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Bullpen of the Week: ‘Pen aids ‘Stros against top dogs
- Updated: September 12, 2016
The Astros found themselves in great position on the morning of Sept. 1 as they packed their bags in Oakland and prepared for a travel day to Arlington. Houston, which had begun the season 21-29 through the first two months, had improbably clawed all the way back to within one game of the second American League Wild Card spot.
That was the good news. The bad news was what lay ahead: 13 straight games against teams that were in first place in their division — including the first seven on the road.
BULLPEN OF THE WEEK WINNERS Week Team April 3-10 A’s April 11-17 Twins April 18-24 Nationals April 25-May 1 Phillies May 2-8 Angels May 9-15 Yankees May 16-22 Cubs May 23-29 Astros May 30-June 5 Dodgers June 6-12 Yankees June 13-19 Marlins June 20-26 Tigers June 27-July 3 Pirates July 4-10 Dodgers July 18-24 Yankees July 25-31 Brewers Aug. 1-7 Blue Jays Aug. 8-14 Mariners Aug. 15-21 Royals Aug. 22-28 Pirates Aug. 29-Sept. 4 Cubs Sept. 5-11 Astros
Despite that brutal slate of games that came amid the heat of a September playoff race, the Astros enter today still within shouting distance. Houston remains just 3 1/2 games behind the Orioles and Blue Jays in the Wild Card chase with three big home games still remaining against the first-place Rangers. After that series, the Astros will play their last 16 remaining contests against clubs who currently have an equal or worse record than they have, meaning they should have quite a bit of control about where they end up at season’s end.
Considering the level of competition the Astros just played, the fact that they still have a legitimate shot at October is a testament to how this team has fought. Houston’s bullpen is no exception; in fact, the Astros’ relievers put up a performance this past week that was not only good enough to keep them in the hunt — it was also worthy of the Bullpen of the Week Award, presented by The Hartford.
As part of the MLB Prevailing Moments program, each Monday throughout the 2016 season, MLB.com is honoring the “Bullpen of the Week presented by The Hartford.” An industry-wide panel of MLB experts, including legendary stats guru Bill James, constructed a metric based …
