Monday Morning Hot Links

Well Shawn Dubin did pretty much exactly what the Astros needed him to do, Chas McCormick delivered the Big Hit, Altuve homered. Astros win 5-3 to improve to 46-38, four games back, winners of five of their last seven games. The Astros have an opportunity today to end a weekend at South Euless in which three rookies started having picked up two games. At worst, the Astros will have kept the Ramgers lead at five games through a tough weekend. 

*Dusty:

This club, they like to win. And they know how to win. No matter who we put out there, we expect them to do the job, even though they might not do as good a job as the people they're replacing. But just do what you're capable of doing and do what it takes to help us win.

That is the backhandiest of compliments.

*Shawn Dubin: 4IP, 3H/1ER, 3K:2BB.

Dusty: 

That puts us in position to win the series and leave three games out. We battled today. Our bullpen did a great job. Dubin did an outstanding job. We took him far...we were thinking three, and he went four.

*Bullpen: 5IP, 4H/2ER, 8K:0BB.

*I'm not really sure why Future Hall of Famer Bruce Bochy pulled Andrew Heaney after 5IP and 85 pitches, having allowed just three hits and a walk with eight strikeouts...but I'm glad he did.

*Ramgers Bullpen: 4IP, 7H/5ER, 4K:2BB.

*Jose Abreu was 3x5 with a double. Since June 1 (26 games), Abreu is hitting .298/.321/.510. He has a nine-game on-base streak.

*Jose Altuve hit his 198th career home run in the top of the 9th inning. Since coming back from resting a bruised heel on June 28, Altuve is hitting .316/.458/.842. Four of his six hits in that span have been for extra-bases, and he's been on base 11 times in 19 PAs. He needs two more home runs to be the 5th Astro with 200 career home runs, and needs 26 homers to pass Jimmy Wynn for 4th all-time in franchise history.

*Chas McCormick was 2x4 with a two-out bases-clearing triple to break the game open off of Josh Sbarro Sborz in the 8th inning. It was McCormick's first triple since August 13, 2022, and his first 3RBI game since April 9. On June 9, McCormick was hitting .227/.315/.427 after going 0x6 with 4Ks. Since then, he's hitting .333/.400/.533. He should probably play every day.

McCormick:

I'm just happy to contribute and help the team win. I wanted to come through there with two outs, wanted to be aggressive and ready to hit. Thankfully, we got a win today because that was huge. And if we can get a win tomorrow, that will be even bigger.

*Yainer Diaz was 0x4 with runners in scoring position.

Diaz, bases empty, 2023: 85 PAs, .354/.377/.671.

Diaz, someone on, 2023: 76 PAs, .169/.171/.254.

Diaz, with RISP, 2023: 43 PAs, .132/.140/.158.

There are 295 hitters in MLB with a minimum of 40 PAs w/RISP, and Diaz's .132 BA ranks 292nd.

*Alex Bregman had his 3rd 0x5 day of the season. 

*Framber Valdez and Yordan Alvarez are your 2023 Astros All-Stars. Yordan will attend, not play. Framber might start the game.

*Yordan took BP in the cage yesterday.

*Jeremy Pena missed his third straight game after sleeping wrong. Wasn't it about this time that we all lit up Carlos Correa? 

*The Nationals signed Former Astros Great Daniel Mengden to a minor-league contract while the Rockies called up Former Astros Great Fernando Abad.

*BBC: Will Texas become too hot for humans?

*Today is a hallowed day at ACHQ: It's July 3 aka Dependence Day. The day that me and my household celebrate the last day of America's dependence on England. So grab a Bounty and a Harp, add this to your Spotify playlists and spend the next nine and a half hours with me listening to the finest Britpop. 

*A Musical Selection:

Tuesday Morning Hot Links

Alright let's do this quickly - I have to be somewhere this morning. And I haven't showered since Saturday. So. The Astros got rolled by the Mets 11-1 for their fifth straight loss. Houston is 39-34. Anaheim was off and of course Kennedale won, so Houston is 6.5 back. In my second season as head coach, I took the soccer team to playoffs for the first time since 2017. Then Leeds United got relegated and the Astros suck. Sorry, y'all. 

*The Astros have lost 10 of their last 13 games. 

*Houston is 3-8 since Yordan exited the game early on June 8. As a team they're "hitting" .231/.302/.391 and have left 85 runners on base in those 11 games.

*The Astros have allowed 30 runs to score in the last three games, most since the June 28-30 Baltimore series, when they gave up 27. They gave up 29 runs in three games from April 20-22, 2019. But you have to go all the way back to September 9-10, 2017 to find the last time they allowed more than 30 runs in three games, when the A's got them for 32 runs in a double-header and the series finale.

*On June 3 the Astros were 35-23 and had a 52.5% chance of winning the division, according to FanGraphs. As of this morning that percentage is now at 18.5%.

*Congratulations to Shawn Dubin, who made his MLB debut last night and that's all we'll talk about regarding that. 

*The stats are depressing. Let's get to the links.

*Hunter Brown is riding the roller coaster of a rookie campaign.

*Chandler Rome: Where do the Astros go from here?

*Justin Verlander got his ring and reflected on his time in Houston before facing the Astros tonight.

*A ship has arrived at the Titanic submersible site.

*Texas Monthly: The story we've been told about Juneteenth is wrong.

*Wired: When a 7.9 earthquake struck San Francisco in 1906, it opened the gates of hell. You could have ridden it out, if you made all the right decisions.

*A Musical Selection:

Monday Morning Hot Links

Jiminy Christmas. Do these men have no respect for dads? Unbelievable. The Reds completed a weekend Father's Day sweep of the Houston Astros. Houston is 39-33, 20-18 at Minute Maid Park, and are now in 3rd place in the AL West, 5.5 back of North Mexia, 1.0 back of Anaheim.

*The Astros had leads of 2-0, 2-1, 3-1, 3-2, and 5-2 in Sunday's "game."

*It's the first time the Astros have been in 3rd place since May 1, 2022. Tonight will be the 31st game since the beginning of 2021 that the Astros have been in 3rd place or worse. 

*The Astros have lost four straight, five of their last seven, and ten of their last 14 games. 

*Houston is 0-6 when the game goes to extra innings in 2023. They're 16-27 in extra innings since the Ghost Runner Rule was implemented at the beginning of 2020 (a season which did not exist).

*Houston is now 13-2 when they score 7+ runs, 0-2 in the last two instances of scoring 7+ runs.

*The Astros gave up 19 runs in the last two games of the series with the Reds, the most runs allowed in back-to-back games since they got whooped by the Orioles on June 28-29, 2021. 

*Houston went 5x29 with runners in scoring position over the three-game series. They haven't hit a home run with a runner on base since beating Cleveland 6-4 on June 10.

*Chas McCormick:

This isn't anything like us. We'll play better, though. We're just a little injured, but we have to find ways to win. Everyone wants to come beat us because we're world champions. Us winning last year is in the past, so we just have to play better.

*Alex Bregman was (wink) a homer shy of the cycle in a 3x5, BB, RBI day. It's his 4th 3-hit game of the season, and it came on the heels of Brian McCann calling him to give him a hitting tip.

*Yainer Diaz also had a three-hit day, going 3x5 with an RBI. In 12 June games, Diaz is hitting .341/.348/.659. Eight of his 15 hits have been for extra-bases. He has more home runs (5) than walks (3) in 2023. 

*Kyle Tucker was 2x4 with two walks and an RBI. He has four multi-hit games in his last five, and in 16 June games is hitting .339/.400/.516. 

*After going 2x12 against Cincinnati, Jose Abreu's OPS is now back under .600.

*Ronel Blanco: 5.2IP, 7H/5ER, 5K:2BB, with two homers that accounted for three runs. 

*Chandler Rome: The Jeremy Pena Leg-Kick is back!

*Check out new Chronicle beat writer Matt Kawahara's piece on Shawn Dubin's journey to the Majors.

*It has been 51 weeks since Michael Brantley last played a Major League game.

*Jose Urquidy feels "really good" after a bullpen session.

*MLB: The History of the Baseball Cap.

*Lance Lynn struck out 16 batters in a [squints] 5-1 White Sox loss.

*How a grad student uncovered the largest known slave auction in the US.

*Esquire: The Long Fall of One-Eleven Heavy.

*The bastards at AFC Bournemouth hired the manager I wanted Leeds United to manage.

*A Musical Selection:

Saturday Morning Hot Links

The Astros won their 8th straight Opening Day game with an 8-2 win over Seattle. Houston is 19-1 against Seattle since Opening Day 2019, and 42-16 against Seattle since the beginning of the 2017 season.

Also winning in the AL West: Arlington, Oakland.

Dusty Baker:
The guys had a lot of energy, a lot of belief and a lot of relief, getting back and playing a real game, because it didn't look like this was even going to happen.

Justin Verlander: 6IP, 3H/2ER, 7K:1BB. Both runs scored on solo home runs. 28 of the 36 home runs he allowed in 2019 were solo homers. Verlander:
They swung at the first pitch of the game and really didn't stop swinging from there. I needed to execute my pitches and the boys did the rest...You can come up with the best game plan in the world and you can abort it three pitches in, which is basically what I did. I was able to adjust quickly and have success.

It was Verlander's 74th regular season start as an Astro. He has allowed two or fewer earned runs in 52 of those starts.

Michael Brantley hit a three-run homer. It was his second straight Opening Day home run. Dusty, on Brantley:
There's no tension in him at all and it's effortless. It almost looks like he's in slow motion and the ball just jumps off his bat.

Zero Astros batters were hit by a pitch, much to the chagrin of incels across the world.

Chris Devenski struck out the side. Enoli Paredes and Blake Taylor made their MLB debuts and combined for 2IP, 1H/0ER, 0K:0BB.

*Yordan Alvarez, Jose Urquidy, and Cionel Perez are alive, and headed to Corpus! Dusty:
I know they'll probably say they're ready sooner than they are. No matter what they tell me, I'll still give them another couple of days. I know how players are anxious to get back. They missed a lot of time. It's going to take probably almost equal time they missed to get back. We'll be in constant contact with the people in Corpus and we're relying on their opinion of them and their progress.

It stands to reason that, if you're just looking for a DH, Yordan could come back more quickly than Urquidy and Perez. We don't know if they had COVID and had enough negative tests to be able to join, or there was some government clearance that was necessary. We just don't know anything because the Astros kept their mouths shut.

Also in that link: Bregman addresses how he can't afford a slow start again, and how today is the first MLB start for Lance McCullers since August 4, 2018.

Also Shawn Dubin and Ralph Garza have been cleared to return to baseball activities.

*Osuna might be available. Dusty:
I don't want them to know. You understand and this isn't football. You don't have to disclose stuff. As much as I hate to tell you guys that, it's the truth. 

*Clayton Kershaw was placed on the IL with a sketchy back.

Regular Season Kershaw: 169-74, 2.44 ERA / 1.01 WHIP, 2464K:577BB. 157 ERA+
Regular Season Verlander: 225-129, 3.33 ERA / 1.14 WHIP,  3006K:850BB. 129 ERA+

Postseason Kershaw: 9-11, 4.43 ERA / 1.11 WHIP, 170K:45BB.
Postseason Verlander: 14-11, 3.40 ERA / 1.07 WHIP, 205K:60BB

World Series Kershaw: 26.2IP, 23H/16ER, 27K:7BB, 5.40 ERA / 1.13 WHIP
World Series Verlander: 38IP, 35H/24ER, 39K:14BB, 5.68 ERA / 1.29 WHIP

Maybe back off of Kershaw.

*84 MLB players from 28 teams have tested positive for COVID.

*RIP Former Astros Scout Johan Maya.

*Yoenis Cespedes has hit a home run in three consecutive games spanning 803 days.

*The Toronto Pittsburgh Baltimore Blue Jays of Buffalo.

Holy crap, the Brewers’ new uniforms are so damn beautiful... 😍 pic.twitter.com/dZ87Vp3CGk

— Jim Weber (@JimMWeber) July 24, 2020

*Jason Heyward doesn't want to stick to sports.

*How to see Comet Neowise before it's gone.

*Heads-up, South Texas.

*A Musical Selection:

Saturday Morning Hot Links

The Astros needed a home run from Josh Reddick to tie the game and a home run from Yuli Gurriel to walk it off against the Mariners. This offense is - at present - a joke. Houston is 51-32 with a 4.5 game lead over Southeast Denton. Houston is 3-9 in their last 12 games. It's Verlander Day.

*The Astros are 7-1 against Seattle in 2019. They were 9-10 against the Mariners in 2018.

*Yuli Gurriel hit his 3rd homer of the week, and his first career walk-off home run to go with his first career home run in extra innings. Four of his eight home runs this season have been go-ahead homers. Gurriel:
We've had a couple tough games here and to win gives us a lot of confidence moving forward. I didn't feel great my previous at-bats, but in that at-bat, I remained focused, locked in. I hit a foul ball. I knew I could hit a fastball, and then I got the next one. Hit it out.

Hinch:
Really an emotional win for us in a game where it felt like we were in so many positions to win and we needed the win.

*Josh Reddick tied the game with a home run in the bottom of the 8th, his 10th home run of the year and his 40th career home run with the Astros. It's his eighth straight season with 10+ home runs. Reddick:
It felt like one of our biggest hits in the last week and a half. That's the swing we've been waiting on to pick up not only ourselves, the team, the ballpark. It was a completely different atmosphere when I came across the plate and saw our dugout going crazy. It felt good.

*More Hinch:
It's a big win for us, the way that it all went down. With all the missed opportunities, I could easily sit here and say we needed one big hit. You could script it with the way the game was going, and then 'Redd' picks us up and ties the game.

*Last three games, Astros' offense: 27 hits, five extra-base hits, seven walks, four runs, 36 left on base.

*As a team, the Astros are hitting .267/.342/.471 overall. But with runners in scoring position (Houston was 1x8 last night) they're hitting .248.

*Alex Bregman was 3x5. It is his 6th 3-hit game of the season. Five of those have come against AL West opponents. Houston is 6-0 when Bregman gets three hits in a game. Bregman has raised his OPS from .910 to .929 in the last four games.

*Jose Altuve was 0x5 with 0K:0BB. It was the 36th 0x5 game of his career. Here they are, by season:

2011: 4
2012: 5
2013: 6
2014: 4
2015: 6
2016: 1
2017: 1
2018: 7
2019: 2

*Wade Miley was excellent: 6IP, 3H/1ER, 2K:2BB. Twelve of his 18 outs were groundball outs. It's Miley's 10th start of the season out of 17 with 18+ outs.

*Brad Peacock was placed on the 10-Day IL due to "shoulder discomfort." It is a joke by now. Reymin Guduan was recalled to Houston. What is dead will never die. Hinch:
He probably could keep giving us 100 percent of what he's got, but obviously it didn't go well [Thursday] and we feel like with the off-days and the All-Star Break we can get ahead of this and avoid any more missed time. We expect him to be back in the rotation after the All-Star Break. A little bit of rest does everybody good, and we hope he can mend quickly.

So who will take Peacock's spot in the rotation? As Jake Kaplan points out, Cy Sneed would be on normal rest the next time Peacock's spot comes up. The All-Star Break begins after the games of Sunday, July 7. Here's the Astros' schedule until that point:

Saturday, June 29: Seattle
Sunday: Seattle
Monday: Off
Tuesday: At Colorado
Wednesday: At Colorado
Thursday: Off
Friday: At Anaheim
Saturday: At Anaheim
Sunday: At Anaheim

Peacock's last five starts (Thursday included): 25.1IP, 28H/18ER, 28K:7BB, 8HR. 6.39 ERA / 1.38 WHIP. The Astros are 1-4 in these last five starts, but also scored 1, 10, 0, 1, 0 runs in those starts.

*Yordan Alvarez didn't play last night in what has been described as a "precautionary" move after doing something to his knee.

*Texas Sports Nation looks at the other worthy Astros All-Stars.

*Aledmys Diaz took BP on the field prior to last night's game and could travel with the team to Colorado.

*Joe Smith threw a scoreless 7th for Round Rock in their 9-2 win, throwing nine of 10 pitches for strikes. Cionel Perez threw 5.2IP, 3H/1ER, 4K:2BB. Drew Ferguson (HR, 4RBI), Alex DeGoti, Nick Tanielu, and Chas McCormick (HR, 2BB, 3RBI) had two hits each.

*Somehow J.B. Bukauskas is the only Astros representative for the 2019 MLB Futures Game. He threw for Corpus last night, going 6IP, 9H/4ER, 3K:2BB, 2HR allowed in a 6-4 loss to Amarillo.

*Fayetteville lost 3-2, but Shawn Dubin (13th Round - 2018) threw 7IP, 2H/1ER, 9K:2BB. He has 55 strikeouts in 46IP in 2019, including a 30K:6BB line in his last 20IP.

*Quad Cities is enjoying a W3 with a 7-2 win over Burlington last night. Jonathan Bermudez and Cody Deason combined on the tandem start to throw 9IP, 4H/2ER, 18K:5BB.

*Tri-City has lost five straight games following a 3-0 loss to Aberdeen in which they were held to two hits.

*Jim Crane says extending the netting is "a possibility," but the Astros will wait to get "more information." A 2-year old kid got a fractured skull from a foul ball. That's the information I need.

*Nationals GM Mike Rizzo says they have time to evaluate where they are before pulling the trigger on a major trade (i.e., Scherzer).

*Rustin Dodd takes a look at Little Big League, on its 25th anniversary.

*I simply refuse to believe that Hunter Pence had never started an All-Star Game before 2019. It's his 4th All-Star team (2009 - HOU; 2011 - HOU; 2014 - SFG).

*Last night was the 12th anniversary of Craig Biggio's 3000th hit. We were in New York, so we weren't there, but did watch it on tv. My father-in-law tried to play the odds. Going into that game against Colorado, Biggio was hitting .238/.278/.387, stuck on 2,997 hits. My father-in-law bought tickets to all games in the series but the 1st game. Biggio had enjoyed six 3+ hit games in 2007 (including a 3x5 performance against Arlington on June 24), but it was a defensible decision to make. Colorado would end up pretty good - they would go on to get swept by the Red Sox in the World Series - but they were 38-40 going into the June 28 game, having lost six in a row, two of those by walk-off (and would lose on June 28 AND June 29 via Astros' walk-offs.) Anyway, Biggio got his 2nd - and last - 5-hit night of his career that night, my Father-in-Law got to see the next three games. Here's the SABR article by Frederick C. Bush on Biggio's 3000th hit.

*Inside the turbulent life of former phenom Jon Peters aka SUPERKID.

*Good job, USWNT.

*How the neighborhoods of Manhattan got their names.

*What it takes to make Glastonbury happen.

*Check and make sure your dog food isn't giving your Pupper heart disease.

Lose Yourself pic.twitter.com/usEIDq2GSC

— don zemmer (@DonZemmer) June 28, 2019

*A Musical Selection: