SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 15: Carlos Correa #1 of the Houston Astros celebrates while rounding the bases after hitting a walk off solo home run to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 in Game Five of the American League Championship Series at PETCO Park on October 15, 2020 in San Diego, California. (Photo: Getty)
Opening Day of Major League Baseball will be here in the blink of an eye. Keeping this in mind now is a good time to look at each team’s prognosis heading into the 2021 season after the 60-game 2020 abbreviated season.
In 2020, the Houston Astros made the postseason for the fourth consecutive year but fell a win short of another trip to the World Series. The Houston Astros have won one championship in their franchise history. Over those four seasons, Houston went 340-206.
Here is Houston’s projected lineup.
The Astros faced drastic losses over this past offseason. The most significant loss was outfielder George Springer, who signed with the Toronto Blue Jays via free agency. The Astros also lost closer Roberto Osuna, reliever Brad Peacock and outfielder Josh Reddick to free agency as well. The only additions the team made were catcher Jason Castro, relievers Pedro Baez, and Steve Cishek, outfielder Steve Souza and Ryne Stanek.
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Houston’s starting lineup has the same core of veteran bats and should be successful if designated hitter Yordan Alvarez and outfielder Kyle Tucker are successful. Starting pitcher Justin Verlander is out for the season and as a result, the team is lacking the aces that helped carry them to the postseason in recent years. Greinke is in good standing, but the backend of the rotation has a long way to go.
Regarding the Astros’ bullpen, reliever Ryan Pressly was the closer last year but underperformed, and generally speaking, the team lacks lockdown relievers. Looking toward 2021, the Astros will win games by relying on their offense, but their fate in another postseason lies in the hopes that their pitching staff will improve.
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