ChipalattAwards for 2023: Surprises, disappointments and other awards

Looking back, before 2017, the fans had only a few seasons that were as good as the one the Astros just completed. So, today we will honor the 2023 team and look at mostly the positive side of the player’s performances.

Here is a quick stat chart of the Astros’ pitchers for the season.

Name Gm W L Svs IP ERA WHIP HR Ks/9 IP BAA OBPA OPSA BAbip IR/ IS
Framber Valdez 31 12 11 0 198.0 3.45 1.126 19 9.1 .228 .290 .656 .284 N/A
Justin Verlander 11 7 3 0 68 3.31 1.118 9 8.3 .236 .283 .686 .275 N/A
Cristian Javier 31 10 5 0 162 4.56 1.265 25 8.8 .234 .309 .733 .273 N/A
Hunter Brown 31 11 13 0 155.2 5.09 1.362 26 10.3 .262 .332 .788 .330 0/0
J.P. France 24 11 6 0 136.1 3.83 1.357 19 6.7 .263 .322 .737 .290 3/0
Jose Urquidy 16 3 3 1 63 5.29 1.429 11 6.4 .263 .335 .788 .281 0/0
Ryan Pressly 65 4 5 31 65.1 3.58 1.071 8 10.2 .220 .265 .623 .272 5/1
Hector Neris 71 6 3 2 68.1 1.71 1.054 7 10.1 .174 .277 .569 .222 23/7
Bryan Abreu 72 3 2 5 72 1.75 1.042 6 12.5 .177 .274 .560 .262 17/6
Rafael Montero 68 3 3 1 67.1 5.08 1.530 11 10.6 .279 .356 .835 .358 12/6
Phil Maton 68 4 3 1 66.0 3.00 1.121 6 10.1 .207 .304 .637 .270 38/20
Ryne Stanek 55 3 1 0 50.2 4.09 1.243 8 9.1 .221 .300 .690 .258 18/4
Kendall Graveman 23 2 2 0 22.1 2.42 1.522 3 11.7 .228 .358 .738 .288 4/0
Seth Martinez 35 2 3 1 43 5.23 1.488 5 9.4 .265 .359 .794 .333 17/0

Note – I added the IR (Inherited runners) / IS (Inherited runners who scored) stat for the relievers.

Here is a comparison between 2022 and 2023 for Astros starting pitchers:

Year W IP ERA WHIP BAA Ks BBs HRs
2022 84 (1st in AL) 950 (1st) 2.95 (1st) 1.07 (T 1st) .213 (1st) 948 (1st) 270 (11th) 31 (6th)
2023 61 (1st in AL) 900 (2nd) 4.17 (8th) 1.29 (9th) .248 (9th) 852 (5th) 312 (12th) 40 (10th)

Note – for “bad” stats like BBs and HRs – the position shown is on the good side – like 11th least BBs.

It is pretty obvious that starting pitching was a real drop off in 2023 with the injury situation (Lance McCullers, Luis Garcia, Jose Urquidy), the loss of Justin Verlander (until his late season return) and the fall-off of stats from both Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier. They had the best rotation in 2022 and a middle of the pack staff in 2023. That more than one run jump in ERA stands out here. The single plus is that the starters again were at/near the top of the league in most innings thrown, which took some load off of the bullpen.

Top Starting Pitcher of 2023 – Framber Valdez – After a Cy Young type start to the season, Valdez fell off in the second half of the season, but he still ended up with good numbers and of course gave the team almost 200 innings when no one else hit over 162.

Runner-up – J.P. France  – If his season could have ended August 18 when he was sporting a sparkling 2.75 ERA – he might have been the starting pitcher of the year. Still, he was a critical contributor for a large chunk of the season and it is hard to picture where the Astros would have been with a lesser pitcher in his spot.

Here is a comparison between 2022 and 2023 for Astros relief pitchers:

Year W Saves IP ERA WHIP BAA Ks BBs HRs
2022 22 (13th in AL) 53 (1st) 495.1 (15th) 2.80 (1st) 1.14 (3rd) .210 (3rd) 575 (11th) 188 (2nd) 36 (1st)
2023 29 (13th in AL) 42 (9th) 545.1 (15th) 3.56 (4th) 1.27 (7th) .230 (3rd) 608 (8th) 225 (7th) 71 (T-5th)

The bullpen was top or close to the top in 2022 and fell off a bit in 2023. Rafael Montero was the leader in falling off, though both Ryne Stanek and Seth Martinez also had worse numbers in 2023. Phil Maton had the biggest jump forward for the season, but the co-relief pitchers of the month had a lot to do with it.

Top Relief Pitcher of 2023 – Tie – Bryan Abreu and Hector Neris. They got there in different ways, but Abreu and Neris became the lock downs on the 7th and 8th inning for the Astros. Their numbers were remarkably close on the season – Abreu – 1.75 ERA/1.042 WHIP/ .177 BAA  / .274 OBPA/  .560 OPSA vs. Neris – 1.71 ERA/ 1.054 WHIP / .174 BAA/ .277 OBPA/ .569 OPSA and deserve to be considered co-relievers of 2023.

Runner-up.   Phil Maton – Maton was floundering in 2022 to the point where he may have been left off the playoff roster, if he hadn’t foolishly broken his hand. He came out of Spring Training pitching the best out of the bullpen of anyone, had a little falter in mid-season, but then finished strong.

Here is a quick stat chart of the Astros’ position players for the season.  

Name ABs Runs Dbls HRs RBIs BBs Ks BA OBP OPS BAbip
Martin Maldonado 362 33 12 15 36 30 138 .191 .258 .606 .260
Jose Abreu 540 62 23 18 90 42 130 .237 .296 .680 .276
Jose Altuve 360 76 21 17 51 44 71 .311 .393 .915 .348
Jeremy Pena 577 81 32 10 52 43 129 .263 .324 .705 .323
Alex Bregman 622 103 28 25 98 92 87 .262 .363 .804 .270
Chas McCormick 403 59 17 22 70 40 117 .273 .353 .842 .331
Kyle Tucker 574 97 37 29 112 80 92 .284 .369 .886 .289
Yordan Alvarez 496 77 24 31 97 69 92 .293 .407 .990 .306
Yainer Diaz 355 51 22 23 60 11 74 .282 .308 .846 .292
Mauricio Dubon 467 76 26 10 46 19 70 .278 .309 .720 .308
Jake Meyers 309 42 16 10 33 26 88 .227 .296 .678 .283
Corey Julks 298 35 14 6 33 22 75 .245 .297 .650 .306
David Hensley 84 12 1 1 3 10 35 .119 .213 .379 .188
Jon Singleton 62 8 2 2 10 10 12 .194 .301 .624 .204
Michael Brantley 54 7 2 2 7 2 2 .278 .298 .724 .255
Grae Kessinger 40 3 2 1 1 5 12 .200 .289 .614 .259

Here is a comparison between 2022 and 2023 for Astros position players.

Year BA OBP OPS Runs HRs SBs Ks BBs
2022 .248 (5th) .319 (4th) .743 (3rd) 737 (3rd) 214 (2nd) 83 (7th) 1179 (2nd) 528 (3rd)
2023 .259 (3rd) .331 (3rd) .768 (3rd) 827 (3rd) 222 (5th) 107 (8th) 1241 (2nd) 550 (4th)

The numbers don’t really match the feeling the fans had about the offense in 2023. The team did not seem like the team with the 3rd most runs in the league. And frankly before the return of Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez the team was not the run scoring machine they were farther into the season.

Top Positional Player of 2023 – Yordan Alvarez – If someone wants to give this honor to Kyle Tucker, that can certainly be successfully argued. But it is also impossible to not compare their stats knowing that Tucker played 43 more games than Yordan. Alvarez’s slash numbers of .293 BA/ .407 OBP/ .990 OPS were excellent and ending up with 31 HRs and 97 RBIs in 114 games was a bit eyepopping.

Runner-up – Kyle Tucker – On the other hand – Tucker had to carry the load the whole season, including many games without Alvarez and/or Altuve. He led the league in RBIs and came within an official scorer’s ruling of a 30/30 season. It is no shame to be the second-best player on this team.  

And before we leave this – Jose Altuve at times was the Astros best player with a .311 BA/ .393 OBP/ .915 OPS, but was only able to play in 90 games due to injury. Alex Bregman with 103 runs and 98 RBIs also stands out.

Special Recognition – Mauricio Dubon – He had his best season with the Astros and put up his best numbers when the Astros needed it the most….with Altuve sitting out the first 6 weeks or so of the season. And then he won the utility position’s Gold Glove.

Biggest Surprise (Positive) – Yainer Diaz – 23 home runs and 60 RBIs from a catcher with only 355 ABs? If he had been let loose, this might have been the greatest offensive season by an Astros’ catcher in their history…as a rookie.  

Runner-up  – J.P. France – 11-6 and 3.83 ERA with 136.1 innings in his first taste of the bigs. Totally unexpected.

Biggest Disappointment – Jose Abreu – In the end he knocked in 90 runs for the team.  But a guy with a career slash of .286 BA/ .348 OBP/ .843 OPS is not supposed to stumble to a .237 BA/ .296 OBP/ .680 OPS slash in the middle of this lineup and playing in a place with a left field short porch.

Runner-up – Rafael Montero – Unlike Jose Abreu, who most fans were happy to see signed to a three year contract, many of us were a bit worried about rewarding Montero after the only strong season of his career. But we still were disappointed to see him running south of a 7.00 ERA heading into July. He did better later in the season, but he did not really gain everyone’s trust back.

Some Comments on Season Stats

  • I had to do a double take when I saw the relievers had given up almost double the homers (71 vs. 36) in 2023 vs. 2022 in only 10% more innings. But they had.
  • It is hard to believe that the starters still threw the second most innings in the league when their ERA was so middle of the road (9th in the league).
  • Even as a free swinger, Yainer Diaz’s 11 walks in 355 ABs were hard to believe, especially for someone with so much power.
  • Bregman once again was the player, who walked more than he struck out. Tucker improved to 80 walks and 92 Ks as he had his best season in his career.
  • Justin Verlander’s 7-3 and 3.31 ERA after the trade from the Mets was critical to the team making the playoffs at all. If not for him, especially the way the rest of the rotation was stumbling down the  stretch, the team might have been sitting at home after the regular 162 games.
  • If…..you factored Chas McCormick’s numbers to 600 ABs – you are looking at a 90 runs / 33 HRs/ 105 RBIs season. If….you factored Yainer Diaz’s numbers to 500 ABs – you are looking at 72 runs / 32 HRs/ 85 RBIs. That would be something special.
  • Squinting at Yordan Alvarez’s numbers – this man could easily have a 40 HR/ 130 RBI season, with a full season.
  • Though Seth Martinez had a below average season, he gets special recognition for not allowing any of the 17 runners he inherited to score.

As usual, it is your turn to comment. Any awards you disagree with? Any new ones you want to award?

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11 responses to “ChipalattAwards for 2023: Surprises, disappointments and other awards”

  1. I’m having a hard time giving the starters award to Framber because he went 0-3 in the post season and could not get up for his two shots at beating the Rangers on his home mound. Still have a bad taste in my mouth. I know, these are regular season awards.

    So true how good the offense could have been as we extend out the players that did not get a chance to play a full season be it due to injury or Dusty.

    That’s a whole lot of homers by the pen and even guys like Framber and Javier and Brown and France. Did our nerds, starting catcher, pitching coaches and other authorities change the way we pitched in 2023, or were our pitchers simply very good at throwing meatballs.

    It will be interesting to see if Yainer gets better at pitch recognition and hitting lefties with regular play behind the plate. If he can do that stuff, he’ll have quite a year. I just hope he does not put too much pressure on himself offensively.

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    • Let me put it this way…in all games the Astros lost that Framber pitched, he only pitched what I would call well in 5 of them. 3 of those 5 happened in April. He had some great starts, but he also had some down the stretch that were the opposite.

      Dan points out that if not for Verlander we’d have missed the playoffs and I have to concede he’s right. We’ll see what happens with the prospects traded, but Brown absolutely needed to make such a move.

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  2. Sarge and I were having a nice conversation about Maldy coming back to be our back up catcher in 2023. I’m having a hard time taking seriously those bloggers and 30 year olds and tweeters stirring up the poop, but until I hear that we’ve actually hired a real back up catcher not named Maldy, I’ll be jittery.

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  3. Maldy, Brantley, Stanek, Maton and Neris will have their market established for them by all 30 clubs. Brown can’t speak about them too much because they are free agents. That’s it!
    I am willing to go into 2024 with a new backup catcher to Yainer Diaz.
    I am willing to go into 2024 with replacements for the 3 relievers and I would like the Astros to have a younger, faster outfielder to fill that 3rd outfield slot. We have the best DH in baseball
    I am definitely not in favor of going over the luxury tax because of the penalties involved.
    With no WBC this coming spring, I am perfectly content to go into 2024 with the team we have now plus the replacements spoken of earlier. It is a championship caliber team that should be healthier and hungrier than 2023’s team.

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  4. Here are a couple of interesting rankings by MLB for you:
    The Astros are ranked sixth in the 2024 Power Rankings
    https://www.mlb.com/news/power-rankings-2024-preview
    And ranking 2023 rookies by long term value:
    Hunter Brown is 19th and Yainer Diaz is 32nd
    https://www.mlb.com/news/ranking-2023-rookies-based-on-long-term-value?partnerId=zh-20231017-1060321-mlb-1-A&qid=1026&utm_id=zh-20231017-1060321-mlb-1-A&bt_ee=6tiUQOABEO8g8%2FicJRlqLPew0MvQODiaBl4N1eEkYP0Y%2Fsr7PQUGeQJqUdCGRA3N&bt_ts=1697550298882

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      • Don’t forget, he only had 42 starts behind the plate. And the establishment certainly was not prepared to question our former manager. In 2024, the experts will be wondering where Yainer Diaz came from so suddenly.

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    • I see a lot of guys on that list I would expect to flame out over the next couple years. I’d have Diaz somewhere in the top 15 but certainly not as high as everyone else here – the 11 walks in 377 PA is too much of a red flag. I think his defensive value is far higher than he’s been given credit for, however, and is enough to keep him in a starting lineup for a long time regardless of how he hits.

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  6. Bielak should be on your pitchers list – fifth most innings pitched on the team.

    I would like to see the starting pitchers ERA for the first five innings. It seemed to me they gave up a lot of runs, especially the less experienced pitchers, when Dusty sent them out for the sixth inning.

    Abreau’s early struggles were a surprise, but I never expected him to be a middle of the order hitter on the Astros. I thought he would hit sixth, or seventh if Pena batted second. I was shocked to see him batting fourth in the early season games when Bregman, Alvarez and Tucker were all healthy. He hit reasonably well after returning from the IL and well in the playoffs. I expect him to have a better year in 2024 if he can stay healthy.

    In an ideal world Diaz would walk more and McCormick would strike out less, but if they have to be less aggressive to do it I would prefer to see them stay as they are. I think Bregman needs to be more agressive even if it means more strike outs and fewer walks.

    I wish your tables showed batting average with runners on base. This seemed to me to be a problem all season, and a horrible performance with runners on base is the main reason they lost the ALCS to the Rangers

    I only expect the Astros to sign a reliever and a backup catcher this offseason. As long as they do not bring Maldonado back, I don’t really care who they sign. Under Crane the Astros have been more active and made more significant additions at the trade deadline than in the offseason. I expect 2024 to be the same.

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    • Charlie – thanks for catching that. I would fire my editor but then no one would be here to write the blog.

      Brandon Bielak – 15 Games / 5-6 / 3.83 ERA/ 1.525 WHIP / 80 IP / 12 HRs / 7 K per 9 IP / .277 BAA/ .361 OBPA / .821 OPSA / .312 BAbip/ 4 IR/ 3 IS

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