Sports Illustrated predicted the Astros would win the 2017 World … – For The Win

Apparently the Astros are immune to the Sports Illustrated curse.

Three years before Houston won the AL pennant with a Game 7 win over the Yankees, SI predicted it would win the World Series in 2017.

Sports Illustrated

The cover story was on the Astros’ innovative front office, led by GM Jeff Luhnow, which had been stacking championship pieces like George Springer, Collin McHugh and Dallas Keuchel.

At the time, Houston was coming off a fourth consecutive last-place finishes. Here’s what our Ted Berg wrote back in 2014 about SI‘s bold prediction:

“Since joining the Astros, Luhnow has made a series of innovative front-office hires and fostered a farm system now considered one of MLB’s very best. Again: The magazine’s claim may sound crazy, but it’s not hopelessly optimistic.”

Now the Astros are four wins away from making the prediction come true. The World Series gets underway Tuesday in Los Angeles.

Sports Illustrated also gets bonus prediction points for the U.S. Soccer story teaser. The headline: “Hope beyond the heartbreak.” SI really had 2017 figured out back then.