COMMENTARY: The Houston Astros make history

By Houston Astros/Major League Baseball [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

By Houston Astros/Major League Baseball [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Kevin Nobs, Staff Writer

The Houston Astros won the Commissioner’s Trophy for the first time in franchise history. Founded in 1962, the Astros never found success prior to this past season. They have been one of the worst teams in all of baseball.

Led by their young studs George Springer, Carlos Correa, Alex Bregman and MVP candidate Jose Altuve, the Astros capped off their historic season with a championship.

It wasn’t easy; it took all seven World Series games to crown the champions.

Game-by-game

The Los Angeles Dodgers took Game One, thanks to seven solid innings from Clayton Kershaw. Houston tied the series in Game Two. Scoring four runs in the second inning of Game Three, the Astros took a 2-1 series advantage. The ’Stros lead was short-lived after the Dodgers scored five runs in the ninth inning of Game Four.

Game Five is where the series got crazy. The teams not only had a combined 28 hits, but also scored 25 runs. It was arguably the most exciting World Series game of all time, as Houston topped Los Angeles 13-12, giving them serious momentum heading into a pivotal Game Six. The Dodgers scored two runs off an almost unhittable Justin Verlander in Dodger Stadium to force a Game Seven.

The winner-take-all tilt was relatively boring as the Astros scored five runs in the first two innings putting the game out of reach. The Dodgers failed to make another epic comeback after stranding 10 men on base.

Storylines and takeaways

After Hurricane Harvey ravaged the city of Houston, the Astros bringing a championship home is one of the best sports stories in recent years.

There isn’t a more deserving team to win it all this year. Loyal Astros fans get to celebrate for the first time ever to take their mind off Harvey, even if it’s only for a little while.

In another feel-good story, ‘Stros Shortstop Carlos Correa proposed to his girlfriend during a live post game broadcast. Needless to say, she said yes.

Extras

Another storyline evolved immediately after the series ended.

In June 2014, Sports Illustrated magazine released a very provocative cover announcing the Astros as win the 2017 World Series champions.

The official Twitter account for Sports Illustrated tweeted out this photo after the Astros recorded the final out.

A book titled Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game was released in 2003. The book was data intensive, full of analytics and made major-league teams questions their decision making. The Astros took the Moneyball approach in 2014, using stats like a player’s in-game effectiveness and others

A book titled Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game was released in 2003. The book was data intensive, full of analytics and made major-league teams questions their decision making.

The Astros took the Moneyball approach in 2014, using stats like a player’s in-game effectiveness and others to build a powerhouse by 2017, right on schedule with the Sports Illustrated prophecy.

With a very young core in place, the Astros could be on the verge of several championships over the next decade. Some long-time executives and observers in baseball criticized the Moneyball model as running the game by computer, but the initial results with the Oakland A’s detailed in the book have been reinforced by the Astros.

As far as odds for next year’s World Series, the Dodgers have the highest odds to win (5-1), while the Astros are tied with the Cleveland Indians (6-1), according the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook.

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