[ad_1]
The Astros begin their title defense against the Cleveland Indians, the AL Central Champion. Here's what you need to know about the AL's two heavyweights when they compete in the American League Division series.
How did they get here
These two clubs were to flee with their respective divisions. That's exactly what the Indians managed to win on Sept. 15, they won the match against AL Central, which is otherwise very putrid. They eventually won in 13 games, though their 91 wins are half a dozen less than any other playoff contenders in the AL.
The Astros, meanwhile, were the first in the AL West since June 14, although they had an unexpected company in A's team that refused to lose; The two men even spent three days in August tied at the top of the division, although the Astros eventually won six.
No title defense is easy, and the formation of the Astros was shaken by wounds for a good part of the summer. Still, they are so deep – and their throwing team is so dominant – that they became the first defending champion to win 100 games in 28 years, finishing with a franchise record of 103. And even that accounted for something of an underperformance: their Pythagorean The percentage of wins, based on their major differential +263, indicates that they should have won 109. According to a study by Patrick Brennan, this percentage of 0.675 Pythagorean was second best since 1960, far ahead of the 1969 Orioles. Some basic elements suggest at least that it could be the best baseball team, from top to bottom, since the Vietnam War.
To be honest, the Indian record also did not necessarily reflect the quality of the club – its total of expected victories at Pythagorean was 98 – and the front office cleverly filled two gaping holes with swaps for the third-baseman Josh Donaldson and reliever Brad Hand. The 69 Orioles, of course, did not win the World Series – the Amazin Mets did it. So, first things first.
The pitchers
The launch is not dead, anyway in this series. No "Openers" here. This ALDS will feature launchers likely to occupy four of AL Cy Young's six most important slots: Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole for the Astros, as well as Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer for the tribe, the last of between them having been found found. Seasonal stress fracture that cost him a legitimate shot at the award. We will see six of the top 20 players in baseball, six of the top 20 batting average and seven of the top 20 in the playoffs. The rotations ended first (Houston, 3.16) and second (Cleveland, 3.39) in the AL of the ER. They are a wash.
Bullpens are not. The Astros rescue corps was their main defect in the championship race last year. They responded decisively, including Roberto Osuna, Hector Rondon, Ryan Pressly, Josh James and Joe Smith since last fall. Throw the left-handed Tony Sipp, who has rebounded after a terrible year 2017 to record a 1.86 ERA this season, in this mix as well. Houston finished first in the ERA standings, at 3.03 by many; the Cubs were a distant second behind at 3.35.
Meanwhile, the Indian pen has been a problem throughout the season, especially as former playoff killer Andrew Miller (4.24 silver in 34 innings) was injured. (he had three relays in the list this year) and faltering performances. As of July 19, his combined ERA was 5.28, the second worst of the majors. Director General Mike Chernoff's brilliant trade with the dominant south arm, Hand stabilized things afterwards. The seller's EAR was 3.75 since July 20, the night of Hand's debut, but he's still not dominant. Maybe Francona will be imaginative and will use Bauer, who does not intend to start one of the first two games in the series, as an asset to her relief. Still, the advantage goes to Houston.
EDGE: ASTROS
The queues
Here is the problem for Cleveland: their two former MVP candidates, Francisco Lindor and José Ramírez, have been in freefall for months. Since August 1, Lindor has beaten .248 with 11 homers, 25 RBIs and a .754 OPS, and Ramírez has been even worse: .210, seven homers, 27 landmarks, and a point-of-view of, 731 Perhaps the lack of motivation has weakened their motivation – and Donaldson has been excellent in the limited number of batting strikes since his arrival in Toronto – but this is a worrying trend.
Although the Indians dominated the Astros in the regular season, from 818 to 797, Houston has been on an upward trend. The Astros spent 64 days, from June 25 to August 27, without aligning their top three hitters, except Alex Bregman: Jose Altuve, George Springer and Carlos Correa (more on him below). In fact, no Astro, aside from Bregman and Marwin Gonzalez, has appeared in more than 140 regular season games, a number surmounted by five Indian regulars. But Houston still finished sixth in major tournaments – though it is far from last year's league standings with 896 spots – and the squad will enter the playoffs with a look identical to most evenings last October, with the addition of the blue runway. producer Tyler White. Their offense seems to come to form at the right time.
EDGE: Astros
Managers
Terry Francona and A.J. Hinch have World Series rings on their fingers. Both creatively managed flawless teams for the Fall Classic; Tito did it in 2016 with essentially a reliable starter – Kluber – thanks to Bauer's drone, and Hinch did it last year with a close friend, Ken Giles, who has been imploding. Both have mastered the art of combining the tools that their advanced analytics provide with their own instinct, making decisions based not only on spreadsheets, but also on the pressing human realities of their clubs. Nothing really separates two of the best skippers in the game.
EDGE: Even
X-Factor: The torso of Carlos Correa
Correa, the Astros' 24-year-old shortstop, started the year as everyone thought. He beat 0.330 with a 0.932 OPS in March and April. On May 4, he hit two doubles against the Diamondbacks. This would be his last match with many extra-base hits for nearly five months. The culprit was a combination of back and oblique injuries that had put him on the mailing list for much of the summer, and made him reluctant to swing back, reducing his torque. Its final season line: .239, 15 homers, 65 RBIs and a drop of more than 200 points from OPS starting in 2017.
Nevertheless, he broke his series of games with no more than an extra goal on September 29, with a double and a circuit against the Orioles, his last match to date. Maybe he feels better; perhaps he has returned to the form of MVP that everyone expects of him. There is no bigger joker in this series.
THE PICK: Astros in 4
Source link
