Houston Astros: Trend – Who’s Hot, Who’s Not (Vol 7)

Who’s Hot

Carlos Correa

Carlos Correa was in a considerable slump at the end of July and throughout the early part of August but now is completely locked in. he’s hitting .347 (15-44) with a 1.021 OPS and a 9/5 walk-to-strikeout ratio.

He is slamming fastballs (BA .333, 93 MPH Exit Velocity in August) and has shown huge year-over-year improvement against breaking balls and off-speed pitches. Carlos is becoming more elite at the plate, muster the chagrin of the rest of the Astro opponents.

Yes, we know – Carlos came out and said this will be his last year with the Houston Astros. I think there’s a decent chance Houston re-signs him, but let’s not worry about what could happen in December. Let’s enjoy what he’s doing right now, which is willing the Houston Astros, at the plate and on the field, to another deep postseason run.

Jake Meyers

I must admit – until maybe July, I had no idea who Jake Meyers even was and what he did in the Astros organization.  I heard how well he’d been playing in Triple-A, but never once thought he would be so good that James Click would feel comfortable trading away Myles Straw for him. But frankly he has been amazing since the call up.

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Meyers is hitting .327 over the last 15 games with 1 HR, 10 RBIs for an OPS of .802. And this isn’t a case of Meyers having a “hot week” – since his callup with the Astros he’s hitting .316 with a .838 OPS, three home runs ,16 RBI and a handful of very timely late-inning hits.

It’s amazing that in the same year where Jared Kelenic (the Mariners CF and highly-touted top five MLB prospect) has severely struggled adjusting at the plate in the majors, someone like Jake Myers (a 13th round pick that had no buzz) can get a mid-season callup and immediately start raking without even blinking an eye.

Meyers has primarily been batting eighth in the lineup, which is a huge luxury for the Houston Astros considering the level of production he’s giving them. Let’s hope he can continue this rate of raking throughout September and leading into the playoffs.

Houston might’ve struck gold with this guy.

Who’s Not

Michael Brantley

I don’t think this is anything to worry about, but it’s worth noting that Michael Brantley is only hitting .244 (11-45) his last 15 games with a sub-.600 OPS. This is being weighed down by his back to back oh for five performances back on August 22nd – August 23rd. He hasn’t been horrible, he hasn’t even been all that bad… he’s just been very un-Michael Brantley like.

This slump kind of come out worst time for those out there who bet on Brantley to win the AL batting title. On August 15th Brantley was hitting .332 and looked like a lock to take the title, now he’s dropped to .317 and is now in a dogfight with both Yuli Gurriel And Vlad Guerrero Jr. for the title.

…But what am I even saying??  We’re talking about the same guy that can go on 12-for-20 tears over a couple of games. Brantley also has sixteen three plus hit games already this season, which is easily more than any other player in baseball. Expect Brantley to find his stroke again.

Jose Altuve

Altuve has not been playing good for a while. The former MVP was red-hot in June and July but has since cooled off. It seemed like Altuve found his stroke again during the a solid home series against the Mariners (8-of-15 during that series) but once again has cooled off on the road. Altuve went .255 (27-106) with only seven extra base hits no home runs and three RBI – easily his worst month of the season at the plate.

Perhaps this is a product of pitching approach. Opposing pitchers in August threw breaking balls to Altuve 37% of the time – a huge uptick from the 27% career mix Altuve has seen throughout his career.

On the other hand, Altuve has not punishing pitchers for throwing fastballs lately, something Altuve has been great at his entire career. Altuve only hit .254 against fastballs in the month of August – way down from his career .314 BA against fastballs. These two combinations have led to a lackluster month from the second baseman.

Some of this could very well be from fatigue, but I can’t help but get worried considering Altuve is on the wrong side of 30. Then again, I felt the same way this time last year – then he mashed in playoffs. Hopefully history repeats itself.

Relievers on the postseason bubble

With the postseason just around the corner, the Astros need to figure out who will make postseason roster out of the bullpen. nephew Astra levers on the bubble didn’t help their cause.

Phil Maton posted 5.87 ERA overs last seven appearances with an ugly 1.65 WHIP. Although his head two recently good bounce back performances, Maton had back to back clunkers against non-playoff teams (three ER vs KC, three ER vs TEX).

Maton’s skill and arm might justify him being on the postseason roster, but he’s very up-and-down with his performances which ultimately might make him unusable in October.

Brooks Raley continues to put up very solid numbers (1.80 ERA, 0.80 WHIP in last 5 appearance) But hasn’t figured out Dylan Moore, is still posting a 5.25 ERA for the season, and continues to get destroyed by right-handed power hitters (OBA .286, OPS – .868- yikes). Unless Houston ends up playing the lefty-bats of the Yankees in the playoffs, I have a hard time feeling confident about putting Raley out against the elite lineups.

More from Climbing Tal's Hill

• Just how much better is the Houston Astros playoff rotation than the rest?
• Houston Astros: A Lineup Change to Spark Offense
• Astros prospect Hunter Brown throws 6 shutout innings in debut
• Always faithful Astros World Series champion Josh Reddick defends the title
• Michael Conforto declines Astros’ 2-year, $30 million offer

Bryan Abreu returned from a stint in the IL to deliver, what can only be described as, a disastrous performance against the Rangers.

Abreu came in to the fifth inning of a blowout and gave up seven earned runs, one mark and one home run without getting through the entire inning. His season ERA ballooned from 4.08 to 5.75 with just that appearance. His control (especially on his slider) and his overall confidence looked as low as it’s ever been in the season.

With Pedro Baez likely done for the season, the Astros will need look further down the roster to figure out which arms give them the best chance for success in the playoffs.

The three mentioned above are obviously still in the mix to earn these spots, but their recent performances didn’t help their case. I would expect Houston to give Josh James or Brandon Bielak or Enoli Paredes some innings in the next couple of weeks just to see what they can bring.

Keep the eye on the prize, Astro fans. They’re in great position for a September/October run for another World Series.