Houston Astros: Top three batters and pitchers so far

The Houston Astros have started the 2018 season extremely well. Let’s take a look at which players are performing at a high level for the reigning champs.

At points this year, the Houston Astros appeared to be a shell of the team that just won the World Series. This, in spite of maintaining the vast majority of the roster from 2017. However, the team is only two games off of their 2017 pace. The Astros currently sit at 30-18. The 2017 Astros sat at 32-16 through their first 48 games.

How the two teams got their win totals though looks very different. The 2017 Houston Astros relied heavily on their offense to power them past some shaking pitching. However, 2018 has been the opposite. The pitching has more than carried the team.

Fortunately, the 2018 Astros offense isn’t nearly as bad as some make it out to be. In fact, the team is currently sporting a +98 run differential. This number leads the MLB by an astounding +22 runs. In 2017, the Astros had a +56 run differential. Good but, not nearly as good as this year. The “problem” with this year’s offense is has run extremely hot and extremely cold on multiple occasions.

The pitching has been absolutely historic. In fact, this staff could end up going down as one of the best ever. More on that later.

Without further ado, let’s get to the best players for the team so far.