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The Houston Astros are not used to being in this position. As they approach the halfway point of the season — they have played 72 games with a 39-33 record — they find themselves in third place in the American League West. They trail both the Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Angels, and they are coming off a 3-game sweep at the hands of the Cincinnati Reds at their home stadium.
The Astros were swept by the Reds on Sunday and fell to third place in the AL West.
“It wasn’t a very good weekend,” manager Dusty Baker said.
On wasted RISP, Elly De La Cruz’s speed, Alex Bregman’s throwing error and where it all went wrong for Houston: https://t.co/y67Bb4D0qK
— Danielle Lerner (@danielle_lerner) June 18, 2023
The Astros have lost 7 of their last 10 games, and those kind of slumps have been very rare for the defending World Series champions. The Astros are known for their ability to take advantage of opponents mistakes, but in their most recent game, they have been the team making the majority of the misplays.
“It wasn’t a very good weekend,” said manager Dusty Baker. “We made a few mistakes this weekend that cost us. And when you’re playing a hot club, if you give them opportunities they capitalize on it.”
The Reds are extremely hot right now, having won eight straight games and they have moved into second place in the National League Central. Cincinnati has gotten a huge lift from rookie phenom Elly De La Cruz, who had two hits in the Reds' 9-7 victory in 10 innings over the Astros.
Houston is in the middle of playing 15 consecutive games against National League opponents. After playing 6 of those games against the Nationals and the Reds, they have a 2-4 record.
Baker's team will have a chance to turn things around in series against the Mets, Dodgers and Cardinals. They will face the Mets at home before going to Los Angeles and St. Louis.
