Why is houston in the american league

It was in when the Astros jumped from the National League Central to the American League West, thus bringing about an overdue balance between the two leagues. But beyond that, there really wasn't much to say about the move. The Astros were, after all, fresh off two straight loss seasons and in the middle of a complicated and intentionally hard-to-look-at rebuilding process.

They surprised nobody in losing more games in and Given how poorly they were playing ball, where they were playing ball was immaterial. As they embark on the final month of , it's clear the Astros rebuild is a thing of the past now.

Their record is the best in the AL West, putting them on the fast track to end a year postseason drought. Whereas it was immaterial the last two years, the Astros' status as an AL West team is therefore as much a part of their success story as anything they're doing on the field.

If nothing else, it's an intriguing proposal on paper. Louis Cardinals , Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs would give the division four of MLB's nine best teams, an arrangement for a playoff race for the ages.

And as Jeff Gordon of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch wrote in June, such a playoff race would be rich with narratives:. Imagine how much fun the National League Central would be if they were still around.

This "Hackgate" hoo-hah could have kept an Astros- Cardinals rivalry simmering for years. The division would have also featured [Astros general manager Jeff] Luhnow fighting for attention against Theo Epstein, the Chicago Cubs president who earned his "genius" label from the Eastern Media during his successful run in Boston.

Imagine an Astros-Cubs rivalry: two franchises furiously rebuilding with prospects after swapping veterans for prospects and tanking multiple seasons in the process. And imagine the rising Astros and Cubs stars trying to gain ground on the Pittsburgh Pirates, a resurgent franchise featuring strong hitting, speed, pitching and defense.

A heck of a show, indeed. It would be the Mad Max: Fury Road of division races, all shiny and chrome. And given the particulars, that's no sure thing. Now, let's not diminish what the Astros have done in They're not leading the AL West because they've overachieved.

In fact, the Pythagorean record they began Tuesday argued they've actually underachieved. And that's not so hard to believe. Backing this strong pitching is an explosive offense, as the Astros rank second in the AL in homers and first in the AL in stolen bases.

The Astros also benefited from an overall weak AL West. After going in the pandemic-shortened regular season, Houston rallied from a deficit in the ALCS and nearly reached the World Series.

The Milwaukee Brewers opened play in as the then-Seattle Pilots. After moving to Wisconsin in , the team remained in the AL through the end of the season. Baseball expanded in and added the Arizona Diamondbacks and the then-Devil Rays. Like Sportscasting on Facebook. Ned was dreaming and saw his personal hell and one of the plagues inside said "Houston in the American League", a reference to the Astros' switch to the American League in The Houston Astros were a Major League Baseball team in the National League from its creation in until their 50th anniversary in , where the team endured their third straight loss season.

Their fans weren't pleased over the move and many thought the Brewers, who used to be in the American League were going to be moved instead. However, the Astros were changed from the National League Central to the American League West in to create two fifteen-team leagues, filled with fair five-league divisions. Talk Contributions Create account Log in. Essential pages.