When was the last time the Astros missed the playoffs?
The Astros led their division from June 3 to September 13, but fans now have to watch their rivals.
The Houston Astros’ dynasty has collapsed. The Texas team missed the 2025 playoffs after the Cleveland Guardians claimed the final American League Wild Card spot. With that, a streak that began in 2017 – when they won the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers – has come to an end.
For Houston, this is nothing short of a failure. The Astros carry the third-highest payroll in the American League at $232.87 million, trailing only the New York Yankees ($299.6 million) and the Toronto Blue Jays ($253.26 million). On top of that, the club moved aggressively at the trade deadline, bringing back Carlos Correa in an effort to strengthen the roster. Even factoring in the loss of Yordan Álvarez – one of their top hitters – for more than 100 days, this was still a squad built to reach the postseason at the very least.
The Astros’ tragic fallThe 2025 campaign under manager Joe Espada got off to a rocky start, with a mediocre – and at times losing – record through April and May. Things shifted in June, when Houston surged to the top of the AL West thanks to strong stretches against the Seattle Mariners and the Oakland Athletics.
End of an Astros era?
They held first place in the division from June until September 13, when Seattle finally overtook them. The Astros had controlled the West for more than 89 games, but the penultimate series of the season – again against the Mariners – proved to be the final nail in the coffin.
Now, the Astros’ golden era is officially over. Across the past eight seasons, Houston appeared in four World Series, winning two, and never fell short of the Wild Card round. For seven straight years, they were virtually guaranteed to be in the fight for the American League pennant.
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