The Houston Astros roster has changed a lot ever since they broke into the contending scene in 2015. But amid all the roster churn, one major driving force has remained a constant at the top/heart of the Astros' order in Jose Altuve. Altuve, who has been with the Astros since 2011, has made his mark in the MLB with his remarkable consistency as well as his ability to up his game under the bright lights of the postseason, which he did in Game 3 of the ALCS against the Texas Rangers.

Facing a 2-0 deficit on the road, Altuve knew that he had to do whatever he could to spur the Astros offense. This is exactly what the star second baseman did. Coming up against a fresh-from-injury Max Scherzer, Altuve hit a sole home run off of the Rangers starter with two outs in the third inning to extend the Astros' lead to 4-0. All in all, he went 2-5, filling his role as the table-setter the Astros needed at the top of the lineup.

Jose Altuve continues to add to his growing postseason legend; even though he hasn't had the best of playoff runs thus far in 2023, the Astros know that they can rely on him whenever their backs are against the wall. As a result, manager Dusty Baker couldn't help but drop some lofty praise towards the 33-year old second baseman.

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“This guy is one of the best playoff players of all time,” Baker said, per Michael Schwab of The Juice Box Journal.

Astros fans will be wondering where in the world is the lie in Dusty Baker's statement. Jose Altuve may not have won a World Series MVP, and he's won the ALCS MVP just once, but he's always remained one of the team's more reliable postseason performers. In 99 postseason games, Altuve has tallied 25 home runs and 51 runs batted in, slashing .266/.326/.493 (.828 OPS), which is impressive given the relatively tougher competition the playoffs bring.

Altuve is one of the main reasons why the Astros aren't an easy team to dispatch of at all in the playoffs, his greatness centering on the fact that whenever he's on the plate, the team has a chance to win.