Houston Astros

Yordan Álvarez's resume includes a World Series title, Rookie of the Year, Silver Slugger award, American League Championship Series MVP, three All-Star selections and, now, hitting for the cycle.

The Houston Astros slugger hit for the cycle during his team's game against the division-rival Seattle Mariners on Sunday. He was a double shy when he stepped to the plate in the top of the eighth and delivered exactly what he needed.

It seemed like it would be a fairly normal game for Álvarez when he singled in the first inning, and a cycle still seemed like quite the long shot even after his solo homer in the fourth.

After all, he had five career triples coming into Sunday's game, and he's not exactly known as a speedster on the base paths who can stretch doubles into triples on a consistent basis.

However, his triple came in the sixth inning when Julio Rodríguez nearly made a leaping catch at the center field wall. Unfortunately for the Mariners, he was unable to come down with the ball and ended up leaving the game with an injury he suffered on the play.

That meant left fielder Dylan Moore had to come over and play the ball, which allowed Álvarez to end up on third. That left him needing just a double, and he picked it up in his final at-bat.

Not only did he finish with the cycle, he may have the chance to get his home-run ball since the fan who caught it, Amy Franz, said she wanted to get it to him:

Unfortunately for the Astros, Álvarez's incredible game wasn't enough to notch the win.

The rest of the team had five hits to his four, while Álvarez drove in two of the four runs and scored two of the four runs. Nobody else had more than one hit, although Jeremy Peña launched a solo homer in the seventh inning

Still, Álvarez's individual efforts stood out, and Houston can at least take solace knowing it took two of three from its American League West rivals.

The Houston Astros are seeking a few upgrades before the July 30 trade deadline, and they've reportedly eyed a pair of veterans from a National League squad.

Per The Athletic's Jim Bowden, Astros general manager Dana Brown "has made it clear to other front offices that he's focused on adding a veteran starter and an impactful long- or short-term solution at first base." While Houston has interest in a long list of players, Brown has reportedly had conversations with the New York Mets about star first baseman Pete Alonso and veteran starter Luis Severino.

The Astros' starting rotation is banged up with Justin Verlander on the 15-day injured list and Cristian Javier on the 60-day IL. At first base, the team is currently relying on rookie Joey Loperfido, who is hitting .288 with two homers and 13 RBI in 28 games.

The Mets are still hoping to contend for a wild-card spot, so it could be difficult to convince them to give up some of their top players. Alonso leads the team with 18 home runs, while Severino has a 6-3 record with a 3.78 ERA.

Bowden noted that Brown has also "discussed Christian Walker with the [Arizona] Diamondbacks, Cody Bellinger with the [Chicago] Cubs and Andrew Vaughn with the [Chicago] White Sox," so it appears that the Astros have a few alternatives in mind if they aren't able to land the duo from New York.

Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Christian Walker is reportedly a "dream target" for the Houston Astros ahead of the MLB trade deadline, per the New York Post's Jon Heyman.

Heyman reported that the Astros are seeking a starter who can hit, potentially a first baseman, and Walker is the player they'd prefer.

Walker, who will be a free agent after the season, has 20 home runs, 59 RBI and a .267 batting average to start the season. Landing him ahead of the July 30 trade deadline would certainly be the upgrade the Astros are seeking, but it would likely take a lot to get Arizona to trade him.

The report about Houston's pursuit of Walker comes amid buzz surrounding Toronto Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. In June, Astros insider Michael Schwab reported that Guerrero is one of the top trade targets for Houston, which would be another potential upgrade at first base.

How aggressive the Astros are willing to be to improve is unclear, but they would likely need to put together a lofty haul for either Walker or Guerrero.

After a somewhat shaky start to the year, Houston has put together a solid stretch over the past month to get itself above .500 on the year. The Astros have won 12 of their last 14 games and currently sit in second place in the AL West.

It appears that Justin Verlander's neck injury is more serious than the Houston Astros initially thought.

The Astros announced on Tuesday that Verlander has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to June 16, due to neck discomfort. The team scratched him from his scheduled start on June 15 against the Detroit Tigers in hopes of avoiding placing him on the IL, but it now looks like it was a necessity to shut him down.

In 10 starts this season, Verlander is 3-2 with a 3.95 ERA, a 1.21 WHIP and 51 strikeouts in 57.0 innings of work. However, he's been in a bit of a slump recently, allowing a combined eight earned runs over his past two starts. He had surrendered two or fewer earned runs in six of his first eight starts of the year.

The 41-year-old spoke about how his neck issues were affecting him when he spoke to reporters on Saturday.

"When I was out there, I felt like it wasn't really bothering me," Verlander said. "But when I go home and sit down and really think about it, I think it's too much of a coincidence and my mechanics were really thrown off."

The three-time AL Cy Young Award winner is the ace of an Astros staff that ranks 21st in MLB with a collective 4.20 ERA. Houston hasn't been the juggernaut it has been in recent years, as the team sits in a tie for second in the AL West with a 33-39 record.

The Astros announced that right-hander Nick Hernandez has been recalled from Triple-A to take Verlander's spot on the active roster. Hernandez has made two relief appearances this season and has a 1.93 ERA.

Houston will be opening a three-game series against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday evening.

Houston Astros general manager Dana Brown won't get the axe with the team falling significantly below expectations to start the 2024 MLB season, according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale.

Nightengale reported Sunday that "Brown's job is safe" with two years left on his current contract.

The Astros are third in the American League West at 32-39. They're nine games back of the first-place Seattle Mariners and trail the Minnesota Twins by 6.5 games for the final wild-card spot.

Beyond its record, José Abreu's release symbolized how Houston has drifted from the team-building strategies that served it so well under previous regimes.

Abreu was a shell of his former MVP self after signing with the Astros ahead of the 2023 season. Josh Hader, who's in the first year of his five-year, $95 million deal, has a 3.82 ERA through 29 appearances. Fellow reliever Rafael Montero, who's due to earn another $11.5 million in 2025, is a sunk cost at this point.

If you were to ask fans who's to blame for the Astros' present situation, though, few would put the general manager at the top of the list. They might even question Brown's actual culpability in putting this squad together despite being the GM.

Before Brown was even hired, ESPN's Jeff Passan reported in November 2022 how team owner Jim Crane was exerting more influence over front office matters, drawing a comparison to Dallas Cowboys owner/GM Jerry Jones. Crane also sought the input of more "baseball men" instead of the analytically driven personnel who had largely come to populate the organization.

Hall of Fame first baseman Jeff Bagwell, who became a senior advisor to ownership and baseball operations in April 2023, has become a key figure in that shift.

To that end, firing Brown might bring even more scrutiny upon Crane. It would almost assuredly be read by many within the fanbase as the owner scapegoating the general manager. There would be even more questions about who's running the front office too.

Plus, making a midseason GM change isn't the thing that's going to turn the Astros' fortunes around, unless Brown's replacement could explain why Alex Bregman is slugging .405 or provide a magical elixir for a pitching staff that has been hammered by injuries.

The Houston Astros scratched starter Justin Verlander ahead of Saturday's game against the Detroit Tigers because of a neck injury.

Verlander told reporters he's been dealing with pain for the last couple of weeks but does not anticipate landing on the injured list.

The 41-year-old is 3-2 with a 3.95 ERA and 1.21 WHIP this season. He's given up eight earned runs over his last 10 innings pitched while allowing 16 baserunners. The three-time Cy Young winner had not publicly mentioned issues with his neck before Saturday, but it's clear something was causing a downtick in performance.

"When I was out there, I felt like it wasn't really bothering me," Verlander said. "But when I go home and sit down and really think about it, I think it's too much of a coincidence and my mechanics were really thrown off."

Verlander gave up two or fewer runs in six of his first eight starts this season before struggling to start June.

Spencer Arrighetti will start in Verlander's place. The rookie righty is 3-5 with a 5.33 ERA and 1.62 WHIP this season.

Houston currently sits a disappointing 32-38 heading into Saturday's game against Detroit.

Houston Astros general manager Dana Brown announced Friday that the team has released first baseman José Abreu.

In 35 games this season, the 37-year-old Abreu hit just .124 (.361 OPS) with two home runs and seven RBI.

Per Jon Morosi of MLB Network, the Astros still owe Abreu around $30 million on his three-year, $58.5 million deal.

Abreu has played 11 big league seasons. He spent his first nine with the Chicago White Sox and his last two for the Astros. Abreu is a three-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger who also took home 2020 American League MVP honors.

During his final season in Chicago (2022), Abreu hit .304 (.824 OPS) with 15 home runs and 75 RBI. He then left for the Astros in free agency but could not replicate that same success, hitting just .237 (.680 OPS). Abreu did amass 18 home runs and 190 RBI, however, over 141 games.

The 2024 campaign has been disastrous, however. The Astros optioned Abreu to the team's spring training facility in West Palm Beach, Florida in early May to try and figure out his hitting woes. At the time, he was hitting .099. with just one extra-base hit and three RBI.

Abreu returned on May 27, but he didn't fare much better. Over 13 games, Abreu went just 7-for-42 (.167) with one homer and two RBI.

With the 31-38 Astros floundering in third place in the AL West, Houston doesn't have the time to see if Abreu can turn it around. And as it stands now, it's unclear if Abreu will be able to do that. He's enjoyed an exceptional MLB career with many accolades, but it's possible that time has simply caught up to him.

Jon Singleton should step in as the team's primary first baseman. This season, he's hit .213 (.649 OPS) with five home runs and 14 RBI in 50 games.

The Houston Astros will reportedly be without starting pitcher Cristian Javier for at least the rest of the 2024 season.

Chandler Rome of The Athletic reported Tuesday that Javier needs Tommy John surgery on his elbow injury and will undergo the procedure on Thursday. Orthopedic surgeon Dr. Keith Meister recommended the surgery, which could sideline the right-hander for 12 to 14 months.

Rome noted Javier went on the injured list in mid-April with what was deemed "neck discomfort" and returned after 18 days.

However, he struggled upon his return with velocity that "plummeted during his final outing on May 21." The team placed him back on the injured list just three days after that with what was then described as "right forearm discomfort."

Forearm concerns are worrisome for pitchers, and this is a difficult development for both the 27-year-old and the team.

Pitching injuries have been a pattern for the Astros, as Luis García, Lance McCullers Jr., José Urquidy and Framber Valdez are among those who have missed time this season. Justin Verlander also started the season on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation.

The injury concerns have contributed to a disappointing start to the season for the 27-34 Astros, who are in third place in the American League West and seven games behind the first-place Seattle Mariners.

Houston has made the playoffs in each of the last seven years during a span that includes two World Series titles, four World Series appearances and six division crowns, so it is not accustomed to playing at such an inconsistent level.

Javier is yet another injury the team will have to overcome.

He was at best for the Astros during the 2022 season with a 2.54 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 194 strikeouts in 148.2 innings across 30 appearances. He was also brilliant in the postseason that year with an 0.71 ERA, 0.55 WHIP and 16 strikeouts in 12.2 innings.

Javier had a 3.89 ERA in seven appearances this season.

Houston Astros starting pitcher José Urquidy could require a second Tommy John surgery, per ESPN's Alden González.

Urquidy recently made a rehab start with the Triple-A Sugar Land Space Cowboys but was pulled from the game early with right forearm discomfort.

According to González, Urquidy will visit Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas soon to see if another surgery will be necessary. Urquidy first underwent Tommy John surgery last May.

Urquidy appeared in two minor league games this season for the Space Cowboys and Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks and had no issues as he rehabbed a forearm injury. At the end of May, he was warming up to pitch for the Space Cowboys when he walked off the mound.

The May 24 appearance was expected to be Urquidy's last rehab appearance before joining the Astros for the first time this season, but it seems he could be off the mound for an extended period depending on the severity of his injury.

In 16 appearances last year, Urquidy recorded 45 strikeouts and a 5.29 ERA across 63 innings pitched. The sixth-year veteran has a 3.98 career ERA and has spent his entire career with Houston.

The news of Urqidy's potential surgery comes amid a sluggish start to the season for the Astros, who are 26-34 and sitting in third place in the AL West. Houston has struggled on the mound this season, posting the eighth-worst team ERA at 4.27.

José Abreu believes he is a new man after being recalled to the Houston Astros.

The three-time All-Star was demoted to the Astros' Florida complex team in May after starting the season 7-of-71 at the plate. As he prepares to rejoin Houston next week, he said that he believes he is in a better place and that the demotion was "the best thing I've ever gone through in my career."

"What I can tell you is my head is in a good spot right now," Abreu said, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic. "When I was going through it, when your head is not in a good spot, you feel like everything is going down. There was a point, and I'm telling you from the bottom of my heart, I couldn't even know how to hit, how to field. I was a little lost. But I'm humble enough to recognize that and I'm telling you I'm trying to be the best José Abreu I can be and the one you guys know."

Abreu's tenure in Houston has not been smooth. He hit .237/.296/.383 with 18 home runs and 90 RBIs in his first season with the team. While those numbers are not horrible, they are a step down from his career numbers and a far cry from his output during his best years with the Chicago White Sox.

It was expected that he would dial it back and excel this season, but the disastrous start only made this three year, $58.5 million deal look worse.

He acknowledged that his swing mechanics were his main issue and his initial unwillingness to fix them was not allowing him to break his slump.

"I was wrong on my swing. The games sped up on you too much and sometimes it's tough to see where you're at. I saw videos and everything, but I didn't see it. But now, (hitting coach Alex Cintrón), Brantley, Bagwell, Rene, we all have a good group and we found it. I hope I can show it right away, but it's baseball and it's a process. Hopefully I can get there."

The Astros certainly could use a jolt. The team is currently 23-29 on the season and sits third in the AL West. This comes as the franchise has reached the postseason in seven consecutive seasons and in eight of the last nine.

While it's still early in the season, Abreu improving and helping the lineup is certainly something that could help the Astros flip the script on the season.