Houston Astros: How I kept faith through the rebuilding process

The Houston Astros squared off with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series tonight and just that statement alone instills my confidence in Jeff Luhnow.

It will mark the the 2nd time the Houston Astros are in the Fall Classic (losing to the Chicago White Sox in 2005) and the 18^th time the Los Angeles Dodgers will appear, winning their last title in 1988.

In that series, Dodgers outfielder Kirk Gibson hit a game winning home run off of Hall of Fame pitcher Dennis Eckerseley, despite being injured with a pulled hamstring in Game 1. It is considered one of the most iconic and memorable moments in World Series history. Listening to legendary broadcaster Vin Scully call it makes it even better.

The Houston Astros look to make some great moments of their own in this year’s World Series. They certainly have the talent to do so. Homegrown players like George Springer, Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve, and Alex Bregman have carried this team to Houston’s first World Series since 2005. Unlike 2005, we have the offensive power and starting pitching to challenge the Dodgers.

More from House of Houston

Adam Wexler of KPRC-TV did a great piece on how the current Astros roster was built, describing the key moves and decisions to get this team to where it is today, four wins away from winning the World Series for the first time in franchise history. Mike Axisa of CBS Sports goes in more depth about each individual player’s journey in the franchise.

I’ll be honest, when the Astros were the bottom-dwellers of the NL Central and had multiple 100-loss seasons, I gave up on them. I hated seeing my beloved team suffer through the losing and I saw no hope.

But as the saying goes, once you hit rock bottom, the only way you can go is up. The Houston Astros had definitely hit rock bottom, but something good was about to happen, I just didn’t see it.

Jeff Luhnow knew what he was doing, he built the St. Louis Cardinals into contenders using his data-driven approach and it worked. I just had always taken the traditional approach to building a team, not forming the team from a grassroots level.

Next: Astros: THREE reasons why it's the World Series or bust

Now I see the fruits of Luhnow’s labor and could not be happier. This is how you build a franchise for the present and the future. While I may not understand the moves or decisions at times, I will always try to keep the faith that things will work out.

Let’s go Astros! Beat LA!

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