Astros: How the 2021 Team Ranks in Franchise History

2) Hits: 6th out of 60

This season, the Astros notched 1,496 hits, good for their sixth best showing in franchise history. The 2017 roster accumulated the most hits of any Astros squad with 1,581.

3) Home runs, Rank: 5th out of 60

During 2021, Houston belted 221 home runs. During 2019, the Astros squad that would go on to lose the World Series in seven games homered 288 times in the regular season.

4) Runs Batted In: 4th out of 60

The ’21 Astros finished fourth best in franchise history with 834 RBIs. If you are wondering, a Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell-led 2000 NL Central squad holds the distinction of reaching 900 RBIs for the only time in franchise history.

5) Team Batting Average: 7th out of 60

Thanks to contributions from the likes of Yuli Gurriel and Michael Brantley, the ’21 Astros achieved the seventh highest batting average in franchise history. Which Astros’ squad came in first in this category? None other than the 2017 World Series winners, who achieved a .282 team batting average.

Not far off, the 1998 Astros, featuring Biggio and Bagwell in their prime—along with the likes of Derek Bell and Moises Alou—finished in second place of all Astros rosters with an impressive team batting average of .280.

6) Team On-Base Percentage: 11th out of 60

The ’21 team finished in the top-20 percent of all previous squads in franchise history with a .339 team on-base percentage. That’s not to imply the ’21 Astros’ offense was stagnant; but, the Killer B’s of another era hold the top-four spots in franchise history in this category. The Astros’ high-water mark came in 2000, when the team achieved a collective .361 on-base percentage.

7) Team Fielding Percentage: 4th out of 60

Defense wins championships, so they say. So how did the ’21 Astros fare when it came to fielding percentage? Well—the Astros’ defense finished tied for fourth best in franchise history. The ’21 Astros turned in a .988 fielding percentage, way above the Major League average.

Did you know—the last four consecutive seasons for the Astros were all top-five finishes in franchise history in fielding percentage? Put another way, not only have these teams made the playoffs so frequently over the last half decade, they have outcompeted almost every Astros squad to ever suit up when it comes to making the fewest errors on defense.

The ’21 ball club performed at a superior level compared to most previous seasons. While nothing is guaranteed in the postseason, fans should feel lucky to receive such highly ranking on-field regular season results, especially when compared to most previous seasons in franchise history.

8) Team Pitching Staff ERA: 31st out of 60

No Houston pitching squad has ever topped the 1981 team who finished with a ridiculously low team ERA of 2.66. Nolan Ryan, Joe Niekro, and Don Sutton, anyone? That year, the Ryan Express turned in a 1.69 ERA through 21 starts.

The ’21 Astros finished with a 3.76 ERA, respectably below 4.00, but only good for a 31st place finish in franchise history. In fairness, the game has changed and the amount of earned runs over different eras has fluctuated for a variety of reasons—so maybe not the best metric to judge the ’21 Astros. But, hey—Lance McCullers, José Urquidy, and Zack Greinke all have World Series pitching experience going into this postseason.

9) Team Pitching Staff Strikeouts: 4th out of 60

Well, even if the ’21 Astros’ team ERA did not register as historically good, the pitching staff’s strikeout numbers certainly do. This season, Houston finished with the franchise’s fourth highest strikeout total since its inception, fanning a collective 1,456 batters on the season. The Astros’ best strikeout year came in 2018, courtesy of an elite rotation anchored by none other than Gerrit Cole and Justin Verlander. The 2018 Astros struck out a mind-blowing 1,687 batters.

10) Team Pitching Staff Strikeouts per Nine Innings: 4th out of 60

The pitching staff finished the ’21 season with the fourth highest total of strike outs per nine innings pitched in franchise history. This statistic speaks to the dominance and quality of the pitching staff’s collective arsenal of pitches to retire batters frequently via the strike out.

While this year’s team averaged 9.07 strike outs per game, the best mark in franchise history belongs to the 2017 Astros, who averaged fanning 10.44 batters per nine innings.

11) Surrendered Home Runs per Nine Innings Pitched: 50th out of 60

One drawback to the ’21 pitching staff has been its propensity to surrender the long ball. Of all 60 Astros teams ever fielded, the ’21 squad ranks 50th worst in how frequently they have allowed opposing teams to hit home runs, averaging 1.16 per game. Then again—maybe Verlander is on to something—maybe the balls just might fly further now.