2015 was a landmark year for the Houston Astros: They made the postseason for the first time in a decade, shortstop Carlos Correa won AL Rookie of the Year honors, ace Dallas Keuchel was named AL Cy Young Award winner and they set themselves up for an even brighter future.
With Christmas around the corner, here are some things the Astros are hoping for in order to come back strong in 2016.
Another slugger
When you think of the 2015 Astros’ hitters, you think of home runs and strikeouts. That’s basically how they scored runs, save for some Jose Altuve hustle-doubles and manufactured rallies. With the roster mostly set for 2016, though, they could use an offensive jolt that an Alex Gordon-type would provide. Owner Jim Crane has said the club’s payroll could increase, and the Astros are definitely in ‘win-now’ mode. So finding another impact hitter to complement Altuve, Correa, Evan Gattis, Colby Rasmus and the rest of the offense would really help things even more.
An additional starter
Behind Keuchel, the Astros look to rely on Collin McHugh and Lance McCullers in 2016. With phenoms Mark Appel and Vincent Velasquez now gone (traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for Ken Giles), the minor-league pitching reserves are a bit thinner than they were a month ago. Lefty Scott Kazmir might return, but he’d likely receive a pretty solid free-agent contract from someone, if not Houston. Kazmir could be the rotation plug the Astros are looking for, but they could always look elsewhere too (or look back to the trade market, which GM Jeff Luhnow certainly does quite often).
Giles being the closer they needed
The 2015 Astros relied heavily on a mostly effective bullpen unit, but it faltered down the stretch and in their ALDS loss to the Kansas City Royals. One of their top priorities this offseason was to strengthen the relief corps, and the addition of hard-throwing closer Ken Giles ought to do just that. With Luke Gregerson likely to slide back into eighth-inning duties, Giles can air it out in the ninth and (they hope) truly be that late inning difference-maker that the club lacked last season.
No sophomore jinx for Correa
Far too often in this league, players emerge on the scene with a dynamic rookie campaign and win Rookie of the Year honors as a result. Correa, though, exhibited a skill set that transcends most young players (and some veterans, too). Can he improve on his .279/.345/.512 line from 2015? Will he hit more than 22 home runs? Will he find a way to improve upon his 4.1 WAR? These are all narratives surrounding the budding star as he heads into his second season of being one of the linchpins of the Astros’ franchise – and a perfect example of their rich minor-league development system.
No Cy Young hangover for Keuchel
Along the same lines as Correa, Keuchel will be looking to show the world that 2015 wasn’t his "career year." It was quite magnificent (20-8 with a 2.48 ERA, 216 strikeouts and a sterling 15-0 record at Minute Maid Park), but he tallied 232 innings of work. That’s a lot of mileage on the left arm, and how he bounces back from a long season that stretched into mid-October will be a key factor in Houston’s chances of making it back to the postseason.
A deeper October run
The Astros surprised many in 2015, emerging a year or so before most assumed they’d be ready to challenge for a postseason spot. In 2016, they won’t be able to sneak up on anyone (something manager A.J. Hinch has admitted he’s aware of), so they’ll have to make good on all of 2015’s promise and hope ... lest their "win-now" aspirations fall by the wayside. Making it back to October and, they hope, getting past the ALDS would go a long way toward making that dream a reality.
