What Major Astros Record is Likely to be Broken Next?

Most Silver Slugger Awards: Jose Altuve
Current Record: Jose Altuve, Craig Biggio (5)

It’s 2022, and Jose Altuve just keeps on hitting. The second baseman has been an elite hitter for nearly a decade, and this season could be the year that he surpasses Craig Biggio for the most Silver Slugger Awards in franchise history.

Awarded to the best hitter at every position in both leagues, the Silver Slugger is a prestigious honor and even though it shouldn’t be used as the primary tool to determine a player’s merit since it’s voted on by plenty of coaches with conflicting opinions, Altuve’s track record is undeniable either way. He won the award for AL second basemen each year from 2014 through 2018 but hasn’t won it since, so he and Biggio have shared the club record with 5 for a while now.

This is going to be one of the better opportunities he’s ever going to get, though. He’s slashing .280/.369/.504 on the season and leads AL second basemen with 21 home runs. Cleveland’s young phenom Andres Gimenez is his only competition, as his OPS is higher than Altuve’s by 3 points and his wRC+ (152) is higher by just 1 point.

Both Gimenez and Altuve have clearly been the best second basemen in the American League this year, and if they continue to have near-identical seasons at the plate, the voting will be close. While Altuve may be at a disadvantage among the voters because of lingering reputational effects from the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal, he has been one of the best hitters in franchise history either way and has earned every right to cement that legacy with another Silver Slugger in 2022.