Astros: Finding the good in a disappointing 2020 season

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There are some silver linings in what has been a tough season for the Houston Astros.

We don’t need to sugarcoat it. This has been a rough year for the Houston Astros — painful, even. With nine games left in the season, the team hovers around .500 and faces the slight (but real) possibility of not making the playoffs a year after playing in the World Series.

We can cry foul with injuries and unlucky extra inning losses, but the fact of the matter is the team has not played to a championship level. And the rest of the baseball world is reveling in it from their own dugout, couch or phone.

Personally, I was looking forward to this season as an opportunity for the Astros to shut up the haters. I envisioned them winning around 40 games, mowing down the AL West and putting themselves in pole position to make it back to the October classic. Alas, with the plethora of injuries, a shaky bullpen and key players having down years, here we are.

Despite the team not meeting expectations, this season has not been a total loss. No, this is not me being a glass half-full person. This is me looking at the Astros in a big picture kind of way and seeing some great developments for this franchise for years to come.

HOUSTON, TEXAS – AUGUST 29: Zack Greinke #21 of the Houston Astros talks with Martin Maldonado #15 as they walk to the dugout after retiring the Oakland Athletics during game two of a doubleheader at Minute Maid Park on August 29, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Greinke Shows Greatness

Astros fans were robbed of seeing Justin Verlander all season and Lance McCullers isn’t quite the same since Tommy John surgery, but who we have had the pleasure to see working his magic is former Cy Young winner Zack Greinke.

His best days may be behind him at age 36, but Greinke has been a pure delight to watch. He’s been able to overcome significant velocity decline over the years by developing a huge pitching repertoire that rivals a Swiss army knife. Watching him deploy these specialty pitches this year with elite command has been like watching a great composer at work.

Whether it is a fastball, change up, slider, curve, split finger or his infamous eephus, Greinke has come through in the clutch when the team needed it most. He basically kept the Astros afloat in August, going 2-0 with a 2.19 ERA in five starts, along with 33 strikeouts and only 4 walks.

And let’s not forget all the amusing antics he’s been up to this year — whether it was telling Martin Maldonado (and everyone else) what pitch he was throwing against San Francisco, his 54 MPH eephus pitch to Trevor Grisham, hanging out alone with the cardboard cutouts in the Oakland Colosseum, or sitting cross-legged on the grass while the grounds crew fixed the dirt on the mound. Ever an off-beat and charismatic guy, Astros fans should treasure every start Greinke gives us from here on out.

Brantley Shows Steadiness

PHOENIX, ARIZONA – AUGUST 06: Michael Brantley #23 of the Houston Astros gets ready in the batters box against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on August 06, 2020 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /

When the Astros signed the former three-time All-Star from Cleveland following the 2018 season, the hope was that Michael Brantley would be a middle of the lineup plug who generates hits and extends innings. Some didn’t like the signing because of his injury history and the fact that most headers tend to fall off track once they reach their early 30s.

But Brantley is showing that he is not your typical everyday player. Since he signed with Houston, he’s hit .310, has an OPS around .888, and has been a double-hitting machine in the top half of the order, all while also being an average to above-average defensive outfielder. He doesn’t strike out, he’s dependable, and he produces. He’s also had a great impact on the team as a true professional with meticulous preparation and a very balanced approach at the plate.

This season, despite missing ten games due to injury, Brantley has been able to maintain his power and slugging numbers while also keeping up his batting average. When Alex Bregman, Jose Altuve and George Springer all missed time, Brantley was pushed up the order and hasn’t skipped a beat.

Once again, he’s been everything as advertised. GM James Click has a lot of decisions to make this winter, but I’m hopeful there is a priority for keeping Brantley because he’s a low-maintenance All-Star, and the 12-year vet doesn’t look to be falling off anytime soon.

HOUSTON, TEXAS – SEPTEMBER 17: Framber Valdez #59 of the Houston Astros pitches in the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Minute Maid Park on September 17, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Valdez – Curveball Assassin

One of the more pleasant surprises from this season has been the development of lefty Framber Valdez. He has served as the sixth starting pitcher option in years past while also serving as a long relief pitcher on the roster. Prior to this year, his performances were quite inconsistent, walking batters in bunches and getting shelled on occasion. It was hard to imagine him being anything more than an average relief pitcher.

This year he is 4-3 with a 3.82 ERA and showing much better command with a 4.25 strikeout-to-walkout ratio. What’s been most impressive with Valdez is his mastery of the curveball, a pitch he has used on 54 of his 68 strikeouts. This pitch is a thing of beauty, with a spin rate of almost 3000 RPM and some wicked late breaking action on it. Watching it reminds me of Rafael Nadal ripping forehands at the French Open.

Batters are only hitting .116 against that pitch and Valdez is generating a 42.6 percent whiff rate. This has been a delightful development from a pitcher who didn’t appear to have the repertoire or command even 12 months ago. If Valdez can continue this trajectory of development, he could be a top-of-the-rotation starter for years to come.

Tucker Is Here To Stay

It wasn’t long ago, not even three months, that the jury was still out on Kyle Tucker. The potential has always been there, and the numbers he was putting up in Triple-A would make any Astros fan blush. However, Minor League pitching is different from Major League pitching, and it was hard to ignore how much he struggled in the 2018 season during his first call up. Some even wondered if Dusty Baker would use him at all, considering the deep outfield and Yordan Alvarez occupying DH.

But once the injuries began to mount early in the season, Tucker was given the opportunity to be in the lineup every day, and he certainly came through. He leads the league in triples, he is in the top 10 in RBIs, his OPS is above .800, and he has all the makings of a 20 home runs-20 stolen bases guy.

He’s been streaky as a hitter, looking like Ted Williams one series and Chris Carter the next, but I think it’s fair to say he’s a future offensive juggernaut for this Houston team. He’s also had the opportunity to play the outfield with three true pros in Brantley, Springer and Josh Reddick. I hope at least a couple of those three can stay next year and beyond to help groom Tucker into a solid all-around player.

HOUSTON, TEXAS – AUGUST 29: Blake Taylor #62 of the Houston Astros pitches against the Oakland Athletics during game two of a doubleheader at Minute Maid Park on August 29, 2020 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Diamonds in the Rough Season

With all the injuries Houston has dealt with this season, there’s been ample opportunity to call up prospects from the minor leagues and give them a shot in the bigs. As expected, some didn’t fare so well while others overachieved for a small period of time. But there have been a few players who have been able to show off their abilities and carve out a key role for this club.

Let’s start with Cristian Javier, a highly touted prospect in the Astros farm system who started the 2019 season in High-A ball and advanced to Triple-A. Javier was pushed up to the starting rotation and has demonstrated the talent and poise to stay there permanently.

Andre Scrubb certainly wasn’t a household name in the Astros farm system, and at first glance he looks more like an old high school football coach then a relief pitcher. But he proved everyone wrong by coming in and pitching solid (yet long) innings and giving up few runs, despite alarmingly high walk numbers.

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Speaking of football, recent call-up Luis Garcia might appear to fit in better playing defensive line for the Dallas Cowboys than throwing pitches in the bigs. But he’s been up to the challenge thus far, coming in with poise and giving solid outings to a team that desperately needed it.

Enoli “Cannoli” Paredes has a flame thrower for an arm, but like all these other young pitchers, he lacked any experience close to this level to be trusted. Yet he too has been able to come in and deliver some key innings against good teams, like he did against the A’s and Padres.

Then there is Blake Taylor, who was part of the offseason Jake Marisnick trade and has been an absolute steal. With Brent Strom in his ear, the southpaw has been effective using his four-seam fastball and his solid-breaking slider. He may be one of their three best relief pitchers and could find himself pitching in the late innings this postseason.

Yes, this season has been very frustrating (some would even say depressing at times), but there have still been a lot of great developments from the Astros. You know what they say: It’s not all about the destination — it’s the journey. But still, with Verlander returning and Houston’s main lineup back and healthy, maybe the season will still end on a positive note. Who knows? Strange things can happen. After all, it is baseball.

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