The city of Houston got major league baseball in 1962. Over the years, the franchise underwent a name change from the Colt 45s to the Astros, and they eventually switched leagues, from the National to the American. They had quite a few good seasons and reached the World Series in 2005. But one thing they had never done was to win the whole thing. That changed in the 2017 MLB season, as the Houston Astros finally reached the top.
Houston’s American League-leading offense was fueled by second Jose Altuve. With a stat line of .410 on-base percentage/.547 slugging percentage, 24 homers and 32 stolen bases, Altuve won the AL MVP award. Carlos Correa added more offense up in the middle, and the shortstop finished with a .391/.550 stat line and 24 homers. Alex Bregman was coming into his own at third base and finished with a .352/.475 stat line. And George Springer was explosive in the outf9ield, at .367/.522 and hitting 34 bombs.
That potent attack was plenty for a pitching staff that was pretty good in its own right. Dallas Keuchel, Brad Peacock and Charlie Morton combined to win 41 games and the Astros finished fifth in the American League for composite ERA.
Houston exploded out of the gate and had a 10-game lead in the AL West by Memorial Day. It was 16 ½ by the All-Star break, and it never got remotely competitive. The Astros clinched early and were the #2 seed in the American League.
As good as Houston was, the team to beat coming into the American League playoffs was the Cleveland Indians. After getting to Game 7 of the World Series in 2016, the Tribe were back for more. Corey Kluber was the rotation ace, and with an 18-4 record and 2.25 ERA, he won the AL Cy Young Award. Carlos Carrasco was 18-6 with a 3.29 ERA. Trevor Bauer added 17 more wins, and Cleveland finished with the best staff ERA in the league.
The left side of the infield, third baseman Jose Ramirez and shortstop Francisco Lindor, keyed the offense. Ramirez finished with a stat line of .374/.583 and 29 home runs. Lindor’s numbers were .337/.505 and 33 homers. The due finished third and fifth respectively in the MVP voting. They were augmented by Edwin Encarnacion who went deep 38 times and drove in 107 runs.
Minnesota was a contender in the AL Central. The Twins got good pitching, and the fourth-best staff in the league was anchored by 16-game winner Ervin Santana. The everyday lineup was led by second baseman Brian Dozier, Miguel Sano, and Eddie Rosario, who combined to hit 89 home runs. Joe Mauer batted .300. And by Memorial Day, it was Minnesota setting the pace in the division, two games up on Cleveland.
The Indians nudged out to a 2 ½ game lead by the All-Star break, and the Kansas City Royals were only three back. But in late August, everything changed. Cleveland ripped off a historic 22-game winning streak, a new American League record. The division race was blown wide open and the Tribe would be the 1-seed in the AL playoffs. The Twins and Royals stayed in the race for what was then two wild-card spots. Kansas City faded in mid-September, but Minnesota kept pressing ahead and got the final postseason berth by a comfortable five games.
Boston and New York renewed their rivalry in the AL East. The Red Sox got a brilliant season on the mound from Chris Sale, who won 17 games with a 2.90 ERA and finished second in the Cy Young race. Craig Kimbrel was lights-out in the bullpen, finishing with a 1.43 ERA and saving 35 games. Sox pitching was second-best in the American League. Mookie Betts led the lineup, with 24 homers and 26 steals. Hanley Ramirez, Andrew Benintendi and Mitch Moreland were all good for 20-plus homers themselves.
The Yankees had a rookie by the name of Aaron Judge who exploded onto the scene with a .422/.627 stat line, 52 homers, 114 ribbies, the Rookie of the Year award and runner-up status in the MVP vote. New York’s offense was further augmented by Gary Sanchez, who hit 33 homers at catcher. Didi Gregorius and Brett Gardner also hit 20-plus homers. It was more than enough for a balanced pitching staff that was led by 14-game winner Luis Severino. He finished third in the Cy Young race and the Yankee staff was third in the league.
New York went to the early lead and held a three-game edge at Memorial Day. Boston reversed that by the All-Star break, and their own three-game margin persisted to September. In the latter part of the month, the Red Sox first opened up a five-game lead, then started to slump, and finally clinched on the season’s penultimate day.
The Yankees maintained a comfortable cushion in the wild-card race and secured the right to host what was then a single-game knockout. New York beat Minnesota 8-4 and earned the right to face Cleveland in the Division Series. Boston was paired up against Houston.
In the National League, the West had three solid contenders. As expected, the Los Angeles Dodgers led the way. The league’s top pitching staff was led by Cy Young runner-up Clayton Kershaw, who racked up an 18-4 record with a 2.31 ERA. Alex Wood was 16-3, while Kenley Jansen nailed down 41 saves with a buck-32 ERA. Offensively, Corey Bellinger had a big year, a .352/.581 stat line and 39 homers. Corey Seager had a good all-around season, at .375/.479 and strong play at shortstop. Seager was one of five other Dodger regulars to hit at least 20 home runs.
Arizona and Colorado also emerged. The Diamondbacks were well-balanced, finishing top-four in the NL for both runs scored and staff ERA. Zack Greinke, Patrick Corbin, and Robbie Ray combined for 46 wins, while Archie Bradley was a terrific setup man. First baseman Paul Goldschmidt finished third in the MVP voting behind a .404/.563 stat line, 36 homers, 120 RBIs and 117 runs scored. Across the infield, third baseman Jake Lamb hit 30 more home runs.
Playing in Coors Field, no one in the National League scored more runs than the Rockies. Nolan Arenado posted a stat line of .373/.586, along with 37 homers, 130 ribbies and 100 runs scored. Centerfielder Charlie Blackmon clocked in at .399/.601, 37 dingers of his own, 104 RBIs and 137 runs scored. Arenado and Blackmon finished 4-5 in the MVP voting. Mark Reynolds added 30 more homers at first base, helping to carry a subpar pitching staff.
The Dodgers, Diamondbacks, and Rockies were in a tight race for a couple months, but Los Angeles broke it open in early summer, moving to a 7 ½ game lead by the All-Star break. That margin soared to 13 ½ games by Labor Day, and the Dodgers secured the top seed in the National League.
Arizona was comfortable in the wild-card race, holding a seven-game cushion on Labor Day and coasting into the postseason. Colorado, after holding a 7 ½ game edge for the final playoff spot at the All-Star break, slumped in the second half. The Rockies still held on in the last weekend of the season. The two NL West runner-ups met in the wild-card game, with Arizona outslugging Colorado 11-8. The Diamondbacks would go on to face Los Angeles in the Division Series round.
The Chicago Cubs were coming off their historic World Series title of 2016. The corner infield combo of first baseman Anthony Rizzo and third baseman Kris Bryant continued to lead the way. Rizzo’s stat line was .392/.507, he hit 32 homers and drove in 109 runs. Bryant clocked in at .409/.537, 29 bombs and he scored 111 times. Kyle Schwarber added to the attack with 30 homers of his own, and the Cubbie offense finished second in the National League. The pitching staff didn’t have a true ace, but the trio of Jon Lester, John Lackey, and Jake Arrieta combined to win 39 games and a balanced staff would still finish fourth in the NL for composite ERA.
But Chicago got off to a slow start and by the All-Star break, they were trailing the surprising Milwaukee Brewers by 5 ½ games in the NL Central. The Cubs were also dangerously off the pace in the wild-card race. But they began to move in late summer and by Labor Day had taken a 3 ½ game lead on the Brewers. Chicago kept Milwaukee at arm’s length the rest of the way and went into the playoffs as the 3-seed. The Brewers, led by 30-plus homers from Travis Shaw, Eric Thames and Domingo Santa, chased the Rockies to the very end for a wild-card spot before coming up short.
Washington ran away with the NL East. The Nationals had a fantastic top three in the starting rotation. Max Scherzer went 16-6 with a 2.51 ERA and won the Cy Young Award. Stephen Strasburg was 15-4 with a 2.52 ERA and third in the Cy Young balloting. Gio Gonzalez added 15 more wins and a 2.96 ERA. Matt Albers, with a 1.62 ERA, was one of the NL’s best setup men. The offense got huge years from Ryan Zimmerman, Anthony Rendon, and Bryce Harper.
The NL East produced the league’s MVP. Miami rightfielder Giancarlo Stanton ripped 59 homers, drove in 132 runs and scored 123 more. But the division did not produce a serious challenger to the Nats. Washington was up 8 ½ games by Memorial Day and never challenged, en route to the 2-seed in the National League bracket.
Los Angeles and Houston both took care of business in the Division Series. The Dodgers scored 20 runs in a three-game sweep of the Diamondbacks. The Astros unloaded on the Red Sox for two easy wins at home and then closed the best-of-five round out in four games.
Cleveland looked ready to do the same, as they took the first two games at home against New York, including a 13-inning thriller in Game 2. But the Tribe bats fell silent. The Yankees took three straight and advanced to the ALCS for the first time since 2012.
The Cubs and Nationals played a dramatic series. They traded off wins for four games. On a Thursday night in D.C., they settled it with a wild fifth game. Washington led 4-1 early. Chicago rallied to go ahead 8-4. The Nats stormed back late. The Cubs ultimately preserved a 9-8 win and kept their repeat bid alive.
But Chicago would be undone by Dodger pitching. In a rematch of the ’16 NLCS, Los Angeles won the first three games and allowed a combined three runs. After the Cubs avoided a sweep, the Dodger bats took over and unloaded for an 11-1 win that clinched their first pennant since 1988.
The ALCS had more tension. Houston won a pair of 2-1 nailbiters over New York to get it started. Back in the Bronx, the worm turned. The Yankees won three straight, including a Game 4 win where they turned a 4-0 deficit in the eighth inning into a 6-4 win. When the series returned to Houston it was time for one more plot twist. Astro pitching took over, the Yanks scored just one run in two games and Houston captured the pennant.
Los Angeles had homefield advantage for the World Series. They captured Game 1 and led 3-1 in the seventh inning of Game 2. Houston forced extra innings, then scored twice in the top of the 10th. L.A. answered with two more. The Astros scored two more runs in the top of the 11th. The Dodgers got one back, but Houston finally survived and secured a road split.
The teams split Games 3 & 4 and then one of the wildest World Series games of all-time went down in Game 5. Los Angeles scored three in the first. It was 4-4 by the fourth inning and 7-7 after five frames. The Astros led 12-9 after eight. The Dodgers tied it. Houston finally prevailed 13-12.
Those crazy results of Games 2 & 5 were what truly settled this World Series. Los Angeles was able to go back home and force a Game 7. But Springer homered early in the decisive game, the Astros took a 5-0 lead and ultimately secured a 5-1 triumph.
After over a half-century of waiting, the city of Houston was finally on top of the baseball world.