubles. Hidalgo’s 2001 card has four home runs, three doubles and a
single plus. Although their top players aren’t quite as good as the Giants,
their lower end is also a lot better, which should make the two teams an
interesting match up. Finishing out the lineup is Mitch Meluskey’s 2000PR card
that has 10 OB, only one home run, but four doubles and +6 arm. While he’s the
weakest member of this lineup, a lot of other teams would really like a catcher
of his caliber. Moving to the rotation and this team only becomes scarier. Nolan Ryan’s 1981 card leads the way with 6 control, 7 IP, 16 outs and four
singles. Good luck. Mike Scott, not the regional manager, is next with 4
control, 7 IP, 17 outs and no doubles. Not a bad one two punch, and just when
other teams might fall off, Randy Johnson’s ridiculous ’98 card comes in.
Unfortunately he only has 3 control, but he can go 8 innings, has 18 outs and
doesn’t even give up a single.
Showing the depth here, Justin Verlander’s 2018 card is the fourth pitcher in this
rotation. He has 5 control, “only” 6 IP and 16 outs, but doesn’t give up a
double. He could be the top pitcher on many other rotations. Behind him is
Keuchel’s 2017 card that has 3 control, 18 outs, no doubles and 6 IP. The only
downside to this rotation is the fact that there’s two 3 controls and a four,
but their charts are so filthy it doesn’t even matter. JR Richard and Niekro
just miss the rotation, both with 4 Control, 17 outs, a walk, single and double
over 7 IP. Not bad for 6th and 7th options. The bullpen doesn't slow them down, with Billy Wagner 2000 leading the way. His 5 control, 18
outs, no doubles card is one of the best closers in the game. Dave Smith is
right behind him with a similar card, although 17 outs and a double. Larry
Anderson is the only 3 control in the bullpen, but has 19 outs, so if he’s got
the advantage it’s lights out.
Rounding
out the bullpen is Osuna, Devenski, Giles and McHugh, each having 4 Control. Osuna
has 18 outs, and gives up a single and double. Devenski gives you the great 2
IP with 17 outs, two walks and a double. Giles and McHguh match with 17 outs, a walk, a single
and a double. These cards are good enough to be in any bullpen, yet they fall
to the end of the order here. Their bench continues the pummeling with a few
options to choose from. Lance Berkman 2006 is the top card left off the list. He could easily slot into the middle of this lineup with 10 OB, and four home runs. On most team’s he’d slide into a DH role,
however the Astros happen to have two of the best 2B cards in Biggio and
Altuve. Daryle Ward, George Springer and Carl Everett are the next three
options. All three play outfield, and are just marginally worse than our starters.
Ward and Springer have a ridiculous 4 home runs and two doubles. Since our pitching
is already rock solid, I’m going to go with the top three guys here in Berkman,
Ward and Springer.
This
lineup only comes in at 4,320 which is a bit lower than the Giants, however I
might still take it overall. The underrated part of it is the amount of speed
and defense they have. They have five guys with 20+ speed and the other four
are 15. The rotation comes in just shy of 3,000 with 2,970 which is just ahead
of the As. The bullpen is an even 1,600 which is averaging over 200 points per
player. The bench is 1,430 to bring this team to a total of a whopping 10,320
points which is just below the Giants, albeit much more evenly spread out.
Hitters
SP
RP
Looking at the top offensive seasons in Astros history,
according to OWar it is Jim Wynn’s 1969 season which is a shocker. He finished
the year .269/.436/.507 and led the league in walks with 148. He also had 113
runs, 133 hits, 33 HRs and 87 RBIs. In an era dominated by pitching I guess
that stands out. I still think the other years are a bit more impressive. Almost every top season for the Astros has been made, which is
part of the reason this team is so good. Every player on the roster shows in
the top 50 seasons except for Meluskey, who probably could be replaced by a Biggio catcher card, though there’s not a ton of options for the Astros when it
comes to catching. In regards to pitching, Larry Dierker has the top WAR season
with his 1969 year in which he was 20-13 with a 2.33 ERA, 20 complete games, 4
shutouts, 305.1 innings over 39 games, and 232 Ks. Mike Scott’s 1986 is next,
followed by Clemen’s 2005 card. It could be fun to see a career arc of cards
for Clemens, as he had a long range of dominance on many different teams. Roy
Oswalt’s 2002 is also up there, in which he went 19-9 with a 3.01 ERA, striking
out 208 in 233 innings. It’s crazy to think that this rotation could be even
better than it already is. In the bullpen Jose Valverde, Brad Lidge, Doug Jones
and Dave Smith could all add a bit of depth to this already dominant team. Offensively
this team is pretty maxed out, but pitching they can go from unreal to
completely unstoppable with a few upgrades. Overall this team is going to cause
nightmares for opposing teams.
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