REMEMBER THESE GUYS?
Coronavirus challenges await Astros’ roster as summer camp opens
Everything is enigmatic, even for a team with World Series aspirations and favored to win a fourth consecutive American League West title. Depth and star power buoy the Astros, affording them obvious advantages in a 60-game season unlike anything previously attempted in baseball history.
At last glance, they were a mystery. Their ace pitcher was injured. Fans and fellow players tortured the team with invectives. Neither their general manager nor manager had much more than a cursory knowledge of the roster.
Astros preparing to defend the 2019 American League pennant include, top row from left, Justin Verlander, Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman; middle row from left, Carlos Correa, George Springer and Michael Brantley; and bottom row from left, Yordan Alvarez, Lance McCullers Jr. and Yuli Gurriel.
Three idle months presumably mended the physical ailments to Justin Verlander and Yordan Alvarez. Evaluating the club’s psyche is another effort altogether, one for which onlookers are almost incapable. The season’s viability might hinge on it. The club’s success certainly will.
“At the end of the day, the players understand the magnitude of how we all are in this together and how big this thing is,” bench coach Joe Espada said this week.
“If we want to have a season, postseason, World Series, we all have to make an effort
and follow the rules and the protocols provided by MLB. If we do that, we’re going to be OK. If we don’t and we get frustrated with social distancing, this rule or that rule, it creates challenges.”
Absorbing insults or defending their character after the sign-stealing scandal is no longer the Astros’ foremost concern. Adherence to an exhaustive list of safety procedures will determine how far they advance — if the season even starts at all. Whether it will is a serious question. Finishing a 60-game slate in home ballparks amid a pandemic seems daunting.
Any possibility of getting through the season comes down to personal responsibility. Beginning with Friday’s first summer camp workout at Minute Maid Park, players and coaches are expected to put the team’s health before their individual luxuries. Spitting and sunflower seeds are prohibited. So are highfives, standing too near a teammate, and restaurants or bars on the road.
Major League Baseball is not enforcing many of the on- or off-field rules with punishments, only offering strict encouragement that players act with care. Teams must appoint an “Infection Control Prevention Coordinator” to “monitor and ensure” compliance, but in some cases, these individuals will not be medical professionals. The league “recommends” the appointee have certifications in epidemiology and infection control but does not require it.
The onus remains on the players and coaches themselves. Espada intimated this week that virtual conversations among Astros players, coaches and executives have reinforced the importance for responsible behavior.
“I think the teams that do that best will have a legit shot of playing in the postseason,” Espada said. “They know that. I hope they’re smart with the decisions they make, especially when they’re off the field.”
Even with total diligence and acceptance of their surroundings, the Astros will encounter trouble. Assuming they won’t is foolish. Players will test positive and could miss games. In a 60-game regular season, though, one evening without a crucial bat or backend reliever is magnified.
The Astros must ensure any absence does not derail the pursuit of a pennant. Major league-ready depth is plentiful, another reason they’re primed to contend no matter the wacky nature of this season.
Verlander, Zack Greinke and Lance McCullers Jr. atop the starting rotation offer obvious comfort. The three-month shutdown prevented Verlander from a lengthy stint on the injured list and allowed him to rehabilitate various injuries. Manager Dusty Baker called the shutdown a “blessing in disguise” for the reigning American League Cy Young winner.
A lineup with three reigning American League All-Stars, the unanimous American League Rookie of the Year and Jose Altuve will make Baker’s managerial task easier.
Baker, 71, is in his “last hurrah,” managing a team many thought he’d need to galvanize amid the signstealing scandal’s fallout. His duties now far exceed that. Baker and new general manager James Click must guide this group of players — one with which they’re still not intimately familiar — through a public health crisis.
Baker himself is more susceptible to contracting COVID-19. He’s a prostate cancer survivor who also has had a stroke and heart disease. He was a “bit nervous” about working in a country consumed by a virus. But Baker longs for a World Series title, perhaps the only accolade absent from his legendary résumé. The 2020 Astros might be his — and the franchise’s — last best hope for one.
An exodus of marquee free agents this winter — George Springer, Yuli Gurriel and Michael Brantley foremost among them — could continue the gradual closing of a championship window. It remains wide for this season, in whatever form it manifests.
“The guys are ready,” Baker said last week. “I think they have a great attitude. And we want to go back to the top where we belong.”