Houston Astros

By Chip Countdown to the All Star break: Thirteen games to go, two games under .500, 4 games out of first, 4 1/2 behind the wild card leader. 16-10 in June. • •• ••• •• • There is plenty of ranting and...

By Chip The Astros are in the stretch run . . . to the All Star break. Sixteen games until the AL meets the NL and most of you -- according to yesterday's poll -- believe they'll finish the stretch about .500....

By Chip 11, 17, 36. Those are some important numbers for the Astros and they'll help to draw some lines in the sand for players and management, perhaps even for the future direction of the franchise. Predict the Astros' record at All...

by Adam J. Morris on Jun 17, 2009 1:20 PM CDT 0 comments More photos » by Dave Einsel - AP 23 days ago: Texas Rangers' Ian Kinsler, right, rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run as Houston Astros pitcher Mike Hampton, left, walks toward the ...

By Chip The Nationals seem anxious to get rid of manager Manny Acta and many Astros' fans seem to think Acta would be a good fit in Houston. So here's an idea that might save face for the Nationals: Put together a...

 TX Evan Hochschild, a blogger on crawfishboxes.com, was kind enough to answer a few questions about the Houston Astros. Some teams remain interested in trading for Roy Oswalt and many Rangers fans wonder if he would be good fit here. ... Berkman, Tejada lead Astros past Diamondbacks 6-4 Sify

Sports Network) - Houston Astros catcher Ivan Rodriguez is closing in on Carlton Fisk's MLB record for games caught in a place where he spent the first 12 years of his career. Tonight, Rodriguez and the Astros will open a three- game interleague set ...

Houston Astros catcher Pudge Rodriguez, who spent the first 12 years of his career playing for the Texas Rangers, can tie baseball's all-time record Tuesday by catching his 2226th game, tying Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk. "Being able to do that will be ...

The Houston Astros selected San Diego State third baseman Erik Castro in the 10th round (311th overall) of the 2009 MLB First-Year Player Draft. (Photo by Glenn Connelly/SDSU Athletics) Erik Castro spent the past two seasons at San Diego State ...

By Chip Miguel Tejada was an all star last season. There's a shot that he could be named to the NL team again next month. The 36-year-old (did I get that one right?) shortstop is still hitting eye-popping numbers at the plate,...

 CA Johnson continues to be one of the best starting pitchers in baseball, while Nunez and Martinez have struggled out of the bullpen. 19. Houston Astros (28-32|24)—The Big Puma cranked out his 300th career home run and Tejada hit his 2000th hit. ...

Charlotte 49er third baseman Aaron Bray has had a great last month. In late May, at the Atlantic 10 Championships in Dayton, Ohio, needing just one hit to tie the all-time career hits record at Charlotte, he ended up with four hits to help the Niners stave off elimination against Fordham.

If you're looking for a reason to keep watching the Astros, Hunter Pence is a good place to start. “He has a certain joy, doesn't he?” Geoff Blum said. ... and more »

Astros' Hampton Beats Pirates Again, 2-1  Texas It was tough Friday in Houston - also against Maholm. ... Glavine's eight-game 25, 1993. ... McLouth is one of only two Pirates players to homer off a left-hander yet this season. He has three, and Craig Monroe has two. ... For only the second time in ...

 IL Then Hurricane Ike hit Houston, canceling games and throwing the Astros off their rhythm (to add insult to injury, they faced the Cubs in a “home” makeup game that took place in Milwaukee, just up the road from Chicago). Right now, the Astros are 18-27 ...

Cincinnati, OH (Sports Network) - Houston Astros catcher Ivan Rodriguez left Monday's 8-5 loss to Cincinnati because of a left knee irritation. In the bottom of the first inning, the Reds' Adam Rosales came around to score on Aaron Harang's single, ...

National Post At Houston, Joey Votto hit a go-ahead, two-run double in the seventh inning to lift the Reds to their third win in four games. Bronson Arroyo (2-1) allowed three runs and nine hits in seven innings. Arthur Rhodes got out of a ... Pirates feast on red-hot Marlins Boston Herald

There's no such optimism in the Houston Astros clubhouse. The Pirates look to build on another strong outing and notch their first back-to-back wins of the young season Wednesday night when they continue a three-game home series against the NL Central ...

By Jenifer Langosch / MLB.com PITTSBURGH -- Zach Duke pumped his fist and raised it in the air. He was celebrating a personal accomplishment, yes, but even more so he was recognizing the significance Monday's 7-0 win over the Astros could have for this ...

The Astros’ Cecil Cooper (right) led his team to the best record in the NL after the All-Star break. OF Milton Bradley, RHP Kevin Gregg, RHP Aaron Heilman, RHP Luiz Vizcaino, INF Aaron Miles, C Paul Bako, OF Joey Gathright. ... They Will Be Gunning For Cubs NYMfansonly.com

21. HOUSTON ASTROS — This is clearly a franchise in decline. The Astros aren't really going to get better with the Carlos Lees, Miguel Tejadas and Mike Hamptons of the world. Blow it up and start over. 22. TEXAS RANGERS — Players come and go from ... This Date In Baseball The Spread

By Mark(noreply@blogger.com) The response of baseball owners to the Yankees unprecedented free agent spending spree continues as another owner has joined the call for a salary cap. The difference this time is that the owner does not represent a small market club as did most of those who pushed for a cap in the past and as d...

Let's review why the Astros have missed the playoffs three straight years. The reason is that Drayton McLane has made some mistakes. I can't see this ever happening. If it does, Drayton McLane becomes another green-bean salesman in Temple.

How about those Astros? Some run in the second half. I don't know about you, but I haven't seen such excitement since the World Series. Those kids did almost everything right for a couple of months. If you didn't like your 2008 Astros, you probably don't like ice cream.

I haven't talked to him about it, but here's what I know. First, Drayton McLane wants Oswalt and Lance Berkman to finish their careers with the Astros. Both have a chance to make the Hall of Fame, and he wants them to go in as Astros. The Astros listened to offers for Oswalt a couple of years ago whe...

Major League Baseball is the first professional sport to try selling tickets, sponsorships, etc., since the ecnomic collapse, and teams are afraid. Everything I've written about Drayton McLane and his payroll numbers should now be viewed differently.

If you remember, the Yankees didn’t offer Roger Clemens arbitration after he retired in 2003, and when he decided to sign with Houston later that winter, the Yankees didn’t get a pick from the Astros. Apparently, they believe Mussina will live up to his word and stay retired. Then again, eve...

If you remember, the Yankees didn’t offer Roger Clemens arbitration after he retired in 2003, and when he decided to sign with Houston later that winter, the Yankees didn’t get a pick from the Astros. Apparently, they believe Mussina will live up to his word and stay retired. Then again, eve...

INSIDE PITCH Six of the Astros' scouts, including assistant general manager Bobby Heck, were in attendance in Boca Chica, Dominican Republic, recently to watch infielder Dayan Viciedo, a Cuban defector. Latin American scouting director Felix Francisco, East Coast supervisor Clare...

Filed under: Phillies, Rays, Red Sox, MLB PlayoffsIn the Playoff Pulse series, our MLB editor takes on a hot October topic. Of course, that doesn't mean that the Phillies are dead in the water heading into the World Series. We know that anything can happen in a short series -- the 2006 Cardina...

Everyone else: Rays at Tigers 1:05 EDT Yankees at Red Sox 1:35 and 7:35 EDT Nationals at Phillies 1:35 EDT Blue Jays at Orioles 1:35 EDT Braves at Astros 2:05 EDT Reds at Cardinals 2:15 EDT Rangers at Angels 3:35 EDT Dodgers at Giants 4:05 EDT Pirates at Padres 4:05 EDT Athletics at Mariners 4...

By Jim McLennan Arizona continued to pull away, as Reynolds made the score 7-1, with his 82nd RBI of the season. Any faint chance the Astros had of coming back, was then removed when Chris Young came up with the bases loaded in the sixth - I note that Young was batting #2 against a right-handed starter... Montero...

HOUSTON (AP) - Lance Berkman hit a two-run, go ahead home run in the eighth inning to help power Houston past San Francisco 7-4 for the Astros eighth ... Baseball notes: White Sox hit four consecutive homers Kentucky.com Major League Baseball Uniontown Herald Standard

By Rob(noreply@blogger.com) Again I Missed The Ugly Parts: Astros 8, Dodgers 5 While out looking for a Mother's Day card (on Mother's Day? Slacker.), I left the car with the Dodgers comfortably leading the Astros by a 2-0 score in the top of the seventh. With the Dodgers' generally reliable bullpen getting ready to engag...

By Josh Martin The win puts the Redbirds at 15-10 on the year, in 2nd place in the NL Central, and 1 1/2 games behind Chicago.  Tomorrow is the rubber game of the series as Kyle Lohse gets the nod for the good guys. Game # 25 Sat. April 26, 2008 Cardinals 4 Astros 3 Adam Wainwright pitched the full nine innings for S...

The guys also examine Albert Pujols‘ squabble with Houston pitcher Brandon Backe following the Cardinals slugger’s slide into Astros catcher J.R. Towles in the eighth inning of the Cardinals’ 5-3 win Tuesday. The show documents a huge HR day for the Angels in Anaheim, drunk fans in Toronto...

By Leitch Here's the weird thing, though. If I put my optimism hat on for a second -- and it ain't easy, but I'll do it for you, Deadspin readers -- I can see a decent lineup. Roll with me now: Michael Bourn is an unproven entity, but he's got exciting potential and blazing speed. Kaz Matsui is coming off a str...

By David Hannes For a record setting 15th time this season, the Brewers blew a lead of 3 runs or more, and lost to the Astros, 9-7. Thankfully, the Cubs and Cards also lost. The Brewers added 3 more runs in the bottom of the sixth, and all were charged to Oswalt–Oswalt left after 5.67 IP and 5 ER.

By Brian McTaggart(brian.mctaggart@chron.com) This isn't exactly the Astros telling Chris Burke he's their everyday second baseman, but the decision to give Burke most of the starts on the road while resting Craig Biggio is his best chance yet to show management what he... This isn't exactly the Astros telling Chris Burke he's their ever...

By Jose de Jesus Ortiz(jose.ortiz@chron.com) Honestly, folks, it has become hard to watch the Astros, especially because it's difficult to watch such wonderful, classy guys struggle. I promise you if you got to know Roy Oswalt, Woody Williams, Carlos Lee, Hunter Pence, Lance Berkman, Morgan Ensberg, Brad Ausmus, Brad Lidge, the en...

I knew he didn't have the money to do much more with the offense than sign Carlos Lee. I believed that if Lance Berkman and Lee were dominant, that if Morgan Ensberg's shoulder was healthy, the Astros would score enough runs. I thought Craig Biggio, Luke Scott and Chris Burke would do far more t...

Growing up Deep in the Heart of Texas, Diamondbacks outfielder Chris Young, a Houston native, attended his share of Astros games. But he had never before stepped onto the field at Minute Maid Park until Friday afternoon.

At the beginning of this season, the Astros had four players they probably couldn't afford to lose and stay competitive: Lance Berkman, Carlos Lee, Roy Oswalt and Jason Jennings. Right now about, Purpura and Drayton McLane may be wishing they'd tried just a teensy bit harder to re-sign An...

HUMBLE, Texas Jason Gore got a boost from the Rocket in the Houston Open. Wearing a black Houston Astros cap that Roger Clemens gave him, Gore shot a 4under 68 on Friday to join a sixplayer logjam at the top.

Audio: Astros manager Phil Garner on prospects in Round Rock Audio: Express manager Ricky Bennett on quality of talent on team Audio: Hunter Pence on being held in high regard by seasoned veterans Audio: Round Rock pitching coach Burt...

By Jose de Jesus Ortiz(joe.conway@chron.com) Phil Garner told Brian McTaggart that Lidge will pitch Wednesday and then again Thursday against Class AAA Round Rock. • • • Roy Oswalt and Lidge will pitch in a minor-league game Wednesday. Oswalt, of course, is having a stellar spring. Lidge is not, but Lidge also is adamant that he usually h...

By Jose de Jesus Ortiz(joe.conway@chron.com) Astacio's highlight with the organization was likely last year at Class AAA Round Rock. His low moment was probably the game-winning home run he gave up in Game 3 of the World Series at Minute Maid Park. He also gave up the game-winning home run in Game 3 of the 2005 World Series against the Chic...

Brad Lidge goes nowhere. Got that? Nowhere? He pitches the ninth inning for the Houston Astros next season. No trade gets Brad Lidge from the Astros. Miguel Tejada won't get me to part with Brad Lidge. Pat Burrell won't do it, either. If the Phillies called and offered Ryan Howard straight up... Uh,...

I'm very excited to hear that you have a source telling you that about Lee. Now this is going to sound absolutely crazy but I think (the Astros) should try and also get Soriano, and let him play second base on the road and right field at home.