It's an exciting time to be a Houston, Texas sports fan right now.
All three major-sport teams are formidable and playoff bound yet again this year.

At some point it would be nice to see the city of Houston celebrating another championship. This city hasn't won a major sports championship since the Rockets won back-to-back NBA Titles in 1994 and 1995. Let me just say that was a long time ago. People back then didn't even know what YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, HD-TV and a smartphone were. The Internet was something that only 10 % of the average American household used on a regular basis and dial-up connections were the norm.

Houston Astros

The 2017 Astros entered the all-star break with a franchise best 60-29 record and a 16.5-game lead in the American League West division. They are in position to win their first division title since 2001 and this would be their first division title in the American League. Winning the National League wild cards back in 2004 and 2005 (World Series appearance) and the 2015 American League wild card were nice accomplishments, but there's something special about winning a division title. It's been sixteen long years since I have seen them do it.

They are anchored by three superstars and all-stars in the everyday lineup: Carlos Correa, George Springer and Jose Altuve. Both Correa and Springer may finish in the top 5 in the AL MVP race this year. While Jose Altuve finished 3rd in the AL MVP race last year. Watching these guys play every day has been a lot of fun and they bring some extra joy to the ballpark every single game.

The rest of their lineup is strong and their depth is amazing. Josh Reddick, Brian McCann and Evan Gattis all provide good power and run-producing ability. This is easily the best Astros lineup since 2004 when they had the likes of several all-star caliber position players like Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio, Lance Berkman, Jeff Kent and Carlos Beltran.

What's remarkable about the Astros success this year is we've been without our Ace Dallas Keuchel (9-0, 1.67 ERA) for a month and a half now with a pinched nerve in his neck. You can easily make the case that he's the best starting pitcher in all of baseball when healthy. He hasn't lost a game this year with a sub 2 ERA. He last started a game on June 2 and it's already July 14. Keuchel is set to return sometime soon. In another week or two. So things are about to become very exciting again.

The Astros have also had their top four starting pitchers on the disabled list this year, including Collin McHugh, who hasn't pitched all year long. He is currently making some rehab starts in the minor leagues. Lance McCullers Jr. and Charlie Morton have recently returned from the disabled list. Reinforcements and help are definitely on the way.

If the Houston Astros are going to win their first ever World Series title they will have to take advantage of the July 31 non waiver trading deadline which is quickly approaching in a few more weeks. One more front-line starting pitcher and an extra bullpen arm (preferably a hard-throwing lefty) would greatly enhance their postseason chances once October rolls around.

But even if they are unable to make any major trades at the July 31 deadline their team is already set to compete for many years to come. Their strong farm system is a great luxury to have. They had two elite outfielders that were showcased and participated in the all-star futures game recently, Kyle Tucker and Derek Fisher. The Astros gave Fisher a brief call up to the big leagues and all he did was hit two home runs in five games, along with making some amazing defensive plays, before being sent back down to the minor leagues. The Astros already have a talented outfield at the big league level so it's hard to find room for those two highly touted prospect to play in the Major Leagues right now.

Houston Rockets

With James Harden and Chris Paul leading the way I'm super excited to see what this team can do. While nobody is likely to challenge the Golden State Warriors anytime soon, it's nice to see the Rockets trying to improve their roster to at least give themselves a better chance to advance deeper in the playoffs. I was hoping they could find a way to trade for Carmelo Anthony but the New York Knicks have paused all trade talks for the moment. Maybe something will materialize pretty soon.

The parity in the NBA today is lacking because it's the era of the super team. When the same two teams, Warriors and Cavaliers, are yet again the odds-on favorite to play each other in the 2018 NBA Finals for a fourth straight year, that sort of makes the rest of the league irrelevant. But it is what it is and you have to improve your roster just to compete.

Houston Texans

One word: Defense! That's all you have to know about the 2017 Texans.

The return of the best defensive player of our generation, three-time defensive player of the year J.J. Watt, along with what was already the #1 ranked defense last season without him thanks in large part to the dominance of Jadeveon Clowney and Whitney Mercilus. This year's Texans defense promises to be one of the most dominating pass-rushing units in league history if those three guys can stay healthy. This may be the best trio of pass rushers on one team that the NFL has ever seen. They should all combine for 45+ sacks if they can play a full 16 games.

I'll discuss the Texans offense on another day. It's a work in progress especially with head coach Blll O'Brien calling the plays again. They have a lot of talent on offense but the quarterback position has always been our #1 problem. I'm excited to see Deshaun Watson take over the starting job as soon as possible but as a rookie he will need some time to develop. Tom Savage will likely be the Week 1 starter.

Depending on how fast Deshaun Watson can become a good pro quarterback will likely dictate whether or not the Houston Texans can make any "real noise" in the playoffs. Without a reliable quarterback it's tough to beat teams like the Patriots and Steelers in the AFC Playoffs. And any real dreams of reaching the Super Bowl will depend on Watson's future success.

This post was edited by Madmartigan on Jul 14 2017 12:51pm

A lot of people in the national media are focusing on the torn ligament that Carlos Correa suffered on his left thumb and it was quite a setback because he was having an MVP caliber season. He'll be out roughly two months (6-to-8 weeks is a a generic guess). Mike Trout, the best player in all of baseball, recently returned from the same injury and he's swinging a hot bat and not missing a beat with the Angels. Other players have returned from the same injury with similar success. It's thankfully not an injury which will slow a superstar caliber player down.

The torn ligament came as a result of a hard swing the other night, but it may have slowly progressed stemming from a head first slide into home plate against the Atlanta Braves during the 4th of July. Carlos Correa had jammed that same thumb into the catcher's legs who was blocking the plate. At the time I remember asking some friends why did he slide head first like that? It didn't make any sense to risk an injury because the Astros had an 8-0 lead at the time and they went on to win that game by a score 16 to 4. It's not like that run was all that important. I'd rather have seen Carlos Correa stay at third base, run into an out or slide feet first.

But the good news is that Carlos Correa had successful surgery earlier today and he'll be able to start his rehab assignment in the minor leagues in early September and his timetable to return to the Astros will likely be in mid September. He should be back in the big leagues a couple weeks before the playoffs start in October. I'd rather this injury have happened right now while his postseason availability isn't taken away from him.

Adda boy Marwin! Nice double in his first at-bat today. Marwin Gonzalez should have been an all-star. He had numbers that ranked favorably to the AL's designated hitter selection, Corey Dickerson of the Rays. But Marwin Gonzalez is dubbed a super utility player and not a DH. This is why the Astros have the deepest team in baseball. Even when they lose a young superstar they can replace him with another guy very capable of filling the void.

Marwin is hitting .313 with 17 home runs and 55 RBIs. An OPS of .974. While all-star Corey Dickerson is hitting .308 with 17 home runs and 42 RBIs. An OPS of .884. Quite a luxury we have. No Carlos Correa but Marwin Gonzalez is making his second straight start at shortstop today. A guy with all-star numbers this year.

If our offense struggles it's not going to be because Correa is out. It's going to be because our other guys aren't driving anybody in. We recently had a 1-for-9 game with runners in scoring position. We left 13 men on base overall. That's baseball and it happens sometimes. You can't always score 7+ runs a game, which the Astros have been magically doing during road games this year. They also have an MLB best 33-11 road record.

The good news is if the Astros win today they will have a monstrous 17.5 game lead in the AL West with only 67 games left to play. And their starting rotation is about to get a whole lot better. Collin McHugh, who's been on the DL all year long, will make his first start this season on Saturday Night. And ace Dallas Keuchel is nearing a return the following week. And that's not taking into account what additions the Astros may be able to make before the July 31 trading deadline which is only 12 days away.

This is still a fun team to watch. A little adversity and some injury setbacks are part of the game.
So the Astros may only win 100 games this year as oppose to 115 games. I don't really care.
And truth be told it may only take 85 or 86 wins to win the 2017 AL West division title on top of that.
All that matters to me is trying to win the 2017 World Series. Playing in October is most important.

The Astros improved their road record to an amazing 34-11 this year with an 8-7 win at Baltimore. A 64-32 overall record. They have a commanding 17 game lead over the Seattle Mariners for first place in the AL West. There's only 66 games left to play so the Astros just have to keep grinding away and winning when they can. They can afford a few hiccups along the way as they recently had losing two out of three at home against the Mariners (30-21 home record).

Starting pitcher Collin McHugh is set to make his season debut for the Astros tonight. He's been on the disabled list all year long. Hopefully he can pitch a good ball game and give the team a nice boost. Mike Fiers and Charlie Morton have been way better than I expected this year. Fiers, in particular, has a 2.25 ERA since May 26 and has been phenomenal for the past two months. That was after he started the season pitching very poorly (ERA over 5 with 16 home runs allowed).

Dallas Keuchel is set to return sometime next weekend. I'm super excited to see if he can improve upon his 9-0 undefeated record and 1.67 ERA. He hasn't pitched since early June but prior to that he was easily the best starting pitcher in all of baseball. I don't think Keuchel is going to miss a beat coming back from his pinched nerve in his neck. He's already looking sharp in his rehab starts in the minor leagues.

The July 31 trading deadline is only nine days away. The Astros have a couple of interesting possibilities.
We'll see what happens. I don't really want to jinx anything by discussing the big names they are after.
General manager Jeff Luhnow has been working the phones and likely has something ready to pounce on.

All and all, I'm eager and excited for some playoff baseball in October. The return of Carlos Correa in September as well. When you have a huge division lead in late July you just want to make sure you pace yourself, keep having fun and hopefully carry over some momentum. The Astros have had two of their best players on the DL for a lengthy period of time but they had six all-stars this year, could have easily been seven or eight all-stars (Marwin was snubbed and McCann finished 2nd in the votes at catcher), and their depth is incredible so they're equipped to handle a couple of key injuries.

The rest of the American League West is already playing for the two wild-card spots in the AL.
Good luck to the Mariners, Angels and Rangers. I ain't a hater. Get yourself that one game playoff.

Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow refused to give up any of our top prospects in any worthwhile trade prior to the trading deadline which feels a little bittersweet to me. On the one hand the Astros future is going to be amazing and they will be stacked with a ton of young talent. This could be a team that constantly wins the American League West division title for the foreseeable future. No team in the division right now really strikes any long-term fear into me: Mariners, Rangers, Angels or Athletics.

Top outfield prospects Derek Fisher and Kyle Tucker are staying with the Astros. As will top pitching prospects Francis Martes, Forrest Whitley and Franklin Perez. Slugging third baseman, J.D. Davis, who can also play multiple positions, is also not going anywhere. Both Fisher and Martes are already on the big league roster. We didn't even trade Daz Cameron, a young and promising center fielder, who's father was a long-time MLB player.

I thought for sure the Astros would have dealt at least three or four of those guys...
At least picked up Brad Hand from the Padres and Lance Lynn from the Cardinals.
I'd have even overpaid some prospects for Orioles closer Zach Britton if I were the Astros GM.
The Orioles wanted Kyle Tucker in any package deal but Jeff Luhnow was unwilling to do it.

Meanwhile the Los Angeles Dodgers acquired Yu Darvish. The Yankees acquired Sonny Gray. The Cubs acquired Jose Quintana, Justin Wilson and even a backup catcher in Avila. The Red Sox added another closer in Addison Reed despite having the best closer in the game. Even the Nationals added Sean Doolittle, Ryan Madson and Brandon Kintzler. The Diamondbacks and Rockies, the two wild-card teams in the National League that will play a one game playoff (one of them will be one and done), both made a flurry of moves over the past few weeks. They didn't just wait until the final minute.

The other legitimate contenders in baseball are "going all out" and trying to win the 2017 World Series this October. While the Astros seem content to just be a playoff team, year in and year out, for the next several years. Why am I not super excited? It's not like it's a bad thing to want to be a solid ball club for a long time but for a franchise that has never won a World Series it seems a little disheartening to me.

I wouldn't be terribly upset right now if Dallas Keuchel and Lance McCullers Jr. weren't struggling to regain their all-star and ace-like form, along with Carlos Correa (out until September) and George Springer also being on the disabled list. But we're clearly hurting right now with four all-stars that either aren't playing or not playing up to par.

We clearly needed some help. The only trade the Astros made was for Francisco Liriano and his 5.88 ERA but was the best we could do? We gave up veteran outfielder Nori Aoki and young outfielder Teoscar Hernandez. The trade makes more sense to clear room for Derek Fisher on the active 25-man roster. Liriano has a .230 batting average against lefties so naturally he'll be a limited lefty specialist for us. Tony Sipp (our only other lefty reliever), who has been horrible himself this season, has a slightly higher ERA than Liriano (6.39) but Sipp is actually better against lefties with a .217 batting average against.

Hopefully come October we'll have a healthy roster for the playoffs and I can feel excited about a potential World Series run. I still think we're capable of winning the American League this year but a lot depends on our health. And clearly, Keuchel, McCullers Jr. and McHugh will have to be our "big three" to carry us in the starting rotation. Mike Fiers or Charlie Morton can be used as a #4 starter in a 7-game playoff series. Brad Peacock has been a nice surprise this year as both a starting pitcher and reliever. Everybody in our bullpen has to step up once the playoffs start, especially Ken Giles, Chris Devenski and Will Harris. And our hitting has to become a great offense again.

Maybe I'll feel better in October when the playoffs start. If we're healthy we may have a chance. But for now I feel dejected and disappointed. I just want to finish July tonight and then hurry up and finish the month of August. By September I pray for Carlos Correa to come back and dominate. The 2017 Houston Astros could have been a special team. They still can, but clearly our front office is just focused on having a good team for many years to come. 2018-2019-2020-2021-2022, etc.. etc... I'd rather have went "all out" to try and win a World Series title in 2017 like the other good teams are trying to do.

This post was edited by Madmartigan on Jul 31 2017 03:40pm

First off I just want to say congratulations to Jose Altuve! He capped off an unbelievable month of July hitting .495 in nearly 100 at-bats. He slugged .727 and got on base at an outrageous .523 clip. A monster 1.250 OPS. Given Altuve's overall talent level this isn't too surprising. His season totals are now up to .368 with 15 home runs and 61 RBIs. He has played his way back into the 2017 AL MVP race. He finished third in the 2016 AL MVP race last year. Prior to Carlos Correa's injury, or even George Springer's injury, the Astros had three players that may have finished in the top five of the AL MVP this year.

23-year-old Derek Fisher is hitting .317 with 3 home runs, 8 RBIs and a .404 on-base percentage. A 1.014 OPS in his 41 MLB at-bats as a rookie. I sure hope the kid can keep it going. He's been fun to watch so far and I'm glad the Astros didn't trade him. Especially with all the key injuries we have right now. He's been filling in quite nicely.

And 20-year-old Kyle Tucker (the 5th overall pick in the 2015 draft fresh out of high school), the other elite outfield prospect the Astros didn't want to trade, has hit nine home runs since being promoted to Double-A just a month ago. He's on the fast track to the big leagues. He could actually be a part of our team going into 2018 next year. With 40-year-old Carlos Beltran likely retiring this off-season and Jake Marisnick, our current fourth outfielder, becoming a free agent this winter. It makes sense that the Astros wanted to hold on to Tucker just in case.

The Astros routed the Rays last night by a score of 14-7 to improve to 69-36 on the season. They've been doing what they can and treading water since right before the all-star break. We've been playing average .500 ball for the past several weeks despite the great record this year. It's been tough to go on any long winning streaks without two of our best hitters and everyday superstars in Carlos Correa and George Springer. And now Lance McCullers Jr. went back on the disabled list.

With such a big division lead in the AL West (16 game lead over the Mariners) and the best record in the American League this year it's still disappointing to me that the Astros didn't decide to "go for it" and make a few big moves at the trading deadline. A year like this is still pretty special even though injuries have dampened the mood lately. But I understand the situation they are in. They'd rather compete for the long haul and the next six or seven years should be a lot of fun. Not just this year.

The Astros have a surplus of talent in the minor leagues right now that are ready to be called up in case of more injuries. It's been remarkable that the Astros have basically had their top four starting pitchers and two of their best hitters on the disabled list, and they've still been able to produce the best record in the American League. If you take away any team's four best starting pitchers and two of their best hitters chances are they wouldn't be 69-36.

I don't know if the Astros have enough healthy starting pitching to win the 2017 World Series and their bullpen can be shaky at times, but if they're healthy in October they will put up a fight against any team in a postseason series. The offense is going to be legitimate and strong. Hopefully Carlos Correa, who is set to return in early September, can shake off the rust in the three or so weeks of regular-season games that he will have left leading up to the playoffs.

As an Astros fan you have to just accept this team for what it is. It's an exciting young team with an excellent minor league farm system. They could have made a big trade, or two or three big trades for that matter, at the cost of giving up several good prospects but they didn't do it. It hurts their chances to win the 2017 World Series this year but it helps their chances to constantly have a competitive playoff team for the next several years.

I don't know what the future holds but the Houston Astros will likely be a playoff team for a long time.
There isn't a shortage of young talent coming up the pipeline and free agency can be their friend as well.

We need George Springer and Carlos Correa back in our everyday lineup. Both of those guys make the Astros lineup truly special and the best offense in all of baseball. Without them we're just a good lineup but not the best lineup. Springer may return next week and Correa started to workout for the first time today. He jogged around the Minute Maid Park field in pregame warmups. Carlos Correa is still a month away from a return (early September). He did say he may return a lot sooner than expected which is great news, but he likely won't be cleared to take batting practice for at least four more weeks following his surgery.

It's been exactly two weeks since Carlos Correa had successful surgery to repair the torn ligament in his thumb back on July 19. His timetable for a return was 6-to-8 weeks from the time he had the surgery. So you can now call it 4-to-6 weeks. At this point it's just a matter of being patient. I feel a little more excited for every week that goes by because I know it's another week closer to his return.

The good news is the MLB playoffs don't start until October 3 (wild-card game). So it's technically October 5 or October 6 for the Astros, who will likely be waiting for the wild-card winner in the ALDS as the best-record team in the American League.

The Astros will have plenty of time to get everybody back healthy. It just seems like we have to keep grinding away until then. It is what it is. I'm not happy about the way things are at the moment, I'd rather have that instant gratification of a red-hot team similar to what the Los Angeles Dodgers are doing in the National League (they rarely lose games), but looking at the road ahead we just have to make sure we're a healthy and hungry team come playoff time.

These final two months of the regular-season will not win a championship for any team. What happens in October is the most important thing right now. For teams that are "going all out" to win ballgames right now, that's all fine and dandy (I applaud them), but if you aren't at your best in October it doesn't really matter. The 2001 Seattle Mariners won 116 regular-season games and they didn't even win the World Series that year.

I don't care what anybody says, I believe in this Astros team. I'm ready for October baseball!
We can lose a lot games in August and September and it wouldn't hinder my excitement.

This post was edited by Madmartigan on Aug 2 2017 12:39am

The way the Houston Astros are playing lately is pretty frustrating to say the least. Three losses in a row and three all-stars on the disabled list (McCullers Jr., Springer and Correa). Keuchel, a fourth all-star and our Ace just returned from the DL after being out two months, and he's looked less than awesome in his two starts back. He'll likely be rusty for another couple of starts before he starts to pitch well again.

We may be 69-39 with the best record in the American League but it seems like we're in for a bumpy ride for at least the next few weeks. Hopefully we'll still have the best record in the AL once we start to play some good baseball again. All we can do right now is weather the storm and keep grinding out some wins regardless of how hard it may be to win some ballgames right now.

If the Astros don't win the 2017 World Series, and let's say we're one and done in the ALDS, would you lay the blame solely on Jeff Luhnow? He is a great GM when it comes to building up a great farm system filled with a ton of talent, and the long-term success of this franchise seems very promising. But his trades haven't been the best for us (his 2015 trades weren't great) and his lack of trades are also problematic.

He hasn't made a major trade over the past two trading deadlines (2016 and 2017). And that hurt our chances of making the playoffs last year. We were 1 game back of the Orioles for the second wild-card spot going into our final 10 games last year but stumbled to a 3-7 finish. Injuries are a part of the game so you can't really use that as an excuse.

And no major trade at this year's trading deadline has resulted in a 1-3 record so far with three losses in a row. Francisco Liriano would have been a major trade back in 2013 when he was good. The guy is horrible right now and his ERA is almost 6. He should retire pretty soon. The dude has little left in the tank. A lefty specialist? I don't think so.

I would like to see the Astros hire a new assistant GM this off-season. Somebody who is very wise and competent when it comes to making trades. Somebody with the ability to help make decisions when it comes to pulling the trigger on a big deal and isn't torn when it comes to giving away top prospects. Basically a guy that can cover for Jeff Luhnow's weaknesses as our main GM.

In the mean time, as a hardcore Astros fan I'm not going to lie, it's pretty deflating and frustrating right now. I just hope we can weather the storm and we're still going to the playoffs. Hopefully we'll be healthy and playing some good baseball in October. Nothing that happens in early August will really matter in October. I try to keep reminding myself that which helps to keep me calm and relaxed.

The Astros continue to lose games and struggle beyond words: 3-7 in our last 10 games.
But yet we still have the best record in the American League at 70-40. A 14.5 game division lead.
With only 52 games left this season the Astros magic number to clinch the AL West is 38.

Francisco Liriano's ERA is 6.02 this season. He's now given up at least one earned run in his two appearances with the Astros (hasn't gotten more than two outs in an inning), and he picked up the loss in both games. He was actually 6-5 with a sub 6 ERA when he got here, and now he is 6-7 with a losing record and a 6+ ERA. Guys like that generally don't belong on a Major League roster. Tony Sipp has a 6.47 ERA this season and we wanted him gone a long time ago. Because of an injury he's not getting smashed around at the moment.

Why is the term "lefty specialist" so hard to comprehend for Jeff Luhnow? I'd rather have more good relievers in our bullpen than reaching, and quite frankly overpaying in a trade, for a lefty specialist with 6+ ERAs. You ain't a nothing specialist with a 6+ ERA.

Why exactly did we trade for a washed up Liriano? Can somebody please explain that to me?
The only bright spot to the trade is it freed up a roster spot for Derek Fisher but it's still a bad trade.

Is there anything Major League Baseball can do to off-set this horrible trade that Jeff Luhnow made? Perhaps give us a sandwich pick in between the fourth and fifth round of the next draft. Any type of compensation would be nice. I'm only kidding around but we gave the Blue Jays a solid contact hitter and veteran in Aoki that's also a good outfielder with a plus arm. And also a young outfielder in Teoscar Hernandez that still has a lot of years ahead of him.

Just a horrible, and I mean HORRIBLE decision. I lay the entire blame on Jeff Luhnow. He didn't just drop the ball at the July 31 non-waiver trading deadline. He shattered that ball into several pieces. It was a glass ball so precious and promising with World Series aspirations. And he just took all the fun out of the trading deadline. That being said, trades can still be made during the month of August, but they are harder to pull off because players have to clear waivers and it's complicated to explain it all. I'm not in the mood to explain it all right now.

Jeff Luhnow is a good general manager and I applaud him for building up a great farm system. This Astros team will be fun to watch for the next several years. He also took the worst team in baseball and gave them a bright future despite stumbling on a couple of #1 overall picks in Mark Appel and Brady Aiken. But his weaknesses as a GM are his lackluster trades and also his inability to make worthwhile trades that create that "wow factor" that all the other top contenders seem to thrive off of.

Don't get me wrong, the Astros will become a healthy ball club soon enough and they will still make a strong playoff run come October. We may even win the 2017 World Series. But for now, any passionate Astros fan can't be too pleased with what Luhnow has done in the past week. Or should I say not done? Either way the Astros future is very bright and full of amazing things even though right now it may not seem like it.

I wish I could move the hands of time ahead to October. That is when you want to play your best baseball. Go Astros!

Manager A.J. Hinch confirmed a couple minutes ago to reporters that all-star pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. will not come off the DL later this week (originally on 10 day DL). There is no timetable set for his return. He's out indefinitely with a lower back discomfort that has been lingering since late June.

But when asked if McCullers Jr. would be shut down for the year Hinch said, "No. We don't want to go there yet. We'll give it a few more weeks and hope for some better news." So it seems like they are still hopeful for a September return. Brad Peacock will continue to fill the void in McCullers Jr.'s absence.

Lance McCullers Jr. has been feeling lower back discomfort for a while now - since before the all-star break - but he didn't want to let the team down and he admitted to lying to the trainers on numerous occasions and said he was good to go. Ultimately that was a bad decision because he wasn't very good in any of those starts. His ERA went from 2.53 to 3.92.

That would definitely explain why he's been pitching worse and worse over his last five starts. 5, 6, 4, 5 and 3 earned runs allowed and only ranging from 4.1 innings to 5.1 innings pitched. Only pitching into the sixth inning in one of those starts. And he had an awful strikeout-to-walk ratio in that time frame as well, including a 4 K and 4 BB game in his last start. He obviously had no command with that lower back tightness. Even his curveball, which is the best in all of baseball, looked flat as well.

The Astros still have the best record in the American League at 71-40 entering tonight's game against the Chicago White Sox. But they continue to be bombarded with key injuries. They have been struggling and playing .500 ball for about a full month now. And they would be a dismal 3-8 in their last 11 games if not for an impressive four-run, ninth inning comeback win on Sunday afternoon to defeat the Blue Jays by a score of 7-6.

Houston Astros: 71-40 (51 games left). 15 games ahead of the Seattle Mariners.
The Astros magic number to clinch the 2017 AL West division title is now at 36.

Meanwhile, despite all the injuries to numerous all-star players (Correa, Springer, McCullers Jr. and Keuchel, who thankfully is back already), the Astros are inching closer to winning their first division title since 2001. It's been 16 long years since I've seen this team win a division. That was back when they had clinched the NL Central. They had won the NL wild-card in 2004 and 2005 and the AL wild-card in 2015. This would be their first AL West division title. I can almost see those 2017 AL West champions T-shirts and caps being sold at the official team store but there is still a lot of work to do before then.

Hopefully when the postseason starts in October the Astros will have a healthy and determined team.
I believe this recent adversity has been a good thing. Sometimes you need some setbacks before a comeback.

I was a little encouraged with Dallas Keuchel's post-game interview last night. He didn't seem to be too concerned with his struggles and said that he's going to turn it around soon enough. The one positive is that he said he feels good and his neck troubles are behind him. So his struggles right now are not injury related.

He was just gone for so long he's obviously rusty. I would chalk last night's horrible start as something you may have seen in his third spring training start. This was his third MLB start since being on the DL for nearly two months. In this case the lack of command and decrease in velocity are due to the long layoff and thankfully not because of an injury.

I'd rather have a healthy Dallas Keuchel struggling to regain his form, while he still has two months to figure things out before the playoffs start, compared to this happening in mid-to-late September when he would have even less time to regain his dominating form.

I'm more worried about Lance McCullers Jr. because even if he returns in early September (best case scenario) he would only have like three or four starts to shake off the rust before the playoffs start. We need both Keuchel and McCullers Jr. to dominate in October like they did in April and May (two all-stars and aces) if we expect to make a legitimate run to the 2017 World Series.

Here's some good news: George Springer may be back in the lineup tonight or tomorrow night against the White Sox. If not, he'll definitely be in the lineup on Friday Night against the Texas Rangers. It's just a matter of when right now. He's the most energetic and athletic player on the team. His return will be a nice shot in the arm for the entire team.

Also Carlos Correa has progressed remarkably fast. He's been sprinting and jogging already. He may start to take some light batting practice next week. He's now targeting an early September return but he may have a couple of weeks of batting practice, possibly face some live pitching, even before then.

Thankfully the Astros had such a big division lead in the AL West - also had a big lead for the best record in the entire American League - that they can afford to endure some tough times filled with a lot of key injuries and overall losses in the standings. Had they been in a tough battle for playoff positioning they would have likely missed the playoffs this year. It would have been like last year when they missed the playoffs due to key injuries.