2018 Houston Astros season

Last updated

2018  Houston Astros
American League West champions
Houston Astros cap logo.svg
League American League
Division West
Ballpark Minute Maid Park
City Houston, Texas
Record103–59 (.636)
Divisional place1st
Owners Jim Crane
General managers Jeff Luhnow
Managers A. J. Hinch
Television AT&T SportsNet Southwest
(Todd Kalas, Geoff Blum)
Radio Sportstalk 790
Houston Astros Radio Network
(Robert Ford, Steve Sparks, Geoff Blum)
KLAT (Spanish)
(Francisco Romero, Alex Treviño)
Stats ESPN.com
Baseball Reference
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The 2018 Houston Astros season was the 57th season for the Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located in Houston, Texas, their 54th as the Astros, sixth in both the American League (AL) and AL West division, and 19th at Minute Maid Park. The first-time-ever defending World Series champions with a four-games-to-three decision over the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston also won their first AL pennant and AL West division title. Their 101–61 record was the second 100-win regular season in franchise history.

Contents

Houston began the season on March 29 against their in-state rivals, the Texas Rangers, as ace Justin Verlander made his first Opening Day start as a member of the Astros. George Springer recorded the first six-hit performance in a nine-inning game in franchise history on May 7. Verlander recorded his 2,500th career strikeout on May 16, becoming the 33rd pitcher in MLB history to achieve the feat. From May 25–27, Jose Altuve recorded a base hit in each of 10 consecutive at bats, breaking his own club record.

In the amateur draft, the Astros' first round selection was first baseman Seth Beer at 28th overall, and in the third round, shortstop Jeremy Peña. The Astros were recognized with the Best Team ESPY Award based on their play since the previous June.

The Astros once again sent a league-high six players to the 2018 All-Star Game, including third baseman Alex Bregman, second baseman Altuve, outfielder Springer, and pitchers Verlander, Gerrit Cole and Charlie Morton. A. J. Hinch was manager for the American League. Bregman was recognized with the All-Star Game Most Valuable Player Award (MVP), the first Houston Astro so named.

Houston pitching combined to establish new MLB records with 1,687 strikeouts, 96 games with 10 or more strikeouts, and became the first team in history to strike out 5 or more batters in each of 162 games.

The Astros concluded the regular season on September 30 against the Baltimore Orioles, capping off an unprecedented second consecutive 100-win season and AL West championship. With a 103–59 record, this surpassed the 1998 club for the most regular-season wins in franchise history, which was exceeded the following year. This was the 12th postseason qualification and ninth division title overall in franchise history.

Houston swept the Cleveland Indians in the American League Division Series (ALDS) to advance to the American League Championship Series (ALCS), where they lost in five games to the Boston Red Sox.

Following the season, Altuve won his fifth consecutive Silver Slugger Award, and pitcher Dallas Keuchel won his fourth Gold Glove Award. Additionally, Verlander, who led the league with 290 strikeouts, and also had a 16–9 W–L, and 2.52 earned run average (ERA), finished as runner-up for the AL Cy Young Award for the second time in three years, and built upon a late-career renaissance.

Previous season

Summary

The Houston Astros entered the 2018 Major League Baseball season as defending World Series champions after defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers in seven games. In addition to achieving their first-ever World Series championship, they claimed both their first American League (AL) pennant and AL West division championship. Center fielder George Springer was named the World Series Most Valuable Player (MVP) [1] [2] and right-handed starting pitcher Justin Verlander was the American League Championship Series (ALCS) MVP. [3] A number of regular season and multiple-sport awards went to second baseman Jose Altuve, including the AL MVP, [4] Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year, [5] Sports Illustrated Sportsperson of the Year, [6] and The Sporting News Major League Player of the Year awards, among others. [7]

Offseason

On January 23, 2018, first baseman Jon Singleton and pitcher Dean Deetz were suspended after testing positive for substances violating MLB's drug policy. Singleton, a former Astros' number-one prospect, had tested positive for the third time and was banned for 100 games. [8]

Roster moves

Regular season

Summary

March—April

Justin Verlander was the Opening Day starting pitcher for Houston at Globe Life Park in Arlington, versus Cole Hamels of the Texas Rangers. It was Verlander's tenth career Opening Day start and first with Houston, as all nine previous had come as a member of the Detroit Tigers. [21] George Springer led the game off with a home run, becoming the first MLB player to lead off with a home run in consecutive Opening Days. He had homered off Felix Hernandez of the Seattle Mariners in the first inning of Opening Day 2017 at Minute Maid Park. [22] Verlander pitched six shutout innings and struck out five. The Astros won by a final score of 4–1. [23]

Second baseman Jose Altuve reached 1,000 games played in his career on April 17, 2018, versus the Mariners. He became the 20th player to appear in 1,000 games for the Astros. [24]

Verlander was named AL Player of the Week on April 17. In 15 innings over one start each versus the Rangers and Twins, he struck 20 and allowed a .100 opponents' batting average. [25]

May

On May 7, 2018, Springer homered versus the Oakland Athletics and became the first player in Astros franchise history to record six hits in a nine-inning game. Joe Morgan had six hits in a twelve-inning game for the Astros on June 8, 1965. [26]

On May 16, 2018, Verlander threw a complete-game shutout against the Los Angeles Angels for his eighth career shutout and 24th complete game. He struck out Shohei Ohtani in the top of the ninth inning for his 2,500th career strikeout, becoming the 33rd pitcher in Major League history to cross that threshold. He was second among active leaders in strikeouts behind CC Sabathia. [27]

Over three games versus the Cleveland Indians spanning May 25–27, Altuve recorded a base hit in each of 10 consecutive at bats, breaking his own club record of eight which he had set the year prior. The streak included three doubles, one triple, and one home run. [28] In the finale on May 27, a pitching duel emerged between former UCLA teammates Cole and Trevor Bauer. However, each bullpen implodes in the eighth inning which results in a 10–9 decision for the Indians. [29]

Verlander was named AL Pitcher of the Month for May, his fifth career award. In six starts, he produced a 0.86 ERA and .437 OPS against, allowed nine extra base hits, while striking out 50 over 41+2⁄3 innings. He started and ended the month by dominating the Yankees—the only lineup in baseball with an OPS over .800—with 20 strikeouts in 14+2⁄3 innings, eight hits, and one run allowed. [30]

July

Lance McCullers Jr. started on July 6 by holding the Chicago White Sox hitless for the first 5+1⁄3 innings on the way to setting a career-high with 12 strikeouts over 7 innings. He finished with 1 run allowed on 3 hits to lead an 11–4 win. [31]

On July 13, 2018, Charlie Morton was added to the American League (AL) roster for the 2018 MLB All-Star game making the Astros the only MLB team at the time to have all of their starting pitchers having at least one selection to participate in the MLB All-Star game.

September

On September 26, 2018, Houston won the AL West division title after the Oakland Athletics were defeated by the Seattle Mariners, following an Astros' 4–1 win against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Astros pitchers set a new MLB record by striking out 1,687 opposing batters during the season. [32] The team had 96 games in which they struck out 10 or more batters, also a record. [33] In addition, they were the first team to strike out 5 or more batters in each of 162 games. [34]

Season standings

American League West

AL West
Team W L Pct. GB Home Road
Houston Astros 10359.636—46‍–‍3557‍–‍24
Oakland Athletics 9765.599650‍–‍3147‍–‍34
Seattle Mariners 8973.5491445‍–‍3644‍–‍37
Los Angeles Angels 8082.4942342‍–‍3938‍–‍43
Texas Rangers 6795.4143634‍–‍4733‍–‍48

American League Wild Card

Division leaders
Team W L Pct.
Boston Red Sox 10854.667
Houston Astros 10359.636
Cleveland Indians 9171.562
Wild Card teams
(Top 2 teams qualify for postseason)
Team W L Pct. GB
New York Yankees 10062.617+3
Oakland Athletics 9765.599—
Tampa Bay Rays 9072.5567
Seattle Mariners 8973.5498
Los Angeles Angels 8082.49417
Minnesota Twins 7884.48119
Toronto Blue Jays 7389.45124
Texas Rangers 6795.41430
Detroit Tigers 6498.39533
Chicago White Sox 62100.38335
Kansas City Royals 58104.35839
Baltimore Orioles 47115.29050

Record against opponents

2018 American League record
Source: MLB Standings Grid – 2018
TeamBALBOSCWSCLEDETHOUKCLAAMINNYYOAKSEATBTEXTORNL
Baltimore —3–163–42–52–41–62–41–51–67–121–51–68–113–45–147–13
Boston 16–3—3–43–44–23–45–16–04–310–92–44–311–86–115–416–4
Chicago 4–34–3—5–147–120–711–82–57–122–42–52–44–24–32–46–14
Cleveland 5–24–314–5—13–63–412–73–310–92–52–42–52–44–23–412–8
Detroit 4–22–412–76–13—1–58–113–47–123–40–73–42–43–44–36–14
Houston 6–14–37–04–35–1—5–113–64–22–512–79–103–412–74–213–7
Kansas City 4–21–58–117–1211–81–5—1–610–92–52–51–50–72–52–56–14
Los Angeles 5–10–65–23–34–36–136–1—4–31–510–98–111–613–64–310–10
Minnesota 6–13–412–79–1012–72–49–103–4—2–52–51–53–42–44–28–12
New York 12–79–104–25–24–35–25–25–15–2—3–35–110–94–313–611–9
Oakland 5–14–25–24–27–07–125–29–105–23–3—9–102–513–67–012–8
Seattle 6–13–44–25–24–310–95–111–85–11–510–9—6–110–93–46–14
Tampa Bay 11–88–112–44–24–24–37–06–14–39–105–21–6—5–113–67–13
Texas 4–31–63–42–44–37–125–26–134–23–46–139–101–5—3–39–11
Toronto 14–54–154–24–33–42–45–23–42–46–130–74–36–133–3—13–7

Game log

Past Games Legend
Astros Win
(#bfb)		Astros Loss
(#fcc)		Game Postponed
(#bbb)		Clinched Playoff Berth
(#039)		Clinched Division
(#090)
Bold denotes an Astros pitcher
Future Games Legend
Home Game
Away Game

Regular season

2018 Game Log: 103–59 (Home: 46–35; Away: 57–24)
March: 2–1 (Home: 0–0; Away: 2–1)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
1March 29@ Rangers 4–1 Verlander (1–0) Hamels (0–1)—47,2531–0W1
2March 30@ Rangers 1–5 Fister (1–0) Keuchel (0–1)—35,4691–1L1
3March 31@ Rangers 9–3 McCullers (1–0) Moore (0–1)—36,8922–1W1
April: 18–9 (Home: 10–6; Away: 8–3)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
4April 1@ Rangers 8–2 Cole (1–0) Minor (0–1)—26,7583–1W2
5April 2 Orioles 6–1 Morton (1–0) Tillman (0–1)—42,6754–1W3
6April 3 Orioles 10–6 Rondón (1–0) Araújo (0–1)—37,1065–1W4
7April 4 Orioles 3–2 Peacock (1–0) Castro (0–1)—27,6986–1W5
8April 6 Padres 1–4 Perdomo (1–1) McCullers (1–1) Hand (2)41,1386–2L1
9April 7 Padres 1–0 Devenski (1–0) Erlin (0–1)—42,3067–2W1
10April 8 Padres 4–1 Morton (2–0) Ross (1–1) Peacock (1)37,0938–2W2
11April 9@ Twins 2–0 Verlander (2–0) Rogers (1–1) Giles (1)15,5219–2W3
12April 10@ Twins 1–4 Odorizzi (1–0) Keuchel (0–2) Rodney (2)15,5009–3L1
13April 11@ Twins 8–9 Rodney (1–1) Peacock (1–1)—15,4389–4L2
14April 13 Rangers 3–2 Smith (1–0) Jepsen (0–2) Devenski (1)32,12910–4W1
15April 14 Rangers 5–6 (10) Kela (1–0) Harris (0–1) Claudio (1)40,67910–5L1
16April 15 Rangers 1–3 (10) Kela (2–0) Rondón (1–1) Diekman (1)31,80310–6L2
17April 16@ Mariners 1–2 Paxton (1–1) Keuchel (0–3) Díaz (7)12,92310–7L3
18April 17@ Mariners 4–1 McCullers (2–1) Altavilla (1–2) Devenski (2)15,38211–7W1
19April 18@ Mariners 7–1 Cole (2–0) Leake (2–1)—14,64312–7W2
20April 19@ Mariners 9–2 Morton (3–0) Gonzales (1–2)—16,92713–7W3
21April 20@ White Sox 10–0 Verlander (3–0) Shields (1–2)—14,21114–7W4
22April 21@ White Sox 10–1 Keuchel (1–3) Giolito (0–3)—23,90215–7W5
23April 22@ White Sox 7–1 McCullers (3–1) Bummer (0–1)—17,16716–7W6
24April 23 Angels 0–2 Skaggs (3–1) Cole (2–1) Middleton (6)29,60616–8L1
25April 24 Angels 7–8 Johnson (2–0) Smith (1–1) Bedrosian (1)36,45716–9L2
26April 25 Angels 5–2 Verlander (4–0) Tropeano (1–2) Giles (2)29,77717–9W1
27April 27 Athletics 1–8 Manaea (4–2) Keuchel (1–4)—32,63617–10L1
28April 28 Athletics 11–0 McCullers (4–1) Mengden (2–3)—41,49318–10W1
29April 29 Athletics 8–4 Harris (1–1) Cahill (1–1)—39,13119–10W2
30April 30 Yankees 2–1 Morton (4–0) Gray (1–2) Giles (3)30,06120–10W3
May: 16–12 (Home: 7–5; Away: 9–7)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
31May 1 Yankees 0–4 Robertson (2–1) Giles (0–1)—34,38620–11L1
32May 2 Yankees 0–4 Severino (5–1) Keuchel (1–5)—31,61720–12L2
33May 3 Yankees 5–6 Shreve (1–0) Harris (1–2) Chapman (7)34,83820–13L3
34May 4@ D-backs 8–0 Cole (3–1) Medlen (0–1)—29,46321–13W1
35May 5@ D-backs 3–4 Boxberger (1–2) Devenski (1–1)—39,15421–14L1
36May 6@ D-backs 1–3 Koch (2–0) Verlander (4–1) Boxberger (11)35,63221–15L2
37May 7@ Athletics 16–2 Keuchel (2–5) Anderson (0–1)—7,36022–15W1
38May 8@ Athletics 4–2 McCullers (5–1) Manaea (4–4) Giles (4)9,67523–15W2
39May 9@ Athletics 4–1 Cole (4–1) Mengden (2–4) Giles (5)18,04424–15W3
40May 11 Rangers 0–1 Hamels (2–4) Verlander (4–2) Kela (8)34,29724–16L1
41May 12 Rangers 6–1 Morton (5–0) Fister (1–4)—36,48225–16W1
42May 13 Rangers 6–1 Keuchel (3–5) Moore (1–5)—39,40526–16W2
43May 14@ Angels 1–2 Heaney (2-2) McCullers (5-2) Anderson (1)28,22926–17L1
44May 15@ Angels 5–3 McHugh (1–0) Álvarez (2–1) Giles (6)28,35827–17W1
45May 16@ Angels 2–0 Verlander (5–2) Richards (4–2)—28,07828–17W2
46May 18 Indians 4–1 Morton (6–0) Clevinger (3–1) Giles (7)35,95929–17W3
47May 19 Indians 4–5 Kluber (7–2) Keuchel (3–6) Allen (6)39,92629–18L1
48May 20 Indians 3–1 McCullers (6–2) Carrasco (5–3) Giles (8)30,77030–18W1
49May 22 Giants 11–2 Cole (5–1) Suárez (1–4)—35,63831–18W2
50May 23 Giants 4–1 Verlander (6–2) Samardzija (1–3) Giles (9)31,92932–18W3
51May 24@ Indians 8–2 Morton (7–0) Clevinger (3–2)—19,66033–18W4
52May 25@ Indians 11–2 Smith (2–1) Miller (1–3)—29,43134–18W5
53May 26@ Indians 6–8 Carrasco (6–3) McCullers (6–3) Allen (8)30,63934–19L1
54May 27@ Indians 9–10 (14) Otero (1–1) Peacock (1–2)—27,76534–20L2
55May 28@ Yankees 5–1 Verlander (7–2) Germán (0–3)—46,58335–20W1
56May 29@ Yankees 5–6 (10) Chapman (2–0) Peacock (1–3)—45,45835–21L1
57May 30@ Yankees 3–5 Severino (8–1) Keuchel (3–7) Chapman (12)45,22935–22L2
58May 31 Red Sox 4–2 McCullers (7–3) Pomeranz (1–3) Giles (10)30,65836–22W1
June: 19–8 (Home: 8–6; Away: 11–2)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
59June 1 Red Sox 7–3 Cole (6–1) Sale (5–3)—37,24437–22W2
60June 2 Red Sox 3–5 Price (6–4) Harris (1–3) Kimbrel (19)38,64037–23L1
61June 3 Red Sox 3–9 Porcello (8–2) Morton (7–1)—33,43137–24L2
62June 5 Mariners 1–7 Paxton (5–1) Keuchel (3–8)—35,64637–25L3
63June 6 Mariners 7–5 Devenski (2–1) Nicasio (1–3) Rondón (1)30,36138–25W1
64June 7@ Rangers 5–2 Cole (7–1) Hamels (3–6)—30,23639–25W2
65June 8@ Rangers 7–3 Verlander (8–2) Fister (1–7)—31,72240–25W3
66June 9@ Rangers 4–3 Sipp (1–0) Leclerc (1–2) Rondón (2)38,06841–25W4
67June 10@ Rangers 8–7 Harris (2–3) Kela (3–3) Rondón (3)30,25142–25W5
68June 12@ Athletics 6–3 McCullers (8–3) Mengden (6–6) Giles (11)11,74243–25W6
69June 13@ Athletics 13–5 Cole (8–1) Blackburn (1–1)—9,16444–25W7
70June 14@ Athletics 7–3 Verlander (9–2) Montas (3–1)—13,00945–25W8
71June 15@ Royals 7–3 Morton (8–1) Junis (5–7)—27,60346–25W9
72June 16@ Royals 10–2 Keuchel (4–8) Duffy (3–7)—20,65747–25W10
73June 17@ Royals 7–4 Sipp (2–0) Maurer (0–3) Rondón (4)22,32648–25W11
74June 18 Rays 5–4 McHugh (2–0) Romo (1–2)—34,15149–25W12
75June 19 Rays 1–2 Snell (9–4) Rondón (1–2) Romo (4)37,41449–26L1
76June 20 Rays 5–1 Morton (9–1) Eovaldi (1–3)—43,40950–26W1
77June 22 Royals 0–1 Grimm (1–2) Giles (0–2) Hill (1)39,35750–27L1
78June 23 Royals 4–3 (12) McHugh (3–0) Grimm (1–3)—40,02851–27W1
79June 24 Royals 11–3 Cole (9–1) Hammel (2–9)—41,82352–27W2
80June 25 Blue Jays 3–6 Happ (10–3) Verlander (9–3) Oh (2)28,79152–28L1
81June 26 Blue Jays 7–0 Morton (10–1) Borucki (0–1)—38,70053–28W1
82June 27 Blue Jays 7–6 Harris (3–3) Tepera (5–3)—39,19154–28W2
83June 28@ Rays 1–0 McCullers (9–3) Yarbrough (7–4) Rondón (5)12,30555–28W3
84June 29@ Rays 2–3 Font (2–3) Cole (9–2) Alvarado (2)15,79755–29L1
85June 30@ Rays 2–5 Nuño (2–0) Verlander (9–4) Romo (7)18,37855–30L2
July: 13–11 (Home: 7–7; Away: 6–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
86July 1@ Rays 2–3 Snell (11–4) Morton (10–2) Romo (8)19,33455–31L3
87July 3@ Rangers 5–3 Keuchel (5–8) Bibens-Dirkx (1–2) Rondón (6)40,16556–31W1
88July 4@ Rangers 5–4 (10) McHugh (4–0) Martin (1–2) Giles (12)43,59257–31W2
89July 5 White Sox 4–3 Smith (3–1) Soria (0–3)—34,95558–31W3
90July 6 White Sox 11–4 McCullers (10–3) López (4–6) Peacock (2)38,15359–31W4
91July 7 White Sox 12–6 Morton (11–2) Shields (3–10)—39,56860–31W5
92July 8 White Sox 2–1 Keuchel (6–8) Giolito (5–8) Rondón (7)41,65461–31W6
93July 9 Athletics 0–2 Montas (5–2) Peacock (1–4) Treinen (23)28,30161–32L1
94July 10 Athletics 6–5 (11) McHugh (5–0) Treinen (5–2)—34,58562–32W1
95July 11 Athletics 3–8 Bassitt (2–3) McCullers (10–4)—41,11962–33L1
96July 12 Athletics 4–6 Petit (3–2) Devenski (2–2) Trivino (4)38,90062–34L2
97July 13 Tigers 3–0 Keuchel (7–8) Fiers (6–6) Rondón (8)38,84363–34W1
98July 14 Tigers 9–1 Cole (10–2) Fulmer (3–9)—40,40564–34W2
99July 15 Tigers 3–6 VerHagen (1–2) Verlander (9–5)—39,45564–35L1
89th All-Star Game in Washington, D.C.
100July 20@ Angels 3–1 Keuchel (8–8) Skaggs (7–6) Rondón (9)42,42265–35W1
101July 21@ Angels 7–0 Verlander (10–5) Tropeano (3–5)—44,26466–35W2
102July 22@ Angels 5–14 Heaney (6–6) McCullers (10–5)—35,29866–36L1
103July 24@ Rockies 8–2 (10) Rondón (2–2) Davis (0–3)—43,18467–36W1
104July 25@ Rockies 2–3 Davis (1–3) McHugh (5–1)—40,94867–37L1
105July 27 Rangers 2–11 Gallardo (5–1) Keuchel (8–9)—42,59267–38L2
106July 28 Rangers 3–7 Jurado (1–1) Verlander (10–6)—43,09367–39L3
107July 29 Rangers 3–4 Minor (7–6) McCullers (10–6) Kela (24)40,56067–40L4
108July 30@ Mariners 0–2 Paxton (9–4) Cole (10–3) Díaz (40)35,19867–41L5
109July 31@ Mariners 5–2 Morton (12–2) Leake (8–7) Rondón (10)28,47868–41W1
August: 14–12 (Home: 3–6; Away: 11–6)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
110August 1@ Mariners 8–3 Keuchel (9–9) LeBlanc (6–2)—34,57569–41W2
111August 3@ Dodgers 2–1 Verlander (11–6) Wood (7–6) Rondón (11)53,59870–41W3
112August 4@ Dodgers 14–0 Peacock (2–4) Maeda (7–7)—53,11971–41W4
113August 5@ Dodgers 2–3 Buehler (5–4) Cole (10–4) Jansen (31)50,62871–42L1
114August 6@ Giants 3–1 Osuna (1–0) Smith (1–2) Rondón (12)40,25172–42W1
115August 7@ Giants 2–1 Smith (4–1) Black (1–1) Rondón (13)41,61373–42W2
116August 9 Mariners 6–8 Paxton (10–5) Verlander (11–7) Díaz (43)34,97673–43L1
117August 10 Mariners 2–5 Warren (1–1) Cole (10–5) Díaz (44)41,23673–44L2
118August 11 Mariners 2–3 LeBlanc (7–2) Morton (12–3) Díaz (45)38,88873–45L3
119August 12 Mariners 3–4 (10) Duke (5–4) Osuna (1–1) Díaz (46)40,04873–46L4
120August 14 Rockies 1–5 Márquez (10–9) Verlander (11–8)—35,81373–47L5
121August 15 Rockies 12–1 Cole (11–5) Anderson (6–5)—29,96774–47W1
122August 17@ Athletics 3–4 (10) Treinen (6–2) Sipp (2–1)—23,53574–48L1
123August 18@ Athletics 1–7 Cahill (5–2) Keuchel (9–10)—32,20474–49L2
124August 19@ Athletics 9–4 Verlander (12–8) Manaea 11–9)—29,14375–49W1
125August 20@ Mariners 4–7 Colomé (4–5) McHugh (5–2) Díaz (48)27,07275–50L1
126August 21@ Mariners 3–2 Valdez (1–0) Detwiler (0–1) Rondón (14)25,41576–50W1
127August 22@ Mariners 10–7 Morton (13–3) Gonzales (12–9) Osuna (10)31,06277–50W2
128August 24@ Angels 9–3 Keuchel (10–10) Heaney (7–8)—42,78878–50W3
129August 25@ Angels 8–3 Verlander (13–8) Barría (8–8)—41,65479–50W4
130August 26@ Angels 3–1 Valdez (2–0) Peña (1–4) Osuna (11)37,53080–50W5
131August 27 Athletics 11–4 Cole (12–5) Anderson (3–4)—43,17181–50W6
132August 28 Athletics 3–4 Familia (8–4) Osuna (1–2) Treinen (33)33,13681–51L1
133August 29 Athletics 5–4 Osuna (2–2) Familia (8–5)—32,92682–51W1
134August 30 Angels 2–5 Heaney (8–8) Verlander (13–9)—30,37182–52L1
135August 31 Angels 0–3 Barría (9–8) Valdez (2–1) Parker (13)35,67582–53L2
September: 21–6 (Home: 11–3; Away: 10–3)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecordStreak
136September 1 Angels 7–3 Smith (5–1) Bedrosian (5–4)—41,62283–53W1
137September 2 Angels 4–2 Cole (13–5) Ohtani (4–2) Osuna (12)41,50684–53W2
138September 3 Twins 4–1 Keuchel (11–10) Gibson (7–12) Peacock (3)39,55985–53W3
139September 4 Twins 5–2 Verlander (14–9) May (3–1) Osuna (13)31,31586–53W4
140September 5 Twins 9–1 Valdez (3–1) Odorizzi (5–10)—31,01187–53W5
141September 7@ Red Sox 6–3 Pressly (2–1) Kelly (4–2) Osuna (14)36,93088–53W6
142September 8@ Red Sox 5–3 Morton (14–3) Rodríguez (12–4) Osuna (15)36,68489–53W7
143September 9@ Red Sox 5–6 Kimbrel (5–1) Rondón (2–3)—32,78789–54L1
144September 10@ Tigers 3–2 Verlander (15–9) Liriano (4–10) Osuna (16)19,71190–54W1
145September 11@ Tigers 5–4 Harris (4–3) Zimmermann (7–7) Osuna (17)19,43291–54W2
146September 12@ Tigers 5–4 Cole (14–5) Norris (0–4) Pressly (1)22,66692–54W3
147September 14 D-backs 2–4 Ziegler (2–6) Rondón (2–4) Hirano (2)36,92492–55L1
148September 15 D-backs 10–4 Morton (15–3) Godley (14–10)—38,34593–55W1
149September 16 D-backs 5–4 Verlander (16–9) Greinke (14–10) Osuna (18)37,88994–55W2
150September 17 Mariners 1–4 Cook (2–1) Rondón (2–5) Díaz (56)43,14594–56L1
151September 18 Mariners 7–0 James (1–0) Leake (10–10)–35,71595–56W1
152September 19 Mariners 0–9 Lawrence (1–0) Keuchel (11–11)–31,22995–57L1
153September 21 Angels 11–3 Cole (15–5) Heaney (9–10)—39,97796–57 W1
154September 22 Angels 10–5 McHugh (6–2) Buttrey (0–1)—41,82297–57W2
155September 23 Angels 6–2 Valdez (4–1) Skaggs (8–9)—43,24798–57W3
156September 24@ Blue Jays 5–3 Keuchel (12–11) Estrada (7–14) Osuna (19)23,46399–57W4
157September 25@ Blue Jays 4–1 James (2–0) Gaviglio (3–9) Osuna (20)28,440100–57W5
158September 26@ Blue Jays 1–3 Biagini (4–7) Devenski (2–3) Giles (25)22,828100–58L1
—September 27@ Orioles Postponed (rain). Makeup date: September 29.
159September 28@ Orioles 2–1 Sipp (3–1) Scott (3–3) Osuna (21)18,434101–58W1
160September 29 (1)@ Orioles 4–3 Harris (5–3) Gilmartin (1–1) Rondón (15)26,020102–58W2
161September 29 (2)@ Orioles 5–2 Peacock (3–4) Ramírez (1–8) Pressly (2)26,020103–58W3
162September 30@ Orioles 0–4 Fry (1–2) Peacock (3–5)—24,916103–59L1

Player stats

Batting

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases; BB = Walks; AVG = Batting average; SLG = Slugging average

PlayerGABRH2B3BHRRBISBBBAVGSLG
Alex Bregman 157594105170511311031096.286.532
George Springer 1405441021442602271664.265.434
Yuli Gurriel 136537701563311385523.291.428
Jose Altuve 1375348416929213611755.316.451
Marwin González 145489611212531668253.247.409
Josh Reddick 134433631051321747749.242.400
Evan Gattis 12840749921702578133.226.452
Carlos Correa 11040260962011565353.239.405
Tony Kemp 972553767150630932.263.392
Max Stassi 882212850130827023.226.394
Jake Marisnick 1032133445811028615.211.399
Tyler White 6621027581231242024.276.533
Brian McCann 63189224030723019.212.339
Martín Maldonado 4110815254141203.231.398
J. D. Davis 421039182015010.175.223
Derek Fisher 427913132241125.165.392
Kyle Tucker 2864109210416.141.203
Tim Federowicz 103447300201.206.294
Myles Straw 9943001121.333.667
A. J. Reed 1300000000.000.000
Pitcher Totals1622502000000.080.080
Team Totals162545379713902781820576371565.255.425

Source:

Pitching

Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; H = Hits allowed; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts

PlayerWLERAGGSSVIPHRERBBSO
Justin Verlander 1692.5234340214.0156636037290
Dallas Keuchel 12113.7434340204.2211928558153
Gerrit Cole 1552.8832320200.1143686464276
Charlie Morton 1533.1330300167.0130635864201
Lance McCullers Jr. 1063.8625220128.1100605550112
Collin McHugh 621.99580072.14518162194
Brad Peacock 353.46611365.05626252096
Héctor Rondón 253.206301559.05822212067
Will Harris 533.49610056.24822221464
Chris Devenski 234.18501247.14223221351
Joe Smith 513.74560045.23420191246
Tony Sipp 311.86540038.227881342
Framber Valdez 412.1985037.0221092434
Ken Giles 024.993401230.2361717331
Ryan Pressly 100.77260223.11122332
Josh James 202.3563023.01566729
Roberto Osuna 221.992301222.21755319
Cionel Pérez 003.9780011.1655712
Reymin Guduan 002.703003.111104
Dean Deetz 005.404003.142213
J. D. Davis 009.001001.011101
James Hoyt 000.001000.110010
Team Totals103593.11162162461455.011645345034351687

Source:

Postseason

2018 Postseason Game Log (4–4)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceSeries
1October 5 Indians 7–2 Verlander (1–0) Kluber (0–1)—43,5141–0
2October 6 Indians 3–1 Cole (1–0) Carrasco (0–1) Osuna (1)43,5202–0
3October 8@ Indians 11–3 McHugh (1–0) Bauer (0–1)—37,2523–0
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceSeries
1October 13@ Red Sox 7–2 Verlander (1–0) Kelly (0–1)—38,0071–0
2October 14@ Red Sox 5–7 Barnes (1–0) Cole (0–1) Kimbrel (1)37,9601–1
3October 16 Red Sox 2–8 Eovaldi (1–0) Smith (0–1)—43,1021–2
4October 17 Red Sox 6–8 Kelly (1–1) James (0–1) Kimbrel (2)43,2771–3
5October 18 Red Sox 1–4 Price (1–0) Verlander (1–1) Kimbrel (3)43,2101–4

Postseason rosters

Playoff rosters
American League Division Series
American League Championship Series

Roster

2018 Houston Astros
Roster
PitchersCatchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Manager

Coaches

Awards and achievements

Awards
AL batting leaders
AL pitching leaders

Minor league system

LevelTeamLeagueManager
AAA Fresno Grizzlies Pacific Coast League Rodney Linares
AA Corpus Christi Hooks Texas League Omar López
A-Advanced Buies Creek Astros Carolina League Morgan Ensberg
A Quad Cities River Bandits Midwest League Mickey Storey
A-Short Season Tri-City ValleyCats New York–Penn League Jason Bell
Rookie GCL Astros Gulf Coast League Wladimir Sutil
Rookie DSL Astros Dominican Summer League Charlie Romero (Blue)
Carlos Lugo (Orange)

See also

References

  1. ↑ Castrovince, Anthony (November 2, 2017). "Springer swats his way to MVP honors". MLB.com . Archived from the original on January 9, 2020. Retrieved November 2, 2017.
  2. ↑ McTaggart, Brian; Gurnick, Ken (November 2, 2017). "Houston Astros win 2017 World Series". MLB.com. Archived from the original on November 7, 2017. Retrieved November 2, 2017.
  3. ↑ Kelly, Matt (October 21, 2017). "Verlander named ALCS MVP after superb starts". MLB.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2017. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
  4. ↑ Kaplan, Jake (November 17, 2017). "Astros' Jose Altuve named American League MVP". Houston Chronicle . Retrieved November 19, 2017.
  5. ↑ Rieken, Kristie (December 27, 2017). "Astros star Jose Altuve named AP Male Athlete of the Year". Associated Press . Archived from the original on September 23, 2022. Retrieved September 23, 2022.
  6. ↑ Barshop, Sarah (December 5, 2017). "Sports Illustrated names J.J. Watt, Jose Altuve its Sportspersons of the Year". ESPN.com . Retrieved December 6, 2017.
  7. ↑ Houston Chronicle Sports (October 26, 2017). "Astros' Jose Altuve voted Sporting News Player of the Year". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  8. ↑ Associated Press (January 23, 2018). "Former top Astros prospect Singleton, Deetz banned for drugs". KPRC-TV . Retrieved January 24, 2018.
  9. ↑ McTaggart, Brian (November 6, 2017). "No qualifying offers to Astros' free agents". MLB.com. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
  10. ↑ Beltrán, Carlos (November 13, 2017). "Muchas Gracias, Béisbol". The Players' Tribune . Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  11. ↑ Feinsand, Mark (November 13, 2017). "Beltran retires a champ after 20-year career". MLB.com. Retrieved November 13, 2017.
  12. ↑ Langosch, Jennifer (December 13, 2017). "Cards, Gregerson agree to 2-year deal". MLB.com. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Pitcher Francisco Liriano agrees to 1-year deal with Tigers". The Blade . Associated Press. February 23, 2018. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  14. ↑ McTaggart, Brian (December 13, 2017). "Astros reach a deal with RP Smith". MLB.com. Retrieved December 13, 2017.
  15. 1 2 McTaggart, Brian (December 1, 2018). "Astros opt not to tender Fiers a contract: Houston righty, who threw a no-no in '15, is a free agent". MLB.com. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  16. ↑ RotoWire Staff (February 3, 2018). "Astros' Ken Giles: Wins arbitration case". CBSSports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2018.
  17. ↑ Todd, Jeff (January 12, 2018). "Astros avoid arbitration with Dallas Keuchel". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  18. ↑ "Tigers agree to $6M, 1-year deal with RHP Mike Fiers". USA Today . Associated Press. December 8, 2017. Retrieved January 14, 2017.
  19. ↑ O'Brien, Dennis (December 20, 2017). "Braves trade for outfielder Preston Tucker from Astros". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Retrieved January 20, 2018.
  20. ↑ Taylor, Jon (January 13, 2018). "Grading the deal: Gerrit Cole gives Astros' rotation a scary-good look". Sports Illustrated . Retrieved January 14, 2018.
  21. ↑ McTaggart, Brian (March 5, 2018). "Verlander to start 10th opener, first for Astros". MLB.com. Retrieved March 5, 2018.
  22. ↑ Crasnick, Jerry (March 30, 2018). "Astros' George Springer hits leadoff HR for second straight Opening Day". ESPN . Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  23. ↑ Stevenson, Stefan (March 29, 2018). "Astros' Justin Verlander keeps Rangers' bats down on Opening Day". Fort Worth Star-Telegram . Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  24. ↑ Rome, Chandler (April 18, 2018). "Jose Altuve reaches milestone of 1,000 games with Astros". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  25. ↑ Rome, Chandler (April 17, 2018). "Astros' Justin Verlander named AL Player of the Week". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  26. ↑ McTaggart, Brian (May 7, 2018). "Springer's 6-hit night, 462-foot HR lead romp". MLB.com. Retrieved May 8, 2018.
  27. ↑ Yang, Avery (May 17, 2018). "Justin Verlander spins 5-hit shutout, gets 2,500th K". MLB.com. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  28. ↑ Baer, Bill (May 27, 2018). "José Altuve records hit in 10 consecutive plate appearances". NBC Sports . Retrieved May 27, 2018.
  29. ↑ Schwartzberg, Seth (May 27, 2025). "Today in Astros history - May 27". The Crawfish Boxes. SB Nation . Retrieved July 29, 2025.
  30. ↑ Rome, Chandler (June 2, 2018). "Astros' Justin Verlander named AL Pitcher of the Month". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved June 2, 2018.
  31. ↑ "McCullers, Gattis lead Astros to 11–4 rout of White Sox". ESPN.com. Associated Press. July 6, 2018. Retrieved May 29, 2025.
  32. ↑ "Team Pitching Season Finder: For Single Seasons, from 1871 to 2021, Standard stats, requiring Strikeouts >= 1600, sorted by greatest Strikeouts". Stathead Baseball. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  33. ↑ "Team pitching game finder: In the regular season, since 1901, requiring strikeouts >= 10, sorted by most games". Stathead Baseball. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  34. ↑ "Team pitching game finder: In the regular season, since 1901, requiring strikeouts >= 5, sorted by most games". Stathead Baseball. Retrieved April 16, 2021.
  35. ↑ "Darryl Kile Award". Baseball Almanac . Retrieved July 22, 2025.
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