Chas McCormick is back in the lineup for Game 4. Composite Getty Image.
Coming off a 9-1 win over the Twins in Game 3 of the ALDS, Astros manager Dusty Baker is shaking up his lineup once again. Mauricio Dubon and Yainer Diaz were both in the lineup for Game 3, but won't be starting in Game 4.
Screenshot via: MLB.
Chas McCormick returns to the lineup to play center field, and Yordan Alvarez will DH with Michael Brantley playing left field. Removing Yainer Diaz from the lineup doesn't come as a surprise, he struggled in Game 3 going 0-5 with 4 strikeouts.
On paper, this looks like one of the strongest offensive lineups that the Astros can unleash on Twins starter Joe Ryan (11-10, 4.51 ERA).
For Houston, Jose Urquidy (3-3, 5.29 ERA).will make the start against the Twins. He has a postseason ERA of 3.72 over 12 games.
Only four series remain in the regular season. Composite Getty Image.
The Houston Astros are headed to San Diego to face the Padres, maintaining a 4.5-game lead over the Mariners in the AL West. With just 13 games remaining in the season, winning the division isn’t guaranteed yet. However, it would take a major surge from Seattle paired with a significant collapse from Houston for the standings to shift.
The Astros starting pitching has been leading the way, and with Spencer Arrighetti, Hunter Brown, and Framber Valdez slated to start against the Padres, you have to like Houston's chances even against a quality club like San Diego.
Speaking of pitching, should the Astros go on to win the division, it will be interesting to see who pitches Game 3 of the first playoff series. We know Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown will pitch Games 1 and 2.
The clock is ticking for JV
It appears the Astros will give Justin Verlander every chance to win that assignment, but at this point, it's hard to justify his place on the playoff roster. He's clearly the team's sixth-best starter as of today.
Remember me?
Ronel Blanco reminded everyone of what he's capable of against the Angels over the weekend. While Justin Verlander was only decent against the Halos.
The Astros 3rd postseason starter will likely be determined by the opponent. But if we're just listing the pitchers we have the most confidence in right now, Yusei Kikuchi is at the top of the list. Arrighetti oozes with upside, but there's significant downside with him as well. You typically know very early in the game which version of Arrighetti you're going to get.
To be fair, Kikuchi doesn't have much postseason experience. But he's certainly pitched in more high stakes games than Arrighetti at this point in his career. Blanco will be the wild card to watch here, as he was the club's best starting pitcher for the first half of the season.
King Tuck
Finally, we're starting to feel good about Kyle Tucker. He appears to be getting healthy just in the nick of time.
Don't miss the video above as we examine all the advantages the Astros hold over the final stretch of the season, and much more!
Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo discuss varied Astros topics. The first post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon (second part released Tuesday) via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Screenshot via: MLB.