White Sox prepared for challenge of facing battle-tested Astros
To many, they remain the tainted champions.
The Houston Astros never had their title stripped, but the toxic fact remains they were caught cheating on their way to the top in 2017.
White Sox left-hander Dallas Keuchel was on the Astros' World Series championship team four years ago. He was the first Houston player to apologize for the sign-stealing scandal.
"Was it against the rules? Yes, it was," said Keuchel, who has been moved to the Sox's bullpen for the playoffs after a tough season as a starter (9-9, 5.18 ERA). "I personally am sorry for what's come about the whole situation."
The Astros' decision to swipe signs using the video replay system, electronic devices and dugout garbage cans cost manager A.J. Hinch and GM Jeff Luhnow their jobs.
Houston was also fined $5 million and lost its first- and second-round draft picks the past two seasons.
A scandal of such magnitude could have reduced the Astros to rubble. As they prepare to play the White Sox in the American League division series, they are in the postseason for the fifth straight year.
"Houston is a fantastic team," Sox general manager Rick Hahn said. "They're not only former world champions, they're used to being in this environment on an annual basis. Very strong offensive club, a dynamic run-scoring team and fantastic pitching and defense. So it's going to be a challenge."
Led by a strong cast of hitters that includes Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, Carlos Correa and Kyle Tucker, the Astros led the majors with a .267 batting average and 863 runs scored while finishing second with a .783 OPS.
Houston (95-67) earned home-field advantage in the ALDS by finishing tow games ahead of the White Sox (93-69).
Under manager Dusty Baker, the Astros have blocked out all of the fan abuse they still get on the road for the cheating scandal and continued to win big.
"It's a fact that they've had a lot of experience in the playoffs and they've made deep runs as we've seen in the past," Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal said. "That goes a long way. You're not going to intimidate a team like that, you're not going to put pressure on a team like that. I've been on teams that had deep runs in the postseason and I know exactly what goes on.
"All they're waiting for is for you to make a mistake and they're going to take over. All you have to do is play your game and allow them to almost sit back and wait for you to make a mistake and hopefully, they make the mistake before we do."
With Game 1 set for Thursday at Minute Maid Park, Houston should have some added confidence after sweeping the White Sox in a three-game home series in June.
"They're a tough team, but we're a very good team," Sox third baseman Yoan Moncada said. "I think that we will know how it goes on the field. We're going to do our best on the field and we'll see what happens."