Astros Countdown: Top Five First Half MVP’s

The Astros had a remarkable first half.

With a winning percentage of .674, the Houston Astros head into the All Star break as the best team, record wise, in the American League as well as one of two teams that have 60 wins. Many players have been important parts of the success. However, there have been five players in particular that have been integral to where the Astros are today.

Dallas Keuchel

Coming off of a 2015 season that was disappointing to many, left-handed starter Dallas Keuchel has proved once again why he is, not only the ace of the Astros’ pitching staff, but one of the best pitchers in the AL.

In 11 starts, the 29-year-old veteran has a 1.67 ERA with a 0.87 WHIP. Matching his win total of 2015 with a perfect record of 9-0, the 2017 All Star has only given up two or more earned runs in three of his 11 starts.

Keuchel puts up these remarkable numbers without overpowering stuff. Using primarily a sinker, he has a career high 67.4 percent ground ball rate so far this season with a career low BABIP of .222. Even though he is a ground ball pitcher, Keuchel is getting hitters to swing and miss as well. He has a career high strikeout rate of 24.4 percent so far this season.

Keuchel has been back to his Cy Young-caliber ways in 2017.

However, he has not been doing it much as of late. He has not thrown a start since June 2^nd because of a pinched nerve in his neck. Currently on the 10-day disabled list, Keuchel is expected to be back shortly after the All Star break.

Even though he has not pitched for the Astros in over a month, Keuchel helped get the Astros to where they are today and will be a very important piece in their second half run into October.

Brad Peacock

Brad Peacock has been one of the best stories of the 2017 season. Coming into Spring Training without any minor league options left, the 29-year-old pitcher had to pitch his way onto the Astros active roster. Since then, he has been lights out in both the bullpen and in the starting rotation.

Starting as a long reliever in the bullpen, Peacock had a 1.10 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP in 16.1 innings of work. With a remarkable .127 batting average against in 12 appearances, he was a strikeout machine, with 22 strikeouts.

When Keuchel, Lance McCullers Jr. and Charlie Morton all went on the disabled list in a three-week span at the end of May and the beginning of June, Peacock was asked to come into the starting rotation. He did not miss a beat. In nine starts, he had a 5-1 record with a 3.18 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. The strikeout numbers got even higher, with 62 strikeouts in 45.1 innings of work. Now, striking out a career high 32.1 percent of all batters faced, Peacock averages 12.26 strikeouts per nine innings.

The secret to his success has been an increased use of his slider.

Peacock is throwing a career-high 36.2 percent sliders with a career-low 35.9 percent fastballs.

With Keuchel and Collin McHugh on their way back and Morton and McCullers pitching remarkably well in the starting rotation, it is unclear of what Peacock’s role will be out of the All Star break. However, no matter where it is, he has shown he will be effective.

Jose Altuve

Jose Altuve is doing nothing new. He is just doing what he does best, putting up ridiculous offensive numbers for the Astros.

He is currently first in baseball with a .347 batting average has a career high OPS of .968. He is currently on pace for his fourth straight season of 200 hits or more, 40 doubles or more and 20 home runs or more. With 50 in his first 86 games, Altuve also has a legitimate shot of exceeding 100 RBIs for the first time in his career.

A lot of these numbers are possible because of the video game-like numbers he is putting up away from Minute Maid Park. In 41 games, he is hitting .414 with a 1.171 OPS on the road. He has hit nine of his 13 home runs, has driven in 30 of his 50 RBIs and has scored 39 of his 62 runs away from Houston.

However, the other way that seems to be going under the radar is that Altuve has become a much more patient hitter.

Despite a strikeout percentage that is his highest since 2013, Altuve has his highest walk percentage of his career at 9.7 percent. With 37 in 334 at bats, he is on pace to exceed his career high of 60 that he set last season.

With an All Star start at second base coming his way on July 11^th, Altuve could have some more hardware coming his way if e keeps putting up these kind of numbers through the season.

George Springer

George Springer has gone from one of the most underrated centerfielders in baseball to an MVP candidate in the span of 83 games.

He is second in baseball, behind New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge, with 27 home runs, is first with 76 runs scored, is fourth with a .613 slugging percentage and is fifth with a .993 OPS.

The crazy thing is that this is all as a lead off hitter.

He currently is the record holder for home runs from the No. 1 spot in the lineup. To put that in perspective, Charlie Blackmon, the Colorado Rockies centerfielder and 2017 Home Run Derby participant, is second this season with 20 home runs in the lead off spot.

Part of the success Springer is having is his aggressive approach in the batter’s box. With a career low walk percentage of nine percent, he has hit nine home runs in the first inning this season, hitting .324 with a 1.196 OPS.

Next: Astros trio of prospects shine at the All-Star Futures Game

With Judge becoming the midseason AL MVP candidate, Springer may be able to give him a run for his money if he keeps putting up numbers like he has been. That will be a battle to watch for the rest of the season.

***Stats provided by MLB.com and FanGraphs***