HOUSTON -- Astros outfielder Chas McCormick returned from the injured list on Tuesday and found himself in a fight for playing time. Again. This is nothing new for McCormick, who began the season as the team's starting left fielder before struggling at the plate and eventually landing on the IL with a right hamstring injury. While he was out, center fielder Jake Meyers had one of the best stretches of his career, going 9-for-15 with two homers and six RBIs from Thursday through Sunday. And rookie outfielder Joey Loperfido (Houston's No. 6 prospect) has made an impact since he was recalled on April 30, hitting safely in nine of 12 starts while splitting time with Mauricio Dubón in left. So where does McCormick fit in? "If I don't play good enough again since I'm back, I'm not going to play," he said prior to going 0-for-3 with a strikeout in Tuesday's 6-5 win over the Angels. "It's not about me because we're winning right now. I just need to be able to play good enough to help this team win. It doesn't matter what role we're in. We have a lot of good outfielders playing well. "I'm happy to be back, happy we're winning. My start wasn't good." McCormick slashed .236/.325/.278 in 21 games to start the season before going on the IL. It was a disappointing to start to what set up as a promising season for McCormick, who was tabbed as an everyday player in the offseason by both general manager Dana Brown and manager Joe Espada. |
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In 2023, McCormick appeared in 115 games in the regular season with a career-high 457 plate appearances, with 45 starts in left, 51 in center and nine in right. He posted career-best numbers across the board: .273/.353/.489 with 22 homers, 70 RBIs and 19 stolen bases, but he often sat against right-handed starters. During his Minor League rehab games with Double-A Corpus Christi, McCormick said his swing felt better than it did earlier in the year. "If I can focus on driving the ball a little more, I could be in good shape," he said. "I just need to be ready to go." McCormick and Meyers are locker neighbors and friends and competition is nothing new to them. Espada showered Meyers with praise earlier this week and he's became entrenched as Houston's starting center fielder. |
"Every time he swings the bat, he finds the ball," Espada said. "Even when he doesn't find the barrel, he gets those singles in there. He's playing with confidence." With Meyers holding down center and Kyle Tucker having a Most Valuable Player-caliber start to the season in right field, McCormick will have to make the most of his time in left field. "[Jake's] been playing great and he should play every day," McCormick said. "Everyone's been playing great. We've been winning. I'm happy to be back and want to help this team win any way possible." |
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When was the last time the Astros hit into a triple play, and who was the batter? A) Jake Marisnick, May 22, 2019 B) Evan Gattis, April 19, 2018 C) George Springer, May 18, 2016 D) Tyler White, June 30, 2018 |
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The growth of rookie right-hander Spencer Arrighetti in each of his seven starts has been one of the season's most encouraging developments for the Astros this season. Arrighetti, ranked as the club's No. 3 prospect by MLB Pipeline, went 0-4 with an 8.44 ERA in his first five starts, but he is 2-0 with a 4.76 ERA in his past two starts. He's allowed six runs in 11 1/3 innings in those two outings. "Every time he goes out there, he's just getting better and better," Espada said. "Not only his performance, but his confidence and how he comes off the mound. He knows the areas he needs to improve and he's improving. He's doing a really, really good job." On Sunday against the Brewers, Arrighetti pitched into the seventh inning for the first time in his career. He left the game having allowed one run and with the bases loaded, but all three runners came around to score with reliever Bryan Abreu on the mound. Still, Arrighetti, who grew up as an Astros fan and went to games at Minute Maid Park, got a standing ovation as he left the mound. "I've watched some of my favorite pitchers ever get pretty good standing ovations at Minute Maid Park, so just to be one of those people that can get the fans going, that means the world to me," he said. "I can't help but smile every single time. I walk out there and hear the crowd, hear the music playing. It's everything I wanted. I just feel really lucky." |
Triple-A Sugar Land infielder Jesús Bastidas was named the Pacific Coast League Player of the Week on Monday, covering May 13-20. In games in Albuquerque, N.M., he slashed .542/.571/1.292, going 13-for-24 with four doubles, one triple, four home runs, 11 RBIs, nine runs scored, three walks, one stolen base and just three strikeouts. Bastidas, who was signed by the Astros as a free agent on Nov. 18, reached base safely in all six games during the week and hit safely in five of six games, logging multiple hits five times and walking twice in the game that he did not record a hit. Zach Cole, ranked as the Astros' No. 10 prospect, went 0-for-2 with two walks, one strikeout and one run scored with Double-A Corpus Christi on Tuesday while playing left field. Cole began the season on the injured list at High-A Asheville and played six rehab games in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League, going 6-for-22 with one double, one triple and one homer. Last year, Cole hit .258 with 20 doubles, eight triples, 19 home runs, 65 RBIs, 66 walks and 37 stolen bases in 111 games between Low-A Fayetteville and Asheville. |
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A. May 22, 2019, when speedy outfielder Jake Marisnick hit into a 5-4-3 around-the-horn triple play, with José Abreu of White Sox squeezing the final out at first base. Houston has hit into only 10 triple plays in its history. |
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