It has been very clear over the past several seasons that the Houston Astros are one of the most elite teams in all of baseball.
Since emerging as a contender in 2015, the Astros have reached the postseason in seven of the last eight years, while also reaching the World Series four times and winning two titles.
Much of the Astros’ success has to do with the fact that they have been exceptional at developing their stars, most notably on the pitching side.
The Astros have had stars such as Dallas Keuchel, Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier, Luis Garcia, Jose Urquidy, and others make their way through the organization and help create a consistent contender.
On Twitter, Matt Yallof of MLB Network pointed out the Astros’ success in that regard and how it has proven to be a viable blueprint.
If you can consistently and effectively develop your own pitching, you will be in contention every year.#astros
— Matt Yallof (@MattYallofMLB) April 17, 2023
The Astros did lose Justin Verlander over the winter, but still have a plethora of solid arms in their starting rotation and in their bullpen which they have developed from within the system.
The Astros aren’t always making huge splashes in free agency for this very reason.
Their ability to develop their own pitching and build a solid staff with homegrown talent has helped them last as long as they have in the American League.
Many of their young pitchers have gone on to become frontline starters, with Valdez being a perfect example of this.
The Astros are simply masters at their craft, building their team from within and doing so with homegrown talent on the pitching side.