The Houston Astros are struggling in the 2026 MLB season with a 6-10 record, placing them last in the AL West. Their high number of walks and a banged-up pitching staff raise concerns about their chances for a postseason bid.
Astros' walk issues make MLB history that bodes poorly for postseason bid originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Houston Astros are off to a very shaky start to the 2026 MLB season. They're currently last in the AL West with a 6-10 record, and that doesn't even tell the full story.
Houston has allowed 101 runs this season, and the pitching staff is extremely banged up. Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, Tatsuya Imai, and others are hurt already this season.
As @astros_numbers shared on Twitter/x from Baseball Reference and Stathead, the Astros have joined some less-than-ideal company thanks to their walk issues, which does not bode well for Houston making the postseason this year.
"The 2026 Astros are the 11th team dating back to 1898 to issue at least 96 unintentional walks in the first 16 games of a season," @astros_numbers shared. "FYI, only one team (1925 St. Louis Browns) finished with a winning record, and none qualified for the postseason."
Across Major League Baseball history since 1898, out of the 10 teams that have walked at least 96 batters through 16 games, only one finished with a winning record, while not a single team has made the postseason.
Houston's pitching issues this year have been highlighted by their walk problems. They're currently at 96 walks as a team, which, through 16 games, is a ridiculous six walks per game.
Tatsuya Imai has allowed 11 walks in 8.2 innings pitched, while Bryan Abreu has allowed 11 walks in just five innings pitched. They are tied for the team-lead in this concerning metric this season.
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Javier has allowed nine walks, Cody Bolton and Christian Roa seven each. Brown, Michael Burrows, Lance McCullers, Roddery Munoz, and Ryan Weiss all have six.
AJ Blubaugh has five, while J.P. France has four walks allowed. Bryan King, Jayden Murray, and Steven Okert have allowed three, while Kei-Wei Tong has allowed one walk, and Enyel De Los Santos has allowed one.
It's been a rough start to the year, and these walk issues are a big reason why. Add on the pitching injuries, and there is plenty of reason to be concerned about the Astros this season.
History isn't on their side, as this 96-walk start through 16 games doesn't bode well for a winning record, let alone a postseason appearance.
The Houston Astros currently have a 6-10 record in the 2026 MLB season.
The Astros' significant walk issues have placed them in a historically poor position, which negatively impacts their chances of making the postseason.
Injured players on the Astros' pitching staff include Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and Tatsuya Imai.
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