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Welcome to the latest installment of TCB Hitter of the Week, where we discuss current events surrounding the Astros offensive output, and how it relates to the world of internet awards. The team went 4-3 this week and scored a total of 43 runs (six point something per game...math). Most of the players had good weeks and there were not many duds along the way. Even Collin McHugh ended this week batting .333. As always, we LOVE small sample sizes.
Judging by the amount of comments on the most recent HOTW post, I bet I could say almost anything here. I could even say something that sounds almost crazy, like "Marwin was one of the best hitters on the team!"
Honorable Mention
Marwin Gonzalez
Marwin was one of the best hitters on the team! With Lowrie out most of the season and Correa a recent call up, Marwin got a lot of playing time. He has not had as much success as his 2014 season. Then Altuve went down with his hamstring issue giving him even more at-bats. This time he took advantage of the situation. Marwin played in all seven games this week and went 8-for-20 (.400). He also had three doubles and a homer, which brought his OPS for the week to 1.178. Once Lowrie gets healthy I am not sure what Marwin's fate will be, but it is good to have someone who can provide this offense when needed, even if he can only do it occasionally.
George Springer
I am tempted to give him this award every week, but that would get boring. The guy just hits and hits and hits, and sometimes strikes out. (OK...25% of the time he strikes out, but who is counting?) All he did over the last seven games was go 10-for-31 (.323) with two homers. The team is scoring a lot more in the first inning and getting leads early. Springer is a big part of that (he scored five runs). Seeing him and Correa getting back-to-back hits to lead off a game is a thing of beauty. Even better than that is we should be seeing that combination for many years to come.
Winner
Carlos Correa
In just a few weeks, Correa has become one of the best shortstops in baseball, and arguably the best overall. He is surpassing team records for number of hits by a rookie to start a career. According to Fangraphs he has accumulated 1.0 WAR in his 15 games, which ties him for 5th on the team with fellow short-time shortstop Lowrie.
His week was book-ended by a 3-hit, 1 HR, 3 RBI game in Colorado, and a 3-hit, 1 HR, 4 RBI game last night in Anaheim. Add in four doubles and six runs scored and you have a week to get excited about. Oh, did I mention he stole three bases? Well he did. In the same game! Someone call up Crane and get that oversized novelty check ready and present it to him before the next home game. Leave the amount blank please. He can fill that in himself.