The Houston Astros head into another week of the regular season not having played their best baseball as of late even following what was a major splash of a trade deadline.

Though they are playing just .500 baseball over the last ten games, some positive momentum was created over the weekend in a huge series victory over the New York Yankees on the road, the news of the weekend was not all positive.

The divisional race is as tight as ever as the Seattle Mariners can’t seem to lose, sweeping the Tampa Bay Rays and winning their seventh contest in a row and pulling within a half game of the American League West lead.

Houston desperately needs to play some absolutely excellent baseball in the near future if they want to hold onto this narrow lead. It just so happens that they have a huge series getting started on Monday night against the Boston Red Sox back at home, and there are three incredibly significant storylines which are worth keeping an eye on.

The main reason the Astros did not aggressively pursue starting pitching at the trade deadline despite the fact that they were missing huge amounts of production via injury was that certain arms were set to return over the second half. Javier is one of them, and if he’s at his best, potentially the most significant.

Javier is going to receive a huge test right out of the gate in the first game of the series on Monday night against Boston, making his first start in more than a full calendar year after recovering from Tommy John surgery.

The 28-year-old had a 2.54 ERA in 30 appearances (25 starts) back in 2022, along with 194 strikeouts in 148.2 innings, and struggled to replicate it in 2023, but was off to a tremendous beginning in his first seven starts last season before the injury occurred.

In rehab appearances, the results were mixed with a 5.14 ERA over five appearances and 14 innings across three different minor league levels, however the strikeout stuff seemed to be back. Javier takes the bump on Monday for the first time since May of last season with first pitch set for 7:10 p.m. CST.

Since the earth-shattering deal with the Minnesota Twins which put the fan favorite back in an Astros uniform, Correa has played nine games and been off to a tremendous start. The slugger has slashed .405/.476/.622 with two home runs, six RBI and already 15 hits.

Now though, he gets a chance to return to the stadium where he made a name for himself and unquestionably receive a huge standing ovation from the crowd at Daikin Park. Correa did have a great 2024 season, but overall he has not been the same player since he left Houston.

Now that he is in the Astros lineup once again and still just 30 years old, perhaps he can once again become the feared and dangerous hitter he once was seen as. A focal point of this team’s dynasty is back in the fold, and Monday night’s lineup announement is going to make it officially official.

Bregman may not receive quite the standing ovation as Correa, given the fact that he is going to be wearing the road team’s uniform, but Astros fans are absolutely going to give their former franchise icon a very warm welcome in his first trip back.

The longtime third baseman wound up signing a deal with the Red Sox this offseason set to pay him $40 million a year and containing opt-outs, an agreement Houston simply was not able to match. While of course it stings to see Bregman playing for another team — not to mention a hated rival — fans surely can understand why he had to take the deal with Boston.

Bregman has dealt with some injury issues this year, however when he has been on the field he’s having one of the best seasons of his career. Over the course of 73 games, he has slashed .298/.380/.531 with 14 home runs and 46 RBI and has helped to keep the Red Sox alive in the divisional race in the AL East.

Though it might be just a little bit awkward, Bregman is going to be welcomed home with open arms.