The Astros continue a treacherous stretch of road games that began with a series loss against the Dodgers, resumes with three games against the Cardinals and closes with four games against the first-place Rangers.
With a disappointing 42-36 record and a second-place tie with the Angels that's left them five games behind the Rangers in the American League West, there's one thing fans can agree on: The next time Dusty Baker calls for Rafael Montero, the bullpen should hang up on him.
The next time you see Montero coming out of the bullpen, close your eyes tightly and hope it's a bad dream. After his performance in 2022 when the Astros defeated the Phillies in the World Series, Montero has gone from terrific to terrible. His 2.37 earned run average during the season and 1.93 ERA in the playoffs were brilliant, but he's ballooned to 7.76 after another miserable outing at Los Angeles.
With the exception of Hector Neris, who has fashioned a 1.14 ERA, the Astros' bullpen has been woefully inconsistent, especially in June. And Montero is the poster boy for what ails the bullpen. In 33 games, he's allowed 44 hits and 27 earned runs in 31.1 innings. To show how dreadful he's been, Montero's 27 earned runs are third behind Hunter Brown (35) and Cristian Javier (30), but they've made 15 starts each.
June has not been kind to the Astros. Their game at St. Louis on Tuesday night is the last of the month, and the end can't come soon enough.
The Astros have a lot of issues as they prepare to exit June, including a 10-13 record this month and 3-7 on the road. Not counting the promising start to June in which they won three consecutive games against the Angels at Minute Maid Park, they're 7-13. And they've been disappointing at home, too, with a 7-6 record. Oh, and they've had a pair of four-game losing streaks this month.
It's imperative the Astros get their act together over the next 13 games before the All-Star break. They need to win the St. Louis series and at least split with the Rangers. When they return to Minute Maid Park with two against the Rockies and four against the Mariners, they need to get on a roll going into the break or risk the Rangers possibly building an insurmountable lead -- something that's been the Astros' birthright over most of the last six seasons in which they've played in four World Series.
Yes, the Astros have injuries. Everyone in baseball knows it, but they'll get no sympathy from opposing teams. Every team has injury problems, some more than others. Besides injuries to starting pitchers Lance McCullers Jr., Luis Garcia and Jose Urquidy, the biggest loss has been Yordan Alvarez, who's played in only 57 of 78 games.
Those injuries are a good indication of why this Astros' team just isn't as good as last year when they won the World Series in six games.
In spring training, Baker basically said people who claimed they wouldn't miss Cy Young winner Justin Verlander have baseballs for brains. And he was right. They do miss Verlander. At the time, though, they still had six legitimate starters. Now they have three in Framber Valdez, Javier and Brown, who have a combined record of 20-10.
Valdez, who replaced Verlander as the team's best pitcher, has a 7-5 record and a 2.27 ERA. His record should be better because he's been magnificent, but his hitters and relievers have let him down too many times.
If the Astros get hot or play about the same and manage to sneak into the playoffs as a wild card team, having a three-man rotation like Valdez, Javier and Brown could be a difference-maker.
Right now, though, five teams in the American League have a better record than the Astros (42-36). Five in the National League have a better record, too.
At this point of the season, the closest thing the Astros have to a .300 hitter is Mauricio Dubon (.289).
The way catcher/first baseman/designated hitter Yainer Diaz has been surging at the plate, Baker should never take him out of the lineup. He's got seven home runs, 16 runs batted in and slashes .276/.289/.512. Compare Diaz at the plate to Jose Abreu. He has five homers and 36 RBIs. He slashes .232/.283/.326.
Abreu has played in 74 games and made 285 appearances at the plate. Diaz has appeared in 39 games with 135 at-bats. Diaz has an OPS of .801 and Abreu .609. Diaz's OPS+ is 116 and Abreu's 69. In other words, keeping Diaz in the lineup should be a no-brainer for anyone who watches the Astros on a nightly basis.
Beginning Tuesday night in St. Louis, the Astros need to make their move against the Cardinals, who are 32-45 and one of baseball's biggest disappointments. While first-year general manager Dana Brown contemplates trades that may help this year's Astros look more like last year's World Series winners, fans who've been spoiled have to consider the possibility the team just isn't that good and might have to struggle to make the playoffs.
John McClain can be heard Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday on SportsRadio 610 and Thursday on Texans Radio. He writes two columns a week and does two Houtopia Football Podcasts for SportsRadio610.com.
