A’s-Astros: how the teams match up
Who has the advantage? Oaklandwent 7-3 against Houston in regular season
TheOaklandA’s are no stranger to voicing their disdain for the Houston Astros, but in the 2020 postseason, BobMelvin’s club will have a chance to turn words into action.
Melvin and the A’s believe the Astros’ cheating scandal cost Oakland a chance at division crowns in 2018 and 2019, forcing the team to play in the American League wild card game instead of securing an easier path to a pennant with an automatic berth in the ALDS.
The A’s came up short in 2018 against theNewYork Yankees and
AL DIVISION SERIES, GAME 1 A’S VS. ASTROS
When: Monday, 1:07p.m.
TV: TBS
again in 2019 against the Tampa Bay Rays, but after winning a best- of- three wild card series against the Chicago White Sox last week, Oakland finally has a chance at revenge.
They’ll meet an Astros team in a neutral-site matchup at Dodger Stadium that pulled a stunning upset of the third-seeded Minnesota Twins with a two-game wild card round sweep to send Dusty
Baker into the ALDS for the first time in the manager’s storied career. Houston is the fifth different franchise Baker has guided to the postseason, but shocking theA’s could go downas one of his greatest achievements.
Oaklandwent 7-3 against the Astros this year and ran away with the ALWest title, but the teams appear a bit more evenly matched than their regular season records might indicate. Where does each club hold an advantage? Here’s our breakdown of the series.
STARTING PITCHERS » Even with Justin Verlander sidelined due to an elbow injury that ultimately required surgery, the Astros rotation outperformed the A’s during the regular season as Houston starters posted a 4.26ERAcompared to the 4.49 mark Oakland’s starters compiled this year. The innings each teams’ starters threw were relatively even, but Houston’s top arms were slightly more consistent than the pitchers Oakland relied on most often this year.
The A’s have the best starter in the series inrighthander Chris Bassitt, but Houston enters the series with more quality depth as Zack Greinke, Lance McCullers, Jr., Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier all finished the regular season with ERAs under 4.03.
Bassitt was the only A’s starter with a sub- 4.00 ERA this season, but Oakland isn’t lacking for upside as Jesús Luzardo and
Frankie Montas can both dominate opponents when they’re on. It’ll be interesting to see whether the A’s favor lefty Sean Manaea or righty Mike Fiers against Houston, but after Fiers struggled against theWhite Sox, Melvin might giveManaea the first crack against the Astros.
ADVANTAGE » Astros BULLPEN » The A’s would probably enter any series against any opponent with an edge in bullpen talent because of how deep of a staff they have, but it’s worth pointing out the Astros don’t have any lights-out options who are on par with Oakland closer Liam Hendriks.
Hendriks’ dominance in Game 3 on Thursday against the White Sox served as a reminder as to why elite closers can be so valuable in October and Melvin has no shortage of set-up men to turn to if he wants to ensure Hendriks takes the ball in the ninth inning with a lead. Jake Diekman, Yusmeiro Petit and J.B. Wendelken are all dependable high-leverage options and Wendelken and Diekman can both be counted on when Oakland needs a strikeout.
The trio of Andre Scrubb, Blake Taylor and Ryan Pressly can be stingy at the end of games for theAstros, but there’s no question Oakland is better suited for a “Johnny wholestaff” day or an extra-innings game. ADVANTAGE » A’s
CATCHERS » Astros starter Martín Maldonado is a patient hitter and a tough out despite his .215 regular season batting average, but the real reason Houston was eager to bring Maldonado back in 2020 was because
of the value he provides defensively. The 34-year-old is a former Gold Glove Award winner and clearly works well with Houston’s pitchers, so the catcher position hasn’t been a problem for Baker this season.
Maldonado is steady and the Astros know what to expect from him, but A’s rookie Sean Murphy is the more exciting player to watch because he has AllStar potential and is only scratching the surface of his true talents. Murphy’s mammoth two-run home run in Game 3 against the White Sox showed he’s not afraid of a big moment and the rookie has received great reviews from A’s pitchers throughout his first major league season.
Maldonado isn’t going to lose the Astros the series, but he’s probably not going to be a big differenceMurphy has the chance to providemore value to the A’s. ADVANTAGE » A’s INFIELDERS » The A’s are without superstar third
baseman Matt Chapman who is sidelined for the playoffs after undergoing hip surgery, but the Astros are essentially without Jose Altuve who has looked like a completely different player since Houston was caught cheating in the sign-stealing scandal that rocked baseball.
Chapman’s replacements at third base, Jake Lamb and Chad Pinder, have been more valuable than the 2020 version of Altuve, who hit .219 with a .629 OPS this year, which is a cool 190 points belowhis career mark. Altuve wasn’t the only Astros player to suffer without knowing what pitch was coming this season as third baseman Alex Bregman, shortstop Carlos Correa and first baseman Yuli Gurriel all saw their numbers decline this year.
Bregman, Correa and Gurriel have more star power than an A’s infield that also features Matt Olson, Tommy La Stella and 2019 MVP finalist Marcus Semien, andwith Olson and
Semien struggling this year, it seems neither side has a clear advantage. As odd as it might sound, La Stella has been the most reliable hitter of any infielder in this ALDSmatchup because he’s almost always a tough out at the top of the A’s lineup.
It wouldn’t shock anyone to see Bregman, Correa, Olson or Semien get hot and carry their team’s offense next week, but bothmanagers would be thrilled if their respective infielders simply play better than they did during the regular season. ADVANTAGE » Toss-up OUTFIELD/ DH » The Astros infield is where the star power is at, but the outfield is where Baker’s team has found its most production.
Free-agent-to-be George Springer is the best outfielder in the series as his .899 OPS in 2020 and 15 career postseason home runs give him a superior résumé to his peers on both teams, but Springer has received plenty of help this season from Kyle Tucker, a tough left-handed hitter who finished the year with 27 extra-base hits including six triples. Former A’s outfielder Josh Reddick had a down season, but theAstros have neutralized his performance by using veteranMichael Brantley as a DH.
Brantley broke open Game 1 of the ALwild card series against the Minnesota Twins with a clutch two-run single and if he’s able to provide a spark from the DH spot in the ALDS, the Astros outfield/ DH group probably has a slight edge over an A’s outfield unit that hasn’t played all that well down the stretch.
Robbie Grossman has been a reliable switch-hitter
and Mark Canha is one of the most underrated players in baseball, but center fielder Ramón Laureano has struggled at the plate this season and looked uncomfortable at times in the wild card series. With StephenPiscotty andKhrisDavis unable to be counted on as middle- of-the- order bats at this point in the season, it seems the A’s are at a slight disadvantage here. ADVANTAGE » Astros MANAGERS » Canwe all take a moment to enjoy the fact two of the most well-respected managers in baseball, Baker and Melvin, are facing off against each other in a postseason series?
When you consider the stakes and add in the bad blood the players feel toward everyone in the opposing dugouts in this ALDS, it’s fairly obvious a manager can play a huge role in the outcome of this series. Keeping a team calm and collected, finding the balance between patience and aggressiveness and using the right relievers inthe right spots will go a long way toward deciding this best- of-five set and both franchises should feel confident in the men leading their respective clubs.
Melvin should have a slight edge over Baker because he’s more familiar with his personnel, his team won seven of the 10 regular season matchups and he’s finally got a postseason series win in his back pocket, but Baker has plenty to prove and is managing a team with an “usagainst-the-world” mentality that canbe dangerous in the playoffs.
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