Houston Astros turn to Double-A standout with Verlander sidelined
ASTROS NEWS
20 June
Jake Bloss will start for the Astros on Friday. Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images.
The Houston Astros plan to call up right-hander Jake Bloss from Double-A Corpus Christi to make his major league debut against the Baltimore Orioles on Friday and fill a hole in their injury-depleted rotation.
Bloss, a third-round draft pick out of Georgetown in 2023, has a 1.74 ERA over 12 starts in Class A and Double-A. The 22-year-old right-hander is 3-1 with a 1.61 ERA in eight outings for Corpus Christi. He has never pitched in Triple-A.
Jake Bloss has been the biggest riser in my Astros rankings this season, he is going to jump into the top 5 in the forthcoming update.
Bloss sits 94.6 mph @ 18 IVB ~ 4.5 HB on his fastball from a 5”9 release (6-7 ft of ext).
Mixing cutter at 88-90 mph, sweeper at 81-83 mph w/… https://t.co/gaJuTqrHnD
— Geoff Pontes (@GeoffPontesBA) June 20, 2024
Houston has been hit hard by injuries, particularly to its pitchers.
Ace Justin Verlander went on the 15-day injured list on Tuesday to give him more time to resolve his lingering neck discomfort. Cristian Javier and José Urquidy each had Tommy John surgery this month. Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia could return after the All-Star break after missing the start of the season as part of the recovery process from major operations.
Rockets advance to NBA Cup semifinals after thrilling win over Warriors
Dec 11, 2024, 11:50 pm
Jalen Green made two free throws with 3.5 seconds left and the Houston Rockets beat the Golden State Warriors 91-90 on Wednesday night to advance to the NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas.
Houston snapped a 15-game skid against the Warriors, winning for the first time in the series since Feb. 20, 2020. The Rockets will face Oklahoma City, which beat Dallas in the other West quarterfinal game on Tuesday night, in the semifinals on Saturday.
Alperen Sengun led the Rockets with 26 points and 11 rebounds and Jabari Smith Jr. added 15 points.
Houston led by 14 before falling behind late to set up the thrilling finish.
Houston trailed by six with about 1 1/2 minutes left before Fred VanVleet made a 3-pointer and Sengun added a layup with 27 seconds to go to cut the lead to one.
Stephen Curry missed a 3-pointer with 11 seconds left and Gary Payton II grabbed the rebound, but Green intercepted his pass and was fouled by Jonathan Kuminga to set up the winning free throws.
The Warriors had a chance to win it at the buzzer but Smith blocked Brandin Podziemski’s 3-point attempt.
Takeaways
Warriors: Golden State beat the Rockets twice this season without Curry before losing Wednesday in a game where he had 19 points.
Rockets: This young team showed poise in finishing this one after squandering a double-digit lead.
Key moment
Green’s hustle on getting the ball late to draw the foul to set up the winning free throws.
Key stat
Houston won despite making just 6 of 27 3-pointers.
Up next
While Houston heads to Las Vegas this weekend, the Warriors will return to regular-season play Sunday at Dallas.
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