(SportsRadio 610) - The last time we saw the Astros at Minute Maid Park they were slinking out of town after a 2-5 homestand that included a three-game sweep by Seattle.
Now the Astros return home with a five-game winning streak after a 5-1 road trip to host the Yankees and continue their mission of making the playoffs for a seventh consecutive season and reaching a fifth World Series.
The American League West race continues to be the best and closest in baseball. The Astros go into their weekend series against the Yankees with a 77-58 (.570) record, one percentage point behind the Mariners' 76-57 (.571).
The Rangers are one game back at 75-58. Over their last 10 games, the Mariners are 8-2, the Astros 7-3 and the reeling Rangers 3-7.
The Astros have two series left against the Rangers and Mariners. They have a 6-4 record against Texas and a 2-8 record against the Mariners. After playing New York three games, the Astros go to Arlington for three games against the Rangers.
Dusty Baker has a team that's in its best physical condition of the season. He welcomed back Michael Brantley for the first time since June of last year. In his second game in the lineup, Brantley had two hits, including a double, and two runs batted in. Brantley helped the Astros sweep the Red Sox at Fenway Park for the first time in franchise history.
Good health is one reason the Astros are on a roll and trying to get 20 games above .500 for the first time. Yordan Álvarez, José Altuve, José Urquidy and José Abreu have returned from injuries.
Álvarez has an OPS of .960 and Altuve .916. They supplement Kyle Tucker (.892), Chas McCormick (.875), Yainer Diaz (.830) and Alex Bregman (.814).
In their five-game winning streak, the Astros outscored the Tigers and Red Sox 52-17 and outhit them 78-36. That's an average of 10.4 runs and 15.6 hits.
Can they keep up their prolific production against the Yankees and Rangers over the next six days? You better not bet against them.
The starting pitching has shown signs of 2022 life but needs to be more consistent and take up more innings to protect an overused bullpen.
Baker can call on six starters if necessary – Framber Valdez (10-9, 3.38), Justin Verlander (10-6, 3.06, including 4-1 and 2.79 since the trade), J.P France (10-5, 3.49), Hunter Brown (10-9, 4.47), Cristian Javier (9-2, 4.66) and Urquidy (2-3, 5.21). Right now, Baker has Urquidy in long relief.
Verlander, Brown and Javier are starting against the Yankees, who are 2-2 against the Astros after their series at Yankee Stadium.
There are some interesting facts about the Astros that could pay dividends over the last month of the season that ends with a six-game road trip to Seattle and Arizona for three games each.
The series against the Mariners could decide the AL West title. Perhaps the Diamondbacks will be out of the wild card race by that time and might not put up much opposition if the Astros are desperate to win.
The Astros have been more successful on the road than at home. They're 42-27 on the road and 35-31 at home. Their 42 road victories are tied with the Braves for the most in baseball.
Needless to say, they have to be better at Minute Maid Park.
It's interesting to note the Astros haven't lost a series on the road since the first week of June against the Dodgers, who won two of three. Since that trip to Los Angeles, the Astros are 22-10 on the road. Go figure!
Let's take a look at the remaining schedule. The Astros play 27 more games, including 15 against teams with losing records. All are three-game series against the Yankees, Padres, A's and Royals two times. That's nine games against Oakland and Kansas City, the worst teams in the American League.
Opponents left on the schedule with winning records are the Rangers, Orioles, Mariners and Diamondbacks. The only winning team left on the schedule at Minute Maid Park is Baltimore (Sept. 18-20).
The Mariners are starting a 10-game road trip that includes three against the Mets and Reds and four against the Rays. Seattle finishes the season at home with three against the Astros and four against the Rangers.
In other words, the AL West title will be there for the Mariners' taking – if they're good enough to dethrone the defending World Series champions.
John McClain can be heard Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday on SportsRadio 610 and before every practice during training camp on Texans Radio. He also writes three columns a week and does two Houtopia Football Podcasts for SportsRadio610.com.
