Astros Crawfish Boil: June 12, 2018

Houston Astros News

The AL West and One-Run Success - FanGraphs

Here’s an article that takes a stab at trying to figure out why the AL West race between the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners is so close right now.

Hector Rondon has become the Astros “closer of the moment” - Houston Chronicle

Taking a look at how A.J. Hinch intends to use his bullpen going forward in late innings and in high leverage situations.

Houston Astros manager A.J. Hinch remains committed to his defensive shifts despite bunt attempts - Houston Chronicle

This past weekend, Joey Gallo laid down a great bunt against Justin Verlander to beat the shift, but Hinch claims that this incident will have no effect on his overall defensive strategy.

The Houston Astros should trade A.J. Reed before the deadline - Call to the Pen

Reed certainly deserves to be in the major leagues, but the Astros simply have too many good players ahead of him. Maybe it’s time for a change of scenery, but only if the Astros can get the right pieces in return.

MLB News

One exec in the National League had some strong words to say recently about Nationals star outfielder Bryce Harper - NBCSports.com

With Harper’s free agency coming up in just a few months, many are wondering if the sentiments shared by this one team executive are shared around the league.

Former Astros prospect Mike Foltynewicz and Sean Newcomb are leading the Atlanta Braves pitching staff in 2018 - MLB.com

It’s actually nice to see Folty finding his groove for a really young and talented Atlanta Braves squad after struggling for a couple of years.

Nine things to know about the 2018 MLB season thus far if you have not been paying attention - For The Win

Some great main themes in this article about what has occurred in the first 40% or so of the MLB season.