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Houston Astros: Carlos Correa’s injuries will stymie team’s postseason run

By Brian K. Patterson

HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 29: Carlos Correa #1 of the Houston Astros looks on in game five of the 2017 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Minute Maid Park on October 29, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - OCTOBER 29: Carlos Correa #1 of the Houston Astros looks on in game five of the 2017 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Minute Maid Park on October 29, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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The Houston Astros have clinched their postseason berth but with Carlos Correa’s health concerns, the team’s postseason run will be impacted. How?

The Houston Astros have officially clinched a playoff berth as a result of last night’s incredible offensive output against the Los Angeles Angels.  These final games this week are the last of the 2018 season at Minute Maid Park before heading out to the East Coast to finish things up next week against the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles.

Last night, we all got a taste of what the Houston Astros offense is like when they’re clicking on all cylinders and it truly was a joy to watch.  Yuli Gurriel, who converted a grand slam and chipped in  three additional ribbies was the man of the hour last night.  This team is so fortunate to have him and he’s going to be an integral cog in the Houston Astros‘ postseason run.

But something peculiar is going on and not enough talk has been made about it.

It has been announced that Carlos Correa will miss the rest of this series against the Angels — perhaps even more games — because of his lingering back injury that just hasn’t seemed to go away this season.

It has severely impacted his level of play and he hasn’t been able to rake at the plate as he had been doing in the past.  The former No. 1 pick in the 2012 MLB Amateur Draft is ailing and there seems to be nothing that can be done about it.

Looking for more Correa talk as well as other Houston Astros concerns?  Take a listen to my guys Robert Land and R.G. Seal at Houston Sports Talk:

As a result and I’ll tell you this right now, this team’s postseason run will be extremely impacted without him being fully healthy in the lineup.

I’ll go so far as to say that this team will likely not be able to retain their World Series’ crown without a full-strength Correa ready to go.  I know it can be somewhat uncharacteristic to take such a stance to make such a notion but I know I’m right.

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In contrast, Correa’s numbers have taken a nose-dive as result of his maladies.  His slash line is currently .238/.323/.400 for a .723 OPS and that’s a big difference from his line of .315/.391/.550 for a .941 OPS in 2017.

He’s also not hitting in the clutch as well — Correa currently has a .221 batting average with runners in scoring position compared to a .331 BA with RISP in 2017.

It’s getting so bad that he’s been moved down to 6th in the batting order, something that had to

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be done because of his wild inconsistency at the plate.

He’s just not the same out there — right about where the bottom started to fall out with him this season, Correa had enjoyed an impressive streak of 70 games without an error committed that started Sep. 19, 2017 and lasted all the way to June 12.

I remember that game when he his streak snapped — it was a Tuesday night game against the Oakland A’s on the road and it was at the bottom of the 8th.  Jed Lowrie just got hit by a pitch from Collin McHugh, who had just taken over for Lance McCullers Jr. and Khris Davis was up to bat.  Davis hit the ball into the play to Correa but he bobbled the scoop, allowing Davis to reach on the force attempt and allowing Lowrie to advance to 2nd base.  He was absolutely perturbed at what just happened but ultimately the Houston Astros held on to win that game over the A’s 6-3.

Coincidentally, in his relentless quest to improve upon the errors he has committed year-over-year, Correa has six errors on the season, just three shy of tying last season’s mark, so obviously we’re not seeing much improvement there either.

There have been moments of brilliance for Correa this season but those have been few and far in-between.

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I certainly hope he finds a way to overcome this personal challenge of his but I’m afraid his health could sacrifice the pursuit of this team’s chase for an additional World Series ring in 2018.

We’ll have to see but I wish him nothing but the best.

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