More confident entering the playoffs... '98 or '17

Even though our offense sucked in '05, I had really high hopes in our killer pitching staff, and thought Clemens/Pettite would give us an X Factor. Sooo close, but it fell apart in the end.

Less confident this year because our pitching has been so unpredictable.

 

You should see my 1986 tequila sunrise Billy Hatcher jersey.

 

I was at Game 6 in LF, his bomb went right up over our heads as we watched it hit the pole.

 

Yet another '86 Astros/7th-grade football practice story.

Coaches let us watch the game in 7th period for as long as they felt they could. At a certain point, I guess they also felt professional duty compelled them to try to have a practice.

So we had a full, normal practice.

Still got home in time to see the game ongoing and Hatcher's shot.

Why on earth was dumbass MLB having so many important games in the middle of weekdays back then?

I feel sorry for anyone who didn't live through that game. I feel sorry for everyone who did.

 

Justified or not, I was never more confident than in that '98 squad.

I've never been more disappointed by the end of an Astros season, so I guess one begets the other.

I definitely wasn't as in tune with analytics, other leagues etc.

I just knew that was the best Astros team I'd ever seen. Until the first half of 2017.

 

That 86 pitching staff was all time great, no holes but offense was below league average. That pitching staff made you think nobody was gonna score against us.

98 team was 5th in runs scored and 2nd in pitching they really had their best team to win it all on paper.. lost 2 games 2-1 to Kevin Brown (games 1 &3) won only game 2 5-4 after Wagner blew a save and they came back. Then in game 4 were down 2-1 going to the 8th before Jay Powell gas canned the game. Sad fact in game 3 Astros got Kevin Brown on the ropes in the 7th. Biggio tied the game by drawing a bases load walk. Dan Miceli came in for Brown with bases juiced and 2 outs and he stuck our hottest hitter up to that point Billy Spiers

04 Beltran to me was going to put a season long average scoring offense over the top (he almost did). They were a top 5 pitching staff with Roy O as an ACE. The Rocket and Pettitte were ready and battle tested for play-offs. Lidge at that point was the most dominating closer with that slider and Dotel was nasty. They seem like they had the right mix to me. They beat the Braves and I was sure they were going to get past St.Louis. That series was amazing. After losing games 1 and 2 they won 3,4, and 5. They had all the mojo but started Pete Munro in Game 6. He was out after 2 innings because Fat Albert rocked his world. The rest of the game the bullpen was amazing. Sad fact Dan Miceli came in for the Astros in the 12th tied 4-4 and Jim Edmunds took the momentum away from the Astros.

This year is the best offensive team in Astro history and the pitching for the season is slightly better than league average but they did just add an ace.

I say lets stay out of extra innings and will be fine. Damn the extra inning drama this franchise has experienced and I didn't even go 80 or 86 on that front and those were the worst extra inning heartbreakers you can ever imagine. I cried in 1980, Tug McGraw is still in my head.

I voted 04 because I really thought they had the it factor and I was ready to bet it all after we beat the Braves. SCREW YOU Dan Freaking Miceli!

 

No it wasn't.

No it isn't.

 

The Astros were the big underdog against that 86 Mets team.

The 98 Astros were going to be underdogs against a vintage Braves team that won like 106-107 games and that doesn't even account for that Yankees team that won like 115 games.

Sometimes people look back fondly and don't realize the landscape of the time.

I guess everyone that watched the 1980 and 1981 teams are dead.

 

I never said differently.

I never said differently.

Not me.

Nope.

 

What about 1977? If it wasn't for that murder, that would have been the Top Astros team.

 

Yep.

Pete Munro started game 6 of the NLCS... Pete Munro.

 

What '77 murder?

 

Murder at the World Series...a made for TV movie in which a rejected player tries to foil the Astros World Series bid.

 

Iirc Roger Clemens pitched game 7 on 3 or 4 days rest. Looking back that was actually a really good series that got overshadowed by the ALCS.

 

Roger was on full rest,

He had pitched on 3 days rest in the NLDS with mixed results.

It was a great series... especially when you consider they had Brandon Backe and Pete Munro start 4 out of the 7 games. (Backe was stellar in the Kent walk-off game).

 

He does have a no hitter for the team... well part of one.

 

Backe is the Astros version of Robert Horry... even rubbing Ausmus's bat during the 18 inning game despite a bad start.

 

So what is Terry Collins in your eyes?