HOUSTON -- The final three-plus weeks of the regular season figure to be juggling act for Astros manager Joe Espada when it comes to the playing time of right fielder Kyle Tucker and third baseman Alex Bregman, both of whom have an ailment that may not be completely healed until the end of the season. Tucker was activated from the injured list prior to Friday's game against the D-backs after missing three months with a right shin fracture, suffered when he fouled a ball off it on June 3. He was in the lineup at designated hitter for the series opener and went 0-for-2 with a walk, but the Astros will have to monitor his playing time going forward. Seven other players started a game in right field this year, including in-season acquisitions Ben Gamel and Jason Heyward. Meanwhile, Bregman has been dealing with right elbow inflammation for the last three weeks, which has kept him out of the lineup several times. He missed five games in a row (Aug. 16-20) and four games in a row (Aug. 30-Sept. 2), while starting three other games at DH. Bregman wasn't in the lineup on Friday against Arizona. "He's a bit sore today, but he's doing well," Espada said. "We're trying to monitor the volume of games in a row, but he's actually feeling well." |
What complicates the matter for Espada is the fact the club wants to limit how much slugger Yordan Alvarez plays in left field. On the days he starts at DH, that's a spot Tucker and/or Bregman won't be able to play. "It requires a lot of discipline because we have [21] games left and I want those guys in there, but at the same time, we want them out there healthy," Espada said. "The goal is to have them playing back-to-back games ... so that's going to require a little bit of time and patience, and us being smart about how to do it and when to do it." In a perfect world, the Astros would give Tucker and Bregman as much rest as they needed before the postseason, but the American League West standings say otherwise. The Astros (76-65) have a 4 1/2-game lead over the Mariners (72-70), while still trying to chase the AL Central-leading Guardians (81-60) for the second seed in the AL playoffs, which would come with a bye into the AL Division Series. Espada is acutely aware of the standings -- and what manager isn't in the month of September? -- but his top goal is making sure Bregman and Tucker can stay on the field. |
"That's where I'm at every day postgame, pregame, just making sure these guys are healthy and good to go," he said. If the Astros make the playoffs and mount another deep postseason run, they will play, at most, three consecutive days. That could possibly happen three times -- all three games of the AL Wild Card Series, Games 3-5 of the AL Championship Series and World Series Games 3-5. That would be a good problem to have. For now, Espada just hopes his middle-of-the-order bats can play more consistently. "Where I could just write the lineup [with] them on back-to-back days without worrying about how they feel the next day, that's where we want to be," the skipper said. "Is that going to happen in the next week? I hope so. "But that might not be the case until they both feel good postgame and it hasn't been the case, yet. Hopefully, we get to that point in the near future." |
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THIS WEEK IN ASTROS HISTORY |
Sept. 8, 1993 Darryl Kile, a 30th-round selection by Houston in the 1987 MLB Draft, threw the ninth no-hitter in Astros history, when he beat the Mets, 7-1. In the final no-hitter thrown in the Astrodome, Kile walked one Mets batter, who later scored on a wild pitch. Kile needed just 83 pitches to complete the no-hitter, with former Mariners manager Scott Servais serving as his catcher. |
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A lat injury didn't allow pitching prospect Colton Gordon, ranked as the Astros' No. 11 prospect by MLB Pipeline, to show his stuff during Spring Training this year, but the left-hander is putting himself on the map for a strong look next spring. Gordon, who missed the spring and the first month of the season, is 8-1 with a 4.26 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP in 22 games (21 starts) for Triple-A Sugar Land. He has struck out 109 and allowed 100 hits in 105 2/3 innings. In his past four starts for the Space Cowboys, he allowed three earned runs, nine hits and seven walks in 21 1/3 innings, while striking out 32 batters. |
"Just pitching better, being as consistent as possible, getting ahead of batters, being efficient," Gordon said when asked what's working. "Just try to be the best pitcher I could be and really, I found my groove here this summer and coming down the stretch here in August and September. "It helps we're winning every day and have an unbelievable group of guys around us -- the coaching staff and the players." |
The Astros took Gordon in the eighth round (No. 238 overall) of the 2021 MLB Draft despite having Tommy John surgery that year. Gordon, who pitched for Team Israel in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, gets a lot of swings-and-misses on his fastball, but commands all his pitches well. And he has a lot of tools to get outs. He throws a fastball, changeup, slider, curveball and cutter. "We all want to be in the big leagues and we all want to achieve our goals, and you do that by being the best you can be week in and week out," Gordon said. "By finishing strong, it sets me up to be even better and puts me in a better position for this offseason to get better and show up to camp with a little more experience, a little more knowledge and hopefully in a better spot than last year." |
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