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

And once they didn't, it lessened my confidence moving forward. By 2004, I was like, Just win a damn series.

This team *feels* different - we've seen them play well in the postseason and they don't seem remotely impacted by the moment.

 

I hear ya...but the Astros were so trending up that year as the season was coming to a close, as I recall. With Randy going 10-1 in that stretch with a sub 2.00 ERA.

 

Also, the more often that we get there, it starts to feel like it is only a matter of time before something "breaks" for us..... Luhnow has even talked about crudely as sticking your ticket in the hopper enough times, and eventually your ticket will be pulled.

 

Most of y'all must not have been around in 1986. Mike Scott threw a no hitter to clench a spot in the postseason. I would also say that 86 was our best team we've ever had.
It took the greatest game ever played to knock us out of the postseason.

 

Offensively, this year's team dwarfs the 1986 team. The non-pitcher OPS is almost 100 points higher, they will have 100+ more home runs.

The overall 1986 pitching staff was better. Put that staff with this offense and they would be clear favorites in the playoffs.

 

I was at the Mike Scott game with his filthy split finger. Skipped work that afternoon to go. I remember how hilarious it was to see Charlie Kerfeld, Larry Anderson, and Dave Smith come out with coneheads.

 

Every team in "modern baseball" dwarfs 80's offense.

The KC/STL World Series in '85 is still one of my all timers.

 

So, which offense would you prefer 1986 or 2017?

 

And it was all rendered moot after game 1. Trends/momentums go away just that fast in the playoffs. Hell, with 4 days off between the end of the season and game 1 this year, all momentum will essentially be neutralized.

The 1998 Yankees were one of the greatest teams ever... both in regular season and post-season performance. Its hard to believe that the Astros combination of questionable big-game pitching after Randy, along with a lineup that was prone to getting shut down (Wood early in the season, Brown int he playoffs) was going to usurp them.

While anything can happen in the playoffs... the 1998 Yankees remain one of the best bets/locks to win any series in modern-day baseball history.

 

Not sure if I can ever take a post by you seriously again... are you actually suggesting that Dierker was a difference-making manager that was one of the main reasons the 98 team was so good?

I had to re-read your post... because I thought you were suggesting that Dierker was one of the reasons the 98 team fell flat in the playoffs, which could be a plausibility.

Larry was a lot of things... and in another life, would have probably made for an excellent/difference-makign pitching coach... but he simply was not cut out to be a MLB manager.

 

Is Billy Hatcher available?

Non Pitcher Totals, OPS+:

1980: 105
1986: 106
1997: 106
1998: 117
1999: 102
2001: 107
2004: 105
2005: 95
2015: 108
2017: 127

 

1986 offenses averaged between 3.70 and 5.13 runs. 2017 offenses average between 3.77 and 5.47 runs. That's a lot of overlap. Granted, today, runs are scored on homers, and in the 1980s there were a lot more rallies as every 4th batter didn't strikeout.

 

The difference between the leagues was more profound back then, no? What did the successful teams score vs the Rob Deer Brewers et al?

Haven't even looked into the pitching side. The running game was much more prevalent in the NL, trying to manufacture runs. The AL was the HR league. Or that's what everybody said. NL was the fastball league, AL was slopballers (more breaking balls to be precise).

I wonder how all that holds up ~35 years later?

 

I didn't care about the AL back then so I don't know too much about them other than they basically scored as many runs as teams do today. I will say I do agree that the NL had more running, more bunts, more attempts to score a single run, and more non-HR driven rallies. 2017 Astros batters versus their peers (2017 AL) were a lot better than the 1986 Astros batters versus their peers (1986 NL).

 

Mike Gallo faints

 

I honestly believe Roy Oswalt is the best Astros pitcher of all time. Best body of work by an Astros pitcher, all time.

 

You're not convincing me that a single man on that '98 Padres team, excepting Tony Gwynn, was clean.

Extra needles all around the clubhouse for that playoff push! We all loved Cammy until he came back as an Astro and split that bat in two across his knee. Then we were like, umm, something's funny here...

 

ERA+

1980: 106
1986: 114
1997: 109
1998: 118
1999: 117
2001: 106
2004: 107
2005: 121
2015: 107
2017: 94

By my very, very complicated and scientific process of adding 2 numbers together in my head, I deem the 1998 Astros to be the best Astros team. Maybe. Maybe no.

 

If Pettite wasn't hurt in 2004 I think that was the year.