What Constitutes a Good 2015 Season For the Houston Astros?

I’m sure you’ve noticed in recent weeks that we here at Climbing Tal’s Hill are fairly excited for the 2015 season. Jeff Luhnow has made a slew of moves that have seemingly made the Houston Astros a much better team than a year ago, and we’re optimistic. Staff writer Ryan Gonzalez and myself have each written pieces saying we think the Astros could even go so far as a wild card berth. The question I have is this: what would signify a “good” season for the Astros in 2015? We have a few options.

Option number one would be what every optimist is hoping for: reaching the postseason. The bullpen is improved, which should help the win total go up by a fair amount, but to reach the postseason some things would have to go Houston’s way. Jon Singleton would have to rebound and lay claim to first base for starters. George Springer will have to stay healthy. Dallas Keuchel and Collin McHugh will have to be nearly as good as they were a season ago. Those are the main cogs to playing October baseball. To achieve this goal, they’d have to win right around 88 games.

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Option number two is remaining competitive into the last month of the season, but ultimately having a Houston Astros-less postseason. They play in a tough division, where all five teams (yes, even the stupid Rangers) can make an argument that they’ll reach the playoffs. To stay competitive, they’d likely finish with something around David Schoenfield’s projected 83-79 record.

Our final option would be the original goal: reaching .500. This would bring the first non-losing season to Houston in forever, and much to celebrate. However, would it be enough?

What are your expectations for the Houston Astros this season?

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