00:00I know these Astros are hot right now.
00:01I know that.
00:02It didn't take them long, Sean.
00:04They won five straight series.
00:06Then they had a little bit of a slide there, and then they come back.
00:10Didn't take them long to get back on that series-winning side of things.
00:14They take two of three from the Rays,
00:18who the Rays were not only an extremely hot team.
00:22Would they snap a nine-game win streak, I think it was?
00:25The Astros started that series with the Rays having won eight.
00:28Then, of course, they won that first game.
00:30It was nine, and the Astros take the last two.
00:33The Astros, they break that streak with the Rays.
00:37The Rays, I believe, were the best team in the American League.
00:41Yep.
00:42I believe.
00:43I'm not sure where they sit now.
00:44Still.
00:45Dropping two or three still there.
00:46Okay.
00:47But the Astros are hot, winning six of the last seven series.
00:51Is that correct?
00:51That's right.
00:52Six of the last seven series, including I think the two that stick out there
00:56is the Guardians were hot and above .500 at least when the Astros took two of three from them.
01:02And then, obviously, the Rays this weekend.
01:05They're 27-19 since May 15.
01:08They've been one of the hotter teams in baseball over the last handful of weeks.
01:1545-47 overall.
01:17Two and a half games back.
01:18The Mariners in the division.
01:20And one game back in the wild card race.
01:24It was a big weekend, I think, for several reasons.
01:28We saw some good.
01:29We saw some bad.
01:30Spencer Arigetti rebounded.
01:31Obviously needed a good outing.
01:33He had a pretty good outing.
01:35It lost in game one, but it was a good outing.
01:39It wasn't the pitching that was a problem in that game.
01:41And then, we don't see this much, but Hunter Brown in game two, I believe it was,
01:45the wheels came off, and he had an uncharacteristically bad outing.
01:51But Jordan Alvarez was able to put an exclamation point on that thing in the bottom of nine
01:55when he walked it off.
01:57And then, that damn Peter Lambert, man.
02:00That damn Peter Lambert, boys, he just keeps doing his thing.
02:03I think I heard B. Scott talking about his last eight starts.
02:07He's 5-1 or something like that.
02:09I mean, he is, the sample size is getting bigger with Peter Lambert,
02:13and it's becoming more and more convincing, obviously, as we go along here.
02:18You talk about a great story coming out of, I guess, Japan last year.
02:23What a great story.
02:24He's pitching so well.
02:25But you can't talk about the Astros right now, Sean, without talking about the big fella.
02:32What Jordan Alvarez is doing right now, he was three for four with six RBIs on July 4th.
02:37Happy birthday, America.
02:39And that's the game that hit the home run to walk it off.
02:44Obviously, in the MVP conversations right now, and deservedly so,
02:49but, boy, as long as he's in this lineup, Sean,
02:52the Astros have to be taken seriously moving forward.
02:56There ain't no doubt about that.
02:57I mean, it's one of those things where Jordan has reached that point
03:02that we've seen him hit a few times over the years.
03:06He's gotten that Barry Bonds-esque treatment.
03:10When you've got protection behind him, you know, when Walker's going good,
03:17you know, they bat Pena there for a little bit when he was healthy in that three spot
03:20and it worked.
03:21They needed that to kind of get Jordan back on track,
03:24who was 0 for 16 for, you know, a couple of series ago in a little bit of a slide.
03:30But you don't see this kind of production and treatment from a guy
03:36but once every decade or so.
03:40I grew up with it, watching Barry Bonds get this kind of treatment.
03:43That's right.
03:44You know, to some other degree, Ken Griffey Jr.,
03:46when he was healthy and rolling with the Seattle Mariners
03:48in his early days with the Cincinnati Reds,
03:51saw that because they were a rival of the Houston Astros and the NL Central.
03:54But this is just different level type stuff and I don't think it's out of bounds.
03:59I don't think it's too much to say that this is absolutely the reason
04:07why the Astros remain, you know, a team to look out for.
04:14They are not here without him because of everything that they've gone through.
04:18The one constant this year has been Jordan Alvarez.
04:22Well, I mean, he's just been so good.
04:24How good has Jordan Alvarez been?
04:26Well, here's his current statistics, right?
04:30He's currently leading all of baseball in OPS, on-base percentage, slugging,
04:36RBIs, total bases.
04:38He ranks first in the American League in extra base hits,
04:41first in homers with 29, first in hits with 104, first in runs, 62.
04:46He's second in batting average and fourth in walks.
04:49I mean, in a day and age where players are doing everything they can,
04:54including striking out more often, changing their swings mechanically to hit the long ball,
05:00Jordan Alvarez has the ability to really hit any pitch that he can reach out of the park
05:05as well as hit for average.
05:07I ask you all this, which, and I know, I know before I ask it, Bajani,
05:13I know if you win one, you're probably going to win both, or you've got a really good chance.
05:19If you were a hitter, would you rather have an MVP or a Triple Crown?
05:23As a hitter?
05:24By the way, Triple Crown, that would mean you lead Major League Baseball in average home runs and RBIs.
05:32That's your Triple Crown in Major League Baseball.
05:34I mean, I guess individually, I would be more impressed.
05:40Like, hopefully it would be recognized as a Triple Crown.
05:44Hopefully it's recognized with an MVP, so I know what you mean.
05:47Yeah, if Jordan, if he gets a Triple Crown, he's probably going to get, unless the Astros just, I mean.
05:51And damn, man, he might very well get the Triple Crown.
05:54He's one percentage point entering today behind Yandy Diaz for batting average.
05:58Diaz hitting .321, Jordan's at .320.
06:02And so, he might very well get that at season's end.
06:05But from an individual standpoint, like an accomplishment, like, yeah, it's the average, the power, and the run production.
06:13That is the trifecta.
06:14If you're able to accomplish that as an individual, that just speaks to, one, your well-roundedness as a hitter.
06:23Yeah.
06:24It also speaks to probably the success of your baseball club.
06:28Because you're getting on base, and you're driving in guys that are getting on base ahead of you.
06:34And you're doing it with efficiency, hence the average, which nobody cares about anymore.
06:39But I still think that's absolutely ludicrous.
06:43Jordan is having one of those very, very special, complete, well-rounded baseball seasons for a hitter.
06:50Yeah, cross our fingers that he can stay healthy and keep up this tear.
06:54Even just keep it up enough to have that the topic of conversation, right?
06:59Stay right there in the average.
07:00Keep the home runs up to where it's something that we as fans can follow.
07:04It would be really cool if he could accomplish it, obviously.
07:06But even if he falls a tad bit short, it's going to be hella fun as an Astros fan to
07:12follow it.
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