Recent Hot Stretch Sees Houston Astros Slugger Climbing MLB Leaderboards

The Houston Astros, as a team, have failed to put things together consistently this season on the offensive side of the ball.

They enter Saturday with a .703 OPS, the 17th-best mark in MLB, behind two divisional rivals in the Seattle Mariners and Athletics.

It has not all been bad, however, as one slugger has found his groove with his new team and has been on a tear over the last month. Third baseman Isaac Paredes started the year struggling at the plate like most of the Astros' batters, but has since turned that around in a big way.

Houston Astros Third Baseman Isaac Paredes Climbing MLB Leaderboards with Recent Hot Streak

Houston acquired Paredes in a trade with the Chicago Cubs as part of the return for superstar outfielder Kyle Tucker. Through the third baseman's first 20 games with his new team, things were not looking too promising as Paredes batted just .240/.352/.373 with three home runs and 11 RBI across 88 plate appearances in that time.

In the 30 games since, Paredes has tremendously improved. In that time, he has batted .286/.389/.563 with eight home runs and 20 RBI across 131 plate appearances. His 11 home runs on the year are tied for the 18th most in MLB, and his OPS of .861 is 29th and climbing.

Over just the last seven days, Paredes has batted .320/.370/.920 with five home runs and 10 RBI. His five home runs in that stretch lead MLB, his 10 RBI rank third, and his 1.290 OPS ranks seventh.

The recent hot stretch has seen the slugger climb the MLB leaderboards, and it is what the Astros have needed with the lion's share of their lineup failing to produce. Paredes's swing is built to take advantage of the Crawford Boxes, and the more he can do just that, the better off the team's offense will be.

It took some time, but Paredes has now found his stride with his new team. Under team control for at least two more years after 2025, the third baseman looks to be a big part of the offense for quite some time.