KYLE TUCKER

New Houston Astros general manager Dana Brown hopes some of Cristian Javier’s teammates follow the pitcher’s example and agree to longterm contracts.

Hey guys, it’s Ari Alexander with the Astros as they get ready to head back to spring training next week.

All-Star outfielder Kyle Tucker went to salary arbitration with the World Series champion Houston Astros, asking for $7.5 million rather than the team’s $5 million offer.

Hey guys it’s Ari Alexander, covering the Astros offseason and I’m looking at ARBITRATION DAY! Friday the 13th was when most arbitration deals get done and the Astros knocked out six of their eight very quickly.

Let’s go Astros! Six players, including 2B Jose Altuve, DH Yordan Alvarez, RHP Ryan Pressly, OF Kyle Tucker, LHP Framber Valdez and RHP Justin Verlander, have been named to the All-MLB Team presented by Arm & Hammer and OxiClean.

José Abreu has spent his entire nine-year MLB career with the Chicago White Sox, but Astros owner Jim Crane isn’t worried about how the newly signed first baseman will fit in with his teammates in Houston.

José Abreu and the World Series champion Astros have agreed to a three-year contract, adding another powerful bat to Houston’s lineup.

Houston Astros center fielder Chas McCormick and fill-in first baseman Trey Mancini both made key defensive plays in the late innings that helped preserve a 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 5 of the World Series.

“That's the theme: we get punched in the face the first game, then we win the second game," Astros outfielder Chas McCormick said.

Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola had another rough outing in Game 4 and lost for the first time in the World Series.

Cristian Javier, Bryan Abreu and Rafael Montero held the Philadelphia Phillies hitless through eight innings in Game 4 of the World Series, and the Houston Astros led 5-0 after knocking out Aaron Nola in a five-run fifth.

Cristian Javier and Bryan Abreu held the Philadelphia Phillies hitless through seven innings in Game 4 of the World Series, and the Houston Astros led 5-0 after knocking out Aaron Nola in a five-run fifth.

Astros rookie shortstop and AL Championship Series MVP Jeremy Peña won his first Gold Glove Award and Houston right fielder Kyle Tucker joined his teammate on the list announced before Game 3 of the World Series.

Houston Astros Jeremy Peña and Kyle Tucker have received a top honor ahead of game 3 of the World Series. They won the 2022 Rawlings Gold Glove Award for their respective positions.

Kyle Schwarber had big swings on consecutive pitches for the Philadelphia Phillies when they needed a comeback in Game 2 of the World Series.

Down 5-0 early against Astros ace Justin Verlander, the Phillies became the first team in 20 years to overcome a five-run deficit to win a World Series game.

The Astros and Phillies travel Friday to Texas, where Game 6 of the World Series will be played a night later.

The Philadelphia Phillies do not want to get off their magic carpet ride any time soon - they came back from five runs down to win Game 1 of the World Series.

Kyle Tucker got the fans jumping with a leadoff homer in the second inning.

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Aaron Nola was nowhere near perfect for the Philadelphia Phillies in Houston for Game 1 of the World Series.

Aaron Nola was nowhere near perfect for the Philadelphia Phillies in Houston for Game 1 of the World Series.

See which former Corpus Christi Hooks baseball players are taking the field for the Astros in the 2022 World Series.

A capsule look at the best-of-seven World Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros.

The Houston Astros are off to the World Series for the fourth time in six seasons.

Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies are set to play the Houston Astros in the World Series.

Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies are set to play the Houston Astros in the World Series.

Yankees All-Star pitcher Nestor Cortes left Game 4 of the AL Championship Series with an injured left groin after allowing a three-run homer to Houston’s Jeremy Pena in the third inning.

Cristian Javier and Houston’s bullpen combined on a three-hitter, Chas McCormick followed a dropped flyball with an early two-run homer and the Astros beat Gerrit Cole and the New York Yankees 5-0 to take a 3-0 AL Championship Series lead.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone is blaming on the team’s loss in Game 2 of the ALCS on the roof of Minute Maid Park being open.

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone is blaming on the team’s loss in Game 2 of the ALCS on the roof of Minute Maid Park being open.

The Yankees’ season keeps coming down to Gerrit Cole.

Alex Bregman hit an early three-run homer, Framber Valdez pitched seven strong innings and the Houston Astros edged the New York Yankees 3-2 to take a 2-0 lead in the AL Championship Series.

Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña and outfielder Kyle Tucker are named finalists for the 2022 Golden Glove Awards.

Slugger Yordan Alvarez once again played a huge role in the Houston Astros' Game 2 win over the Seattle Mariners to take a commanding lead in the ALDS.

Yordan Alvarez and his mighty bat did it yet again, launching a go-ahead, two-run homer in the sixth inning off Seattle ace Luis Castillo that lifted the Houston Astros over the Mariners 4-2 for a 2-0 lead in the AL Division Series.

Aaron Nola took a perfect game into the seventh inning and Kyle Schwarber homered twice as the Philadelphia Phillies clinched their first playoff berth in 11 years with a 3-0 win over the Houston Astros Monday night.

Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies hoped to be in this position.

Tampa Bay Rays ace Shane McClanahan was pulled in the fifth inning with neck tightness during a 5-0 loss to the Houston Astros.

Seth Brown homered and drove in four runs, Cole Irvin overcame a rocky start and the Oakland Athletics beat the Houston Astros 8-5.

Aledmys Díaz hit a two-run homer, Lance McCullers Jr. had a solid start and the Houston Astros beat the Oakland Athletics 5-2 on Thursday night for their fifth straight victory.

Cristian Javier allowed two hits in six shutout innings, and the Houston Astros beat Detroit 2-1 for a seven-game season sweep of the Tigers.

Rookie Hunter Brown pitched six strong innings in his hometown and the Houston Astros beat the Detroit Tigers 6-3 on Tuesday.

Framber Valdez pitched his first career shutout and the Houston Astros beat the Detroit Tigers 7-0.

Alex Bregman and Trey Mancini hit two of Houston’s five home runs, and the AL West-leading Astros defeated the Los Angeles Angels, 12-4, on Sunday for their 90th win of the season.

José Altuve scored the winning run on a wild pitch with two outs in the 10th inning as the Houston Astros rallied for a 4-3 win over the Texas Rangers.

Hunter Brown dazzled in his major league debut, scattering three hits across six impressive innings as the Houston Astros beat Texas 1-0 to hand the Rangers their ninth straight defeat.

Jose Altuve had three hits and drove in three runs and José Urquidy pitched four-hit ball over seven innings as the Houston Astros defeated the Los Angeles Angels 9-1.

Lance McCullers Jr. continued to impress in his return from a forearm flexor strain, pitching into the sixth inning as the Houston Astros finished off a 4-2 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

Jose Altuve drove in two runs and scored two more for the Houston Astros in a 5-3 win over the Texas Rangers and their All-Star starter Martín Pérez.

Anthony Santander and Austin Hays homered, and Dean Kremer pitched into the eighth inning, leading the Baltimore Orioles to a 3-1 win over the Houston Astros.

Rookie Kyle Bradish pitched a gem, throwing eight strong innings before two relievers completed the four-hitter to lead the Baltimore Orioles to a 2-0 win over the Houston Astros.

Trey Mancini homered for a second straight game, a three-run drive that led the Houston Astros to a 6-3 win and a three-game sweep of the slumping Minnesota Twins.

Atlanta outfielder Marcell Ozuna was booed by the home fans in his return, Kyle Tucker singled to drive in Yordan Alvarez for the go-ahead run in the eighth and the Houston Astros beat the Atlanta Braves 5-4 to avoid a three-game sweep.

Alex Bregman hit two homers and two doubles, driving in a career-high six runs and powering the Houston Astros past the Chicago White Sox 21-5.

Even the mighty Houston Astros are not immune to occasional bouts of comprehensive ineptitude, as they demonstrated while blowing a four-run lead in the seventh inning Tuesday night with two errors, a hit batter with the bases loaded and a passed ball. The Astros still had plenty of time to recover against an opponent that's been largely inept for two full months now. Kyle Tucker delivered a tiebreaking RBI double in the ninth inning, and the Astros rallied for a 6-5 victory over the spiraling Los Angeles Angels.

Houston’s Kyle Tucker was thrown out Thursday night when he tried to steal home while New York Yankees starter Luis Severino tinkered with his malfunctioning PitchCom device. Alex Bregman had just hit a two-run double to put Houston up 2-0 and Tucker was on third with two outs in the third inning. With Yuli Gurriel at-bat, a frustrated Severino took off his cap and held the PitchCom speaker to his ear, apparently unable to hear instructions from catcher Jose Trevino.

Jose Siri and Chas McCormick hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth inning, rallying the AL West-leading Houston Astros over the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-6 on Sunday. Carlos Correa also homered as the Astros held their comfortable division lead over Oakland. Houston won for the fourth time in five games and cut Tampa Bay’s lead for the best record in the AL to 3 ½ games.

Jake Meyers had the last of three singles as part of Houston’s eighth-inning rally against former teammate Joe Smith, scoring Kyle Tucker with the go-ahead run and sending the Astros over the Seattle Mariners 4-3 on Monday night. Dylan Moore had a pinch-hit, two-run homer for Seattle in the sixth for a 3-2 lead.

If we all thought 2020 was weird at Minute Maid Park, 2021 might want us to hold its beer.

^ Keep Houston Press Free Support Us LocalCommunityJournalismI Support Support the independent voice of Houston and help keep the future of Houston Press free. Support UsAs long as this last year has felt, it's almost time for spring training again. As spring training approaches, here are a few names to watch early this season. It's more likely that Straw is a stopgap measure until the Astros can find a permanent replacement in center field. Tucker needs to continue to mature and turn into the "next" Springer for the Astros in the outfield.

It's incredible to think how hated the Astros are, but only peruse Twitter for a while and you can feel the hate. That was even more evident after the Game 4 win over the A's on Thursday. The Astros blasted Oakland 11-6, hitting four more home runs (both teams had a remarkable 23 in the four-game series) and moving on to the ALCS beginning Monday against the winner of the Rays-Yankees series. Yahoo Sports summed it up with the headline, "Like It or Not, Astros are Back in the ALCS." It was a bit of a surprise that Zack Greinke managed to play in this game.

But Correa is just two seasons from unrestricted free agency making him eligible for a sizable extension sooner rather than later. That is assuming he can justify that payday and this season would seem to be a critical one for his future and the future of this young Astros core. If Correa plays up to his potential this season and stays healthy, it could mean big things for the offense in 2020. As if Osuna needed any help overcoming all of that, former Astros VP Brandon Taubman had to go full a-hole in the clubhouse after the ALCS, taunting reporters about the Astros closer. The Astros are hoping to keep him under that again in the regular season, protecting the arm that has been injured previously.

It's been a really, really long offseason despite the fact that the Astros played until literally the last day of the offseason. Obviously the news has been dominated by a series of scandals culminating with the commissioners' report that the Astros cheated. As spring training opened, it only seemed to get worse with players weighing in on the controversy and fans booing heartily. Plenty of questions linger around training camp like how new veteran manager Dusty Baker will handle all the off-the-field complications (he'll do fine on the field). In the long run, the Astros are betting Tucker is their guy, but will it be this season?

The questions will rain down on the Astros players and management like a monsoon. We also know that perhaps their most irreplaceable player from 2019, ace pitcher Gerrit Cole, is gone. Even worse, he left to go to the Astros' main competitor in the AL, the New York Yankees. Tucker was decidedly better in his second go round in the big leagues in 2019 than his first in 2018. Lance McCullers spent the entire 2019 season rehabbing his pitching elbow coming off of Tommy John surgery.

The Astros on Thursday traded veteran outfielder Jake Marisnick to the Mets for a pair of prospects. The move was made to clear room in an already crowded outfield for youngsters Kyle Tucker and Myles Straw, who should make the big league roster in 2020. Ideally, the Astros would like to move Josh Reddick, but his $14 million contract makes that difficult without the Astros agreeing to absorb some of that salary, so Marisnick was dealt. The Mets are hoping Marisnick will perform better at the plate if he is given more opportunities. For the Astros, it reduces their glut of outfielders and adds a couple of prospects to their already deep minor league roster.

2019 Getty ImagesNEW YORK - The Astros made some changes to their lineup for Game 3 of the American League Championship Series. With Gerrit Cole on the mound, Houston shuffled the batting lineup. Yuli Gurriel and Yordan Alvarez flip-flopped in the five and six spot. Josh Reddick gets the start in right field and is batting eighth and Martin Maldonado is catching and hitting ninth. Here's what the lineup looks like as the 'Stros look to take the series lead over the Yankees.

Tucker then failed to handle Simmons' hot grounder to first, ending the Angels' fourth walkoff win of the season. Despite the loss, the Astros (104-55) are two games ahead of the Yankees (102-57), who didn't play, for the AL's best record. The Astros are only one game ahead of the Dodgers (103-56), who have clinched the NL's best record. Houston beat Los Angeles to win the 2017 World Series to claim its first championship, winning Game 7 on the road. The Astros homered in their 22nd straight game, but stranded 12 runners in the final six innings alone.

Josh Reddick #22 of the Astros crosses home plate after his two-run home run in the fifth inning against the Kansas City Royals. - Wade Miley bounced back from two disastrous starts with six strong innings and Josh Reddick's five hits included a two-run homer Sunday as the Houston Astros beat the Kansas City Royals 12-3, completing a three-game sweep. Abraham Toro and Reddick each drove in three runs, Kyle Tucker banged a two-run homer and Yuli Gurriel's solo shot was his 28th homer. Last Tuesday, the A's tagged him for seven runs in what became a 21-7 drubbing. Reddick pulled a two-run homer down the right-field line off reliever Eric Skoglund in the fifth inning for a 7-1 lead.

Shortstop Alex Bregman #2 of the Houston Astros throws out Ryan McBroom #9 of the Kansas City Royals. - Zack Greinke finally beat his old club and Yordan lvarez belted a pinch-hit three-run homer as the Houston Astros beat the Kansas City Royals 6-1 on Saturday night. Alex Bregman hit his 36th homer and rookie Kyle Tucker was 4-for-4 for the AL West-leading Astros. This was the fifth start by Greinke against the Royals since they traded him after the 2010 season. Oddly, all five were at Kauffman Stadium and each was for a different team - the Brewers, Angels, Dodgers, Diamondbacks and Astros.

Brantley hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the 13th inning to give Houston an 11-9 comeback victory over the Seattle Mariners. The win improved the Astros to 91-50, the best record in franchise history after 141 games, and 13-1 against the Mariners this year. Matt Wisler (3-4) walked Jake Marisnick leading off the 13th before Brantley launched a drive to right-center. But the Astros chipped away by scoring one in the second, two in the third and two in the sixth. The Astros trimmed the deficit to 7-1 in the second when Yordan Alvarez scored on a wild pitch by Gonzales.

George Springer #4 of the Houston Astros leaves the field after being injured in the fifth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park on September 03, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. MILWAUKEE - Astros outfielder George Springer may be able to play Thursday after exiting Tuesday's game on a medical cart after hitting his head on the outfield wall at Miller Park. 2019 Getty Images George Springer hits the ground after making a catch in the fifth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park on September 03, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Astros medical personnel went out to assist Springer, who left the field on a cart a few minutes later. (He) made a great catch," Astros manager A.J.