The Houston Astros are recovering from Hurricane Harvey, and they are in a terrible position as they have to get it together to play in the postseason as one of the favorites to win the World Series. They have to go into this postseason with everyone assuming that they can get some timely hitting, and they are getting that already. The Red Sox looked terrible with Chris Sale on the mound giving up too many runs.
The Astros, meanwhile, are going to make a mark on this generation where they could be in contention every year. They are clearly good enough to win a title, and we might have a very unlikely ALCS if the Indians beat the Yankees.
The hitting
The Astros have been so good at hitting that we have been lauding them for months that they could easily score in the postseason. We obviously did not know until they got there, but we can see that they can do it. You probably were not sure how they would do that just because they have not been to the postseason in such a long time. However, we can see that they were constructed properly, have the right young stars, and they have Justin Verlander as their new ace.
They are built to last
Young teams that have good farm systems have been built up to last because they can build and promote players many times until they have filled their roster. This is how the Yankees of the 90s were made, and it is how the Braves planned to build their team until their GM got fired for breaking signing rules. It appears the Astros followed the rules, and they are going to reap the rewards of doing this right. They can wipe the Jose Cruz records off the books because someone will finally have more chances than him to be great in the postseason.
The Red Sox got caught sleeping
The Red Sox were clearly sleeping when they ran into the Astros. They could have been a lot better prepared, but they spent too much time at the end of the season trying to win their division.
They could have given the division to the Yankees, beaten the Twins, and they would have still been in a good position to make a run in the playoffs. Instead, they look really bad against the Astros, and they might not get out of this series alive.
What does this mean to Houston?
This is a big series for the city of Houston, and we are seeing a major resurgence in Houston sports. The Texans look good, the Rockets have a good roster, and the Astros could go to the World Series. That is what we need after Hurricane Harvey and some bad sports karma.