Underrated Astros Star Leads Franchise in All-Time Starting Pitcher bWAR

The Houston Astros have a storied history when it comes to pitchers.

Apr 17, 2010; Chicago, IL, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Roy Oswalt (44) delivers a pitch in the seventh inning of a game against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. The Astros defeated the Cubs 4-3. D | Dennis Wierzbicki-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros have been one of the most accomplished franchises over the last decade, but they've had a storied history since their inception in 1962. They didn't have a ton of success in their early years, but they've always been able to churn out pitching no matter what.

In recent years, Justin Verlander worked his way up the bWAR leaderboards for the Astros, and after a dominant season, the team hopes that Hunter Brown will be able to make his way up towards the top of the list in the future.

As good as Houston has been in recent years, no pitcher has been able to crack the top five in bWAR due to the dominance of pitchers from a past era. Although one pitcher is more recent, the rest of the top five pitched a majority of their careers before the 1990s. Players are ranked by their bWAR (from baseball-reference.com) during their time in Houston.

1. Roy Oswalt, 45.7 bWAR

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When thinking of the early 2000s Astros teams, especially the 2005 team that reached the World Series, a lot of people may think of Andy Pettitte or Roger Clemens. But Roy Oswalt was the man for Houston and was flat out dominant duing his 10 years with the Astros.

Oswalt was drafted in the 23rd round lf the 1996 draft, eventually making his debut in 2001. From the jump, he was an ace.

Oswalt started 20 games as a 23-year-old, finishing second in the Rookie of the Year voting and fifth in the Cy Young. He posted a 2.73 ERA in 141.2 innings that season, a preview of what was to come.

He had arguably his best season in 2002, posting 7.0 bWAR, a 3.01 ERA and 208 strikeouts in 233 innings, finsihing fourth in CY Young voting. Following his career high bWAR, Oswalt had a couple of down years before entering the peak of his career.

In 2005 he began a three year stretch where Oswalt had at least 5.9 bWAR and led the league in ERA, 2.98, in 2006 and bWAR in 2007 with 6.6. He made three straight All-Star teams and finished fourth in the Cy Young voting twice.

During that same stretch, Oswalt threw the fourth most innings in baseball (674.1) and had the fourth best ERA (3.03).

The right-hander got outshined in his era and is often not thought of immediatley when talking about the all-time great Astros pitchers, but he deserves his flowers. He is second in franchise history in wins (143), second in strikeouts (1,593), third in innings (1,932.1) and sixth in ERA+ (133).

2. Larry Dierker, 34.3 bWAR

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Dierker made his debut at 18-years-old in 1964, throwing just nine innings. The right-hander had his first full taste of the big leagues in 1965 when he threw 146.2 innings, posting a 3.50 ERA in 19 starts and 26 games overall.

Despite being so young, Dierker had entrenched himself in the Astros' rotation almost immediatley and would eventually become the first great home grown pitcher in the franchise's history.

In 1966, Dierker became a full time starter, starting 28 games and throwing 187 innings. After only 15 starts the following season, the right-hander began his peak at 21 years old.

He threw a career high 233.2 innings in 1968, posting a 3.31 ERA and 10 complete games. In 1969, he had the best year of his career. He shattered previous career highs with an 8.6 bWAR, 2.33 ERA, 305.1 innings and 232 strikeouts, all new personal records. He made his first All-Star team and even received MVP votes. His 8.6 bWAR is still the best in a single season in Astros' history.

In four of the next six seasons, Dierker threw at least 214.2 innings and made another All-Star team in 1971.

Ultimately, he finished his career with records that are still high up in Astros record books. He has the third most wins (137) in franchise history, most innings (2,294.1), fourth most strikeouts (1,487) and most complete games (106).

3. Don Wilson, 27.5 bWAR

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Wilson joined Dierker as a teammate beginning in 1966, but didn't debut as young, pitching one game in 1966 as a 21-year-old. The right-hander is different from every other pitcher on the list in that he only pitched for the Astros and his career, really just eight seasons, was so brief due to his untimely death in 1975.

He joined the rotation in 1967, throwing 184 innings, striking out 159 batters and posting a 2.79 ERA and 3.8 bWAR. From then on, Wilson became a rock solid member of Houston's rotation until 1974.

He took a bit of a step back over the next three seasons, when in 1968 he had a 2.8 bWAR and 3.28 ERA despite reaching the 200 inning mark for the first time. He was still a solid, everyday contributor, however, even after a 4.00 ERA in 1969 and a 3.91 ERA in 1970.

However, he ended his career during the best stretch of it, beginning in 1971 when he made his first All-Star team. That year, he posted a career high in bWAR (6.1), innings, (268) and ERA (2.45).

Including that season, he ended his career with four straight seasons of over 200 innings and 3.0 bWAR or more. He is Top 10 all-time in Astros history in ERA (3.15), wins (104), innings (1,748.1) and strikeouts (1,283). He threw two no-hitters and his number 40 is retired by the franchise.

4. Nolan Ryan, 25.4 bWAR

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Ryan is often considered one of the best pitchers in baseball history, so it's no wonder he found his way onto this list. The Ryan Express already had a storied career before joining the Astros in 1980 after signing a free agent contract.

Although his time in Houston wasn't as dominant as his previous stop with the California Angels, Ryan was still one of the best pitchers in baseball. He had the most strikeouts in baseball during his nine years with Houston with 1,866, 300 more than the next closest pitcher.

At 33 years old, Ryan's first year in Houston saw him finish with a 3.35 ERA in 233.3 innings, a bit of a step back from his previous season. However, he led the league in ERA in 1981 with a 1.69 mark and made his first All-Star team as a member of the Astros.

Ryan's time in Houston was solid and reliable, throwing at least 178 innings every season and over 200 five times. He finished ninth in Cy Young voting in 1983 and was an All-Star in 1985.

In his final two seasons with Houston, he led the league in strikeouts and 40 and 41 years old. In 1987, he won the ERA title and had 270 punch outs, finishing fifth in the Cy Young. He also led the league with 228 in 1988.

The flamethrower spent the most time of his 27-year career with Houston, and holds the record for the most strikeouts in franchise history.

5. Mike Scott, 24.8 bWAR

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Scott was originally drafted by the New York Mets in 1976 and made his way to the Astros via trade before the 1983 season. The right-hander struggled pretty mightily at the beinning of his career, posting -1.9 bWAR in his first six season, including his first two with Houston.

He eventually figured it out in 1985 at 30-years-old. That season, he set multiple career highs and stated the path to eventually having his number 33 retired by the Astros. Scott posted a 3.29 ERA, 3.0 bWAR and threw 221.2 innings with 137 strikeouts in 1985, giving a bit of a preview for his dominant showing the following season.

Scott's 1986 season still stands as one of the most dominant in Astros' history. His 8.4 bWAR is the second most in a season and led the league that year. He also led the league in multiple other categories, including ERA (2.22), shutouts (5), innings (275.1), strikeouts (306), WHIP (0.923) and K/9 (10.0).

The right-hander made his first All-Star team that season and won the Cy Young award, the first in franchise history.

The following season he finished seventh in Cy Young voting and was named an All-Star, posting 5.9 bWAR, a 3.32 ERA, 247.2 innings and 233 strikeouts. He continued his dominance in 1988 and then made his third and final All-Star appearance and finished second in Cy Young voting in 1989. He won 20 games with a 3.10 ERA that season.

Scott's career ended just two years later after two starts in 1991, but his short peak of dominance will always be one of the best in Astros' history.