*First up, let's get to George Springer. After missing the last four games with a sore back, Springer did something to his hamstring making a sliding catch. It is being described as "significant." Springer:
It sucks, to be honest. It's hard, but I'll make it through. I've just got to support the team the best way I can.
Remember that Altuve has missed over two weeks for something they didn't think was that big of a deal. Hinch:
I'm not looking forward to the diagnosis, to be honest. It doesn't look very good. He never pulls himself out of a game like that. He was limping from the very beginning...Our best team has George Springer in the leadoff spot.
Have a nice cup of bleach and look forward to seeing Springer around the All-Star Break.
*Against Boston since the beginning of the 2017 season (postseason included), the Astros are 15-12, outscoring them 134-115. Fourteen of those games were decided by two runs or fewer.
*Anyway, on to the game, which the Astros won. Houston got four hits and one extra-base hit - Jake Marisnick's 6th home run of the year. It's the first time since September 5, 2017 that the Astros have gotten four hits, one extra-base hit, and won the game.
*Top four in the lineup (Springer-Bregman-Correa-Gurriel): 0x14, 1K:1BB.
*The Astros were 0x7 w/RISP. Reddick-White-Marisnick were a combined 0x5 w/RISP. That said, Marisnick made two great catches in center field to help seal the win. Hinch:
There's not much not to like (about Marisnick) in a game like that. When you're a bench player...you just want an opportunity. You just want a chance to show it. And he's doing great things on the field. It's pretty impressive.
Marisnick:
Anytime you get a chance to get in there and get consistent reps and see pitching consistently it makes it a little bit easier to make adjustments. When you're not playing every day and you're trying to make adjustments and make things work it's hard. So it's been nice to play every day.
*Wade Miley changed his attack plan on the Red Sox, throwing way more cutters this time. Miley: 6IP, 4H/1ER, 8K:2BB. The last time Wade Miley recorded 8+ strikeouts? June 17, 2017.
*Jackie Bradley Jr hit a home run in the 8th Inning off of Ryan Pressly, breaking his 40-game streak without allowing a run. Roberto Osuna allowed a home run in the 9th to Christian Vazquez, breaking his 18-game streak without allowing a run. It's the first time this season that the Astros have allowed a home run in the 8th and 9th innings.
*What. A. Slide. by Aledmys Diaz:
*Asked whether Yordan Alvarez's continued presence in Round Rock is Super-Two related, Luhnow:chose the red pill pic.twitter.com/Z555KPLRvR— Calhoun (@linkcalhoun) May 25, 2019
There is no rush, but there is a methodical plan that we're going through to make sure that when he get here we have him contribute and don't find out a month later that he wasn't ready or isn't able to play left field.
*Jake Kaplan says Corbin Martin's leash is longer thanks to McHugh's injury, though Framber might get sent back to Round Rock to stretch out. Good piece on Martin's struggles with pitch usage.
*Everyone, myself included, is kinda sorta wondering just WHAT THE HELL HAS HAPPENED TO FORREST WHITLEY. Chandler Rome, who has Access, did some digging. [Hey Siri, figure out how to get Access]. Luhnow says he might be hurt:
I think there's some arm fatigue, something in that area. There's no pain necessarily, just he's mentioned a couple times some discomfort.
At this point, it's probably better just to give him 10 days off and reset.
*The Astros' SLG is their most interesting stat.
*A.J. Hinch had to buy a bottle of wine for Gerrit Cole.
*Danny Knobler: What Verlander is doing right now, at Age 36, is unreal. Nolan Ryan comes to mind.
*Jayson Stark's Useless Info Department column is very Fun this week.
*From AstrosFuture: Go get Max Scherzer.
*FanGraphs: The cost of signing Keuchel or Kimbrel.
*Cavan Biggio made his MLB debut last night, just in case you had any hopes of holding on to any semblance of still being Young. BGO:
Obviously, it's hard to put into words. I can't tell you how exciting it is for our family and for him. He put the time and the effort and the work into it, and now to be able to be a big leaguer. We're excited about this evening.
Between the Bautista Bat Flip and Biggio, we're all okay with the Blue Jays doing well. Biggio was 0x3 with 2Ks. Lourdes Gurriel, Jr.
*Good Gesture:
*How the Fenway Sports Group built Liverpool.Thank you to the @Astros PR team including Gene Dias, who grew up in Hanson, Mass just like my Dad. https://t.co/W45OG4f62V— Ben Cafardo (@Ben_ESPN) May 24, 2019
*Yes, this photo of the line to summit Everest is real.
*A Musical Selection:
