From a 7-19 record in late April to winning their seventh AL West title in eight seasons, what a wild ride it's been for the Astros. Let's reflect on some of the most memorable moments from the 2024 season: Game of the season In a 10-0 win at Philadelphia on Aug. 28, the Astros got three home runs from Yordan Alvarez, watched rookie right-hander Spencer Arrighetti carry a no-hit bid into the eighth inning and Jose Altuve had a straight steal of home in the first inning to spark a team that had lost six of its previous eight games. Not to be forgotten: Mauricio Dubón, starting in left field, saved the no-hit bid with a great catch at the wall to rob Brandon Marsh of a hit for the final out of the seventh. This game had a little bit of everything. |
Best moment I The Astros clinched the AL West title by beating the second-place Mariners, 4-3, on Tuesday. They have qualified for the playoffs in each of the past eight seasons -- only the Dodgers can claim the same. "All of them are special, but this one is more special for me, obviously, personally as a first-year manager," Joe Espada said. "This team, what we've been through, that we are popping champagne, that's incredible. I never lost hope. I knew we were going to find ourselves in a position to come and compete and win the West." |
Best moment III The day after the Astros clinched the AL West title, Bregman was given a standing ovation by the Minute Maid Park crowd on Wednesday in what could have been his final regular-season home game. The longtime third baseman, who's a free agent after the postseason, was removed from the game after the third inning by Espada so the fans could recognize him. |
Worst moment All-Star outfielder Kyle Tucker fouled a ball off his shin on June 3 and wound up missing three months with what later was revealed to be a shin fracture. The Astros were 27-34 and seven games out of first place at the time of Tucker's injury, but remarkably they were 4 1/2 games up when he returned on Sept. 6. 'Are you kidding me?' moment Needing one out to become the second player in franchise history to throw multiple no-hitters, Framber Valdez gave up a towering two-run homer to Corey Seager of the Rangers on his 107th and final pitch to end the no-hit bid after 8 2/3 innings on Aug. 6 in Arlington. |
Funniest moment I What else but shoeless Jose? In a moment that stood alone in a wild Sept. 17 win in San Diego, Altuve was ejected after he ripped off a cleat and sock to plead his case to plate umpire Brennan Miller. Altuve argued that he had fouled a ball off his left foot in the ninth inning, but it was ruled a ground-ball out instead. Funniest moment II Astros prospect Zach Dezenzo clubbed his first MLB home run -- a 437-foot shot over the Green Monster in Boston on Aug. 10 -- punctuated by an impressive bat flip. Teammates gave him the silent treatment in the dugout, with Dezenzo left giving high-fives to nobody. |
Catch of the year That's a tough one. We can't go with just one, so let's narrow it down to three. First, there was Joey Loperfido's juggling, barehanded catch at the wall in Minnesota on July 5 to rob Willi Castro of a hit. Then there's Dubón, who ran 130 feet into the left-field corner in Baltimore to catch a Ramón Urías fly ball on Aug. 25, reeling it in just before he crashed into the wall at full speed. Dubón had the wind knocked out of him and ended up exiting the game, but he was otherwise fine. Finally, there's Jake Meyers' catch against the Tigers on June 14 to rob Riley Greene of a home run. |
Home run of the year The Astros stormed from five runs down to beat the Dodgers on July 27 in Houston, winning the game on a walk-off homer by Bregman. He crushed the second pitch from reliever Blake Treinen in the ninth and launched it high over the left-field wall for a dramatic 7-6 win. "You always kind of go back in the season and think about big moments, big wins, big games, and this is one of those that you will reflect on," Espada said. |
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MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
The Astros are sending eight prospects to the Arizona Fall League, where they will play for the Surprise Saguaros: right-handers Jose Fleury, Joey Mancini, Alex Santos II, Nic Swanson and Alejandro Torres, catcher Collin Price, infielder Austin Deming and outfielder Quincy Hamilton. Fleury is Houston's only ranked prospect (No. 10) among that group. |
The Arizona Fall League, which opens play on Oct. 7, has produced more than 3,000 big leaguers, including Hall of Famers Roy Halladay, Todd Helton, Derek Jeter and Mike Piazza and current stars like Mookie Betts, Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge and Francisco Lindor. Dezenzo, who is currently on Houston's active roster, played in the AFL last year. Fleury's fading low-80s changeup helps the rest of his repertoire play up and has allowed him to strike out 276 in 208 pro innings while limiting opponents to a .193 average. Among Minor Leaguers with 100 innings this season, Mancini ranked sixth in ERA (2.12) and 11th in opponents' average (.191), thanks in large part to his low-80s slider. |
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