*The Astros put the whoop on Colorado at Coors Field with a 13-6 win in which they recorded 20 hits. Houston is 14-10 with a 7-game winning streak and are 2.5 games behind Oakland. Houston and Oakland have the exact same run differential, at +27.
*Houston got 20 hits for the 24th time in franchise history. The last time they did it was all the way back on August 10, 2019.
*Kyle Tucker was 4x5 with two triples and a home run. He was a double away from the cycle (wink). He is the 19th Astro to record two triples in the same game, and the first since Jose Altuve did it on May 17, 2017. The club record for triples in a game is three, set by Craig Reynolds on May 16, 1981. No Houston Astro had ever before recorded a two-triple/one-homer game. It's the 5th time in MLB history that a player had two triples, a homer, and a single since Willie Mays did it in 1958.
*Jose Altuve and George Springer each had two-hit games.
*Carlos Correa enjoyed his 3rd 3-hit game of the season.
*6-9 in the lineup (Correa, Tucker, Jones, Maldonado) combined for an 11x19, 10RBI night.
*Congrats to Taylor Jones, who got his first MLB hits and RsBI last night.
*Framber: 7.2IP, 7H/3R (1ER), 5K:1BB. In three starts since rejoining the rotation, Framber: 20.2IP, 18H/3ER, 19K:5BB.
*Joey Bagadonuts: 0.1IP, 2H/3ER, 1K:2BB. He faced five batters, and threw 13 strikes in 27 pitches, in his first game action since July 26.
*Well the worst news of the day is that, after two games, Yordan Alvarez is done for the season. He will undergo season-ending surgery to repair a partial tear of his patella tendon. James Click said he had an MRI in February that showed no structural damage.
This, of course, is incredibly stupid. After some intense Googling, I found this probably-believable we bsite that says he should be back to normal in 4-6 months. If we go back to the way-back machine and imagine a world in which he has this surgery in, say, late February, it would set up a return to action for Yordan - on the long-end of the spectrum - next week. Yordan is tied for 5th on the Astros with one (1) home run. I have grown weary of this discussion.
*The next worst news of the day is that Alex Bregman is day-to-day with a right hamstring strain, the same moons over his hammy he's dealt with in the past. Bregman:
I felt it when I was running down the line to first base, right when I was about to make the turn to go to second. Just disappointed. I want to be out there every day playing with my guys. I was starting to feel pretty damn good, and I think right now just go with it day to day and see how it feels tomorrow.
Bregman had a nine-game hitting streak when the injury happened, and he was 11x28 with 4K:7BB in that span.
*When Michael Brantley returns - possibly Saturday - he'll be in the field.
*Chandler Rome: Kyle Tucker's chance to establish himself is here.
*Jake Kaplan: How the Astros had the inside track on signing Good Cristian Javier.
*ESPN's Sam Miller: Why your favorite team is cursed. Are the Astros cursed? Yes, yes, and yes.
*SI's Emma Baccellieri: Everything about 2020's stats is weird.
*Ever since Titty Baby Chris Woodward complained about Fernando Tatis, Jr hitting a grand slam, the Padres hit a grand slam in every game against the Rangers and folks we just love to see it. Did a CTRL-F on the Unwritten Rules and didn't see anything.
*Never forget that Trevor Bauer is an insufferable prick.
*ESPN: How minor-leaguers are getting by without a season that undercompensates them in the first place.
*What you say when you think no one can hear you is exactly who you are.
*Mental Floss: L'Inconnue de la Seine
*Rolling Stone: Inside the end of The Beatles, the heartbreak, the brotherhood, and why the music still matters.
*Leeds United will open the Premier League season against defending champs Liverpool on September 12.
*A Musical Selection:
