There are all sorts of reasons to hate the Houston Astros.
They cheated to win the 2017 World Series.
They play in a city that smells like a sewage plant exploded.
They cheated to win the 2017 World Series.
They’ve been to the American League Championship Series the past five season.
They cheated to win the 2017 World Series.
Jose Altuve kills the Rangers.
They cheated to win the 2017 World Series.
They have had far more success in in their ten years in the America League than the Rangers have had in fifty years.
Oh, and they cheated to win the 2017 World Series.
But one thing is undeniable. This team is as good as the Rangers need to be when the Rangers get good. And right now that means the Rangers need to improve their roster to the point the can overcome a cavernous twenty-four-game difference.
Offensively, it might be surprising to know the Astros are just a tick better than the Rangers. Houston’s team batting average is .245. Texas’s is .244. But they have more power, with 172 home runs as opposed to the Rangers’ 158.
The Rangers are badly in need of a huge bat.
But the glaring gap is in starting pitching. Houston starters are number one in the American League in ERA at 3.07. Texas’s starters rank tenth, at 4.38.
Houston starters are averaging 5.8 innings per start. Texas starters, 4.9. Houston has two of the top five pitchers in ERA in the American League. Martin Perez is seventh.
It’s easy to hate the Astros for past indiscretions. It’s also easy to see the Rangers have a long way to go to catch them.
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