What are the Odds that the Houston Astros Repeat?
For the second straight season, the Houston Astros won the American League West. For the third time in four seasons, they will be in the postseason. Houston is looking to repeat as MLB Champions. It has happened since the New York Yankees won three in a row from 1998-2000. How good of a chance do the Astros have to repeat as champions?
They will be the number two seed in the American League once again this season. The Houston Astros have won 100 games for the second consecutive season. Their path to a possible championship is very good.
They will face the Cleveland Indians in the ALDS. It is an easier matchup than what the Boston Red Sox will have to face in the ALDS possibly. They will have to play either the Oakland Athletics or the New York Yankees. The A's play hard and they are pesky. The Yankees are the Red Sox rivals. They happen to play each other this weekend in Fenway Park and it wouldn't be surprising if they met there next weekend.
I expect the Astros to win the ALDS. They will have a tougher matchup in the ALCS, but I think they will be able to win a seven-game series against either Oakland, New York, or Boston. Houston has the best pitching rotation in all of baseball and none of those three teams can match up with them.
The Astros have Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole, Dallas Keuchel, Charlie Morton, and Lance McCullers Jr. However, they will probably move McCullers to the bullpen and it will be a big deal for the Houston bullpen.
They also have a stacked lineup in George Springer, Alex Bregman, Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, and Yuli Gurriel.
Boston has legit hitters like Mookie Betts, J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts, and Andrew Benintendi that can go toe-to-toe with them. New York also has legit hitters like Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, Gleyber Torres, and Didi Gregorius. Oakland has Khris Davis and Jed Lowrie.
The National League isn't as good as the American League. The Los Angeles Dodgers, Colorado Rockies, Milwaukee Brewers, Chicago Cubs, and the Atlanta Braves will most likely be the playoff teams in the National League.
There is only one team or maybe two that could give the Houston Astros problems: the Colorado Rockies and the Milwaukee Brewers. Colorado has a lethal offence and so does Milwaukee. The Brewers have a bullpen that could shut down opponents. The Rockies have good starting pitching.
I like the Houston Astros odds to repeat as World Series Champions because they beat you in so many different ways. They could win games 2-1 or they could win games 9-8. Houston will most likely be the second favourites to win all behind the Boston Red Sox.