It was just earlier this month that the Houston Astros were outscored 41-7 (-34) over a six-game span, which included four shutout losses.
But despite dropping five of those six games, the Astros’ lead in the AL West didn’t dwindle—it increased. The Seattle Mariners lost even more games during that stretch, and that’s been the story in the division throughout August.
Seattle hasn’t been able to take advantage of Houston’s lapses this month, still sitting 1.5 games back in the AL West.
Are the Astros the worst division leader?
Well, they certainly are in terms of record. At 72-60, Houston wouldn’t lead any other division in baseball this season, as noted by Sports Illustrated’s Maddy Dickens, who contemplates this question in a recent article.
She writes that Houston is “lucky” to still be atop the AL West, as the Texas Rangers are struggling in addition to the Mariners.
So, the Astros are still likely to make their ninth consecutive playoff berth. But Dickens doesn’t see Houston beating the other AL division leaders in the postseason—the Detroit Tigers and Toronto Blue Jays.
The Astros didn’t help their case on Tuesday night with a shocking 6-1 loss to the Colorado Rockies, who have the worst record in MLB. But they received a massive boost in their lineup with the return of Yordan Alvarez from the 60-day injured list.
Alvarez is a career .294 hitter with a track record of postseason success, winning the ALCS MVP in 2021 and the World Series with Houston a year later.
With 30 games left in the season, the Astros will have to find their rhythm again quickly. Otherwise, another first-round exit might be on the horizon.
