Projecting Houston Astros Postseason Pitching Rotation
The Houston Astros had one of the top pitching staffs in the playoffs last season. It was one of things that propelled them to their second ever World Series championship.
This season, it doesn't look like the rotation has the same strength as last year.
Earlier in the season, the Astros were dealt injuries to Lance McCullers Jr., Luis Garcia and Jose Urquidy who were all major contributors during the 2022 run. They had to pivot to using two rookie pitchers behind their ace Framber Valdez after the departure of Justin Verlander.
That got them through for the first half, but even with the addition of Verlander at the trade deadline, the starting rotation has faltered down the stretch.
As Houston eyes their third consecutive AL West divisional title, they can start projecting to what the roster and pitching rotation will look like for their postseason run.
The biggest question mark is what their starting rotation will be behind the obvious 1-2 punch of Valdez and Verlander.
Three starters will be vying for the final two spots in the postseason rotation. The two rookies J.P. France and Hunter Brown, plus experienced pitcher Christian Javier.
Dusty Baker likes to lean on his veterans so will likely give Javier the nod. However, the right hander has the highest ERA out of these three pitchers with a 4.78 ERA. His second half of the year has seen him post higher than a 6.00 in three straight months, including his 6.30 mark in September.
France has the lowest season ERA of the group with a 3.61, but his last two months have been rough, recording a 5.92 and 4.91 respectively.
Like the other two, Brown has also struggled in the second half with a 6.08 ERA the last three months. The rookie righty just had his best start in a while, throwing five hitless innings.
So, with that in mind, it doesn't seem like there are impeccable options to throw behind their two aces during the postseason run.
Projecting forward, the rotation will probably be Valdez, Verlander, Javier and Brown who are the four starters. France could be used as a long reliever on the back end of Brown's starts as well before handing the game to the bullpen.
With about two weeks left in the regular season, there is plenty of time for the starting staff to show Baker why they should definitely be included in the rotation as they chase back-to-back World Series titles.
