According to Justin Verlander we are....
Yeah this was tweeted a week ago, and yeah I threw it a like, so what? I'm an Astros fan, and I want to talk about it now. So here we go:
There is a large number of sports writers that are writing "Favorites" pieces, as Spring Training gets started, and I don't blame them. It's a very good way to fill column space, and get clicks. It's easy, and it gets even the casual baseball fan talking. It hooks me every time.
But among those writers, there is a large contingency that have named the Yankees the favorites to win the World Series. Vegas has weighed in as well, putting them first or second in most futures bets.
Now I'm not saying I hate the Yankees (I do, but thats beside the point) the problem here is that I don't think many people, mostly Yankees fans, are looking at the big picture. We are being completely reactionary. Yes the best power hitter in baseball joined the other best power hitter in baseball, and they are playing a Little League sized stadium, but this doesn't mean either will replicate the seasons they had last year.
I'm not trying to diminish what Aaron Judge or Giancarlo Stanton did last year. Stanton was the rightful N.L. MVP and Judge very well could have been the A.L. MVP. I mean, the obvious best player won, but that's neither here nor there. The problem you will find, is what I believe to be true, that these seasons by these two players is very much the exception and not the rule.
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| Did you guys know Jose Altuve is short and Aaron Judge is tall? Crazy. |
Yes Stanton probably has the most power and bat speed that we have seen in the game since Bonds, and Judge is just a giant, but health plays a huge factor in Stanton's production, and Judge only has one season under his belt. In the 2015 and '16 seasons, Stanton missed 131 games combined, and his production was really hindered during that time. My argument against Judge is cliche, but I believe in the sophomore slump. Now could his sophomore slump be 40 home runs instead of 52, and Stanton stay healthy the entire year and hit 78 homers over that 314 ft fence, sure. But I'll take my chances.
I could go down the lineup cards and compare the Astros lineup to the Yankees starting nine, but I won't (even though I really want to). I think the Astros just are something that no Yankees team will ever be, they're fun. The Astros are just more fun. They enjoy playing the game of baseball. With guys like, Jose Altuve who laughs at himself after falling and missing the cycle....
To Carlos Correa who will bat flip you to the moon if you serve one up to him...
To George Springer, who started a thing called "Club Astros" where the players party after every win, this team is just more fun and loose than any Yankees team ever will be in the history of ever. And don't give me this b.s. about these new young Yankees being fun. If your team doesn't allow you to have facial hair, you're not fun.
I know you may be reading this, going "yeah but being and having fun doesn't win you the World Series, having good players does." Well guess what? The Astros sure look like they had a blast last year, and they beat the Yankees in the ALCS on their way to their first World Series title. Oh, and they have a pretty good lineup as well.
So every Yankees fan can keep going at Justin Verlander and Lance McCullers on twitter, saying how many rings you have, and how stacked your lineup is, but the fact of the matter is, until the Yankees beat the Astros in the playoffs, I agree with Verlander. You better not sleep on them, because I believe the road does go through Houston.
Oh and the Astros have a better pitching staff and bullpen, but that's a blog for another time...
P.S...Don't come at me with the Dodgers either. They are just the Yankees with better tans.
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