Houston Astros up Two Spots in Latest Power Rankings as Key Pitcher Returns

The Houston Astros took two of three games against the Detroit Tigers to begin the week. However, they lost two of three games on the road against the Chicago White Sox, which is a big step backwards.

Still, the Astros are 17-16 on the year and in third place in the American League West. The divisional crown is going to be up for grabs all season, so Houston is in a good spot all things considered.

With their record and recent play, the Astros have moved up two spots in the latest MLB.com power rankings to No. 13.

Houston's biggest strength comes on the mound. Hunter Brown is pitching like a Cy Young candidate, but the biggest story is the return of Lance McCullers Jr.

McCullers made his return to the big league mound on Sunday for the first time since 2022. He threw 3.2 scoreless innings, while striking out four batters, walking three and allowing three hits. He threw 87 pitches in less than four innings pitched, so there was clearly some rust to shake off.

Nonetheless, having the former All-Star back in the rotation is a big deal. Adding him to the starting five with Brown, Framber Valdez and Hayden Wesneski gives the Astros four strong starting pitchers. Ronel Blanco is the other starter, but he is not enjoying the same success that he had in 2024.

Houston needs their lineup to start playing much better.

The Astros are 15th in batting average, 19th in OPS and they have hit just 29 home runs in their 33 games played. Additionally, Houston is in the bottom-10 of the MLB in slugging percentage and they have scored the 11th-fewest runs.

Christian Walker has been a disappointing signing and Yordan Alvarez has been cold all year long.

Alvarez and Walker are combining to slash just .205/.289/.345 with seven home runs, 27 RBI and 22 runs scored this season.

These are two players the Astros were relying on to do damage in the middle of the order. Right now, they are not getting the production they had hoped for from either of those sluggers.

As the season continues, one of Walker or Alvarez is going to heat up. Ideally for Houston, both of them will start hitting for more power and driving in runs. But, that has not happened yet and the Astros have been struggling because of it.

With McCullers Jr back, Houston is going to have a very strong rotation. Their bullpen is more than good enough to win games, as well. The Astros making the playoffs will come down to whether or not the lineup can pick up the slack.

For now, the team is playing well enough to be ranked 13th in the MLB.

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