D.C. 5 another reason to feel glad all over
The Astros’ golden era has begun.
And they’ve already won their first world championship.
Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, George Springer, Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole are AllStars. A.J. Hinch will manage the American League’s biggest names during the annual Midsummer Classic, which will be unfurled July 17 in the nation’s capital. And with five All-Stars set to represent Houston’s local nine on an international stage, the Astros tied Boston and Cleveland for the most players initially honored in 2018 and have five orange-and-blue AllStars in back-to-back seasons for the first time in franchise history.
Hinch’s club (61-31) is also soaring again, having won six consecutive contests, and trails only the Red Sox for the best record in Major League Baseball.
The most popular player in MLB: Altuve.
The AL Player of the Month in June, who is now set for his first All-Star Game at 24: Bregman.
Verlander and Cole form one of the strongest 1-2 mound attacks in the sport.
How deep and loaded are your reigning champion Stros?
A slumping Springer (.248 batting average, 15 home runs, 43 RBIs, excellent glovework) made the All-Star cut, while a more deserving Collin McHugh (0.86 ERA, 0.74 WHIP in 42 relief innings) was a classic summer snub.
Charlie Morton, an 11-game winner, and Evan Gattis, the Astros’ home run and RBI leader, also have legitimate cases.
Cole’s an All-Star during his first season with a first-place team that leads Seattle by 3½ games in the AL West.
Verlander — also known as Mr. October in this championship city — earned his first All-Star selection since 2013, and this one arrived during his initial full season firing for Hinch’s squad.
Names. Numbers. Awards and honors.
They’re all becoming expected and so easily understood.
After what the Astros’ fan base went through from 2011-13, they should never be taken for granted.
Altuve is the first Astro to lead all players in the fan vote and joins Hall of Famer Craig Biggio as just the second Astro to start four consecutive AllStar games.
The franchise that Jeff Luhnow and Jim Crane rebuilt and revived is sending five All-Stars to Washington D.C. — with more potentially to come — the season after a club-record six received the honor.
Hinch is joining Phil Garner as just the second manager in team history to guide a squad in what’s still the best All-Star event in pro sports.
Honored names. Daily appreciation for a team that is easier than ever to pull for and believe in.
You fell back in love with the Astros in 2015. You knew they could and should be better a year later. You became so attached in ’17 that by the time Game 7 of the World Series arrived, nine innings of a baseball game felt only a few steps removed from life and death.
Pure joy, instant history and a city so proudly living through its inspiring team.
In July 2018, these Astros are just as strong and deep as last year’s world title team, which means the Midsummer Classic in D.C. will soon become another flashy showcase for Houston’s baseball club.
Think of how far Altuve has come since 2011.
Bregman turning 1-for-32 at the start of his career into a .281 average, 17 homers, 57 RBIs, 59 runs, a .903 OPS and excellent glovework.
Luhnow acquiring two AllStar arms via major trades in the last year, willingly giving up prospects for two of the premier starters in the sport.
This is the Astros’ golden era.
It’s only just begun.