The Houston Astros pummeled the Seattle Mariners by a score of 21-1 on Sunday afternoon. This was their second win of 20 or more runs in less than a month after beating the Orioles 23-2 on Aug. 10.
Not only did the win give the Astros the best record in baseball, but it also marked an achievement that had not been replicated for 80 years:
The #Astros are scary. That’s two wins by 20+ runs in the last month!
23-2 over the #Orioles on Aug. 10
21-1 over the #Mariners todayLast team with multiple wins by 20+ runs in the same season was the legendary ‘39 #Yankees, who had 3 of them!
— Jayson Stark (@jaysonst) September 8, 2019
Yordan Alvarez drove in six and had three doubles on the day, while George Springer returned from a mild concussion and hit a three-run homer. Rookie Kyle Tucker also had a pair of doubles while driving in three runs.
The Astros now rank third in baseball in runs scored while taking the top spot in terms of run differential (+240), supplanting the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Houston's lineup has been an absolute nightmare for opposing pitchers in the second half. The Astros are scoring 6.6 runs per game, and both Alex Bregman and Yuli Gurriel were on different planets in the month of August. Meanwhile, Alvarez has been one of the most dangerous offensive rookies in recent memory.
The 1939 Yankees had sluggers up and down the lineup, notably Joe DiMaggio, Bill Dickey and George Selkirk. They also went into the season expecting to have Lou Gehrig in the lineup, but of course Gehrig would reveal that he had to retire due to ALS.
New York's offense ranked first in the American League in runs, homers and OPS as the Yankees would go on to win the World Series.
Despite all of their injuries, Astros manager A.J. Hinch continues to find productive bats. Houston is building momentum at just the right time.
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