HOUSTON -- Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña was removed from Wednesday’s game against the Angels after two innings with a right hand contusion, the result of being hit by a 100 mph sinker thrown by Angels starter Walbert Ureña in the first inning.

HOUSTON - At this point in the season, the Astros will take a win any way they can get it. Especially with the way their offense has continued to struggle, and also with the second-place Rangers getting shut out at home against the Nationals.

HOUSTON -- Astros manager Joe Espada was ejected in the third inning of Wednesday’s game against the Angels after center fielder Mike Trout was awarded first base on a hit-by-pitch on a ball that struck his hand during a check swing.

HOUSTON -- The first thing that went through Ethan Pecko’s mind when he was scratched from his scheduled start Sunday for Triple-A Sugar Land at Round Rock was that he had been traded.

HOUSTON – When Isaac Paredes was informed that he was going to make his Major League debut in 2020, the first person he called was his grandmother, Gloria Eduviges, back home in Mexico. “She said congrats, and she was very happy that I was finally able to make my dreams

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HOUSTON -- The Astros are struggling to piece together a stable five-man rotation, which is a problem that’s only compounded when ace right-hander Hunter Brown isn't at his best. Brown continues to have trouble throwing his four-seam fastball for strikes, which has led to fewer swings against him and higher

HOUSTON -- Few players defined the rainbow-jersey era of the 1980s Astros more than Alan Ashby and Phil Garner, both of whom began their career elsewhere before becoming fan favorites in Houston and mainstays on the field during a time when the franchise was coming into its own.

HOUSTON -- The ball jumped off Christian Walker’s bat like a rocket, sparking the kind of wild on-field celebration the Astros hope they get to experience a lot more of in the season’s final six weeks and beyond. Players poured out of the dugout, fireworks exploded overhead and everyone at

HOUSTON -- Astros right-hander Mike Burrows, who’s been out for more than a month with right elbow neuritis, had a successful rehab start for Triple-A Sugar Land on Friday night, throwing 4 1/3 scoreless while allowing three hits and one walk. Burrows threw 43 of 67 pitches for strikes at

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SAN FRANCISCO -- With the victory music pumping in the visiting clubhouse, the Astros couldn’t pack and leave Oracle Park fast enough on Wednesday afternoon. The Giants, who traded away one of their best starting pitchers and their best hitter at the Trade Deadline, gave Houston everything it could handle

SAN FRANCISCO -- Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, still hobbled from getting hit on the left foot by a pitch in the first inning of Tuesday’s 4-1 loss to the Giants, was out of the lineup for Wednesday’s series finale and unavailable to play.

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SAN FRANCISCO -- This was a game the Astros simply couldn’t afford to lose, and it looked like they were going to do just that when they were down to their final strike in the ninth inning Monday night against the Giants at Oracle Park. In fact, the Giants’ win

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HOUSTON -- For some reason, the Blue Jays decided to pitch to Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez to lead off the bottom of the 10th inning Wednesday representing the tying run with first base open. He ripped a screaming RBI single into the right-field corner, but was thrown out at second

HOUSTON -- Touch ‘em all, Taylor. This one counts. One day after circling the bases thinking that he had hit a home run -- the ball had actually been caught by Blue Jays center fielder Myles Straw -- Astros outfielder Taylor Trammell launched a three-run homer in the fifth inning

HOUSTON -- Astros shortstop Carlos Correa received good news Tuesday when he was cleared by a doctor to begin swinging the bat, a big development in his efforts to return to the field later this season.

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HOUSTON -- The Astros are the hottest team in baseball and have the best hitter on the planet, but that doesn’t mean the club will sit on its hands prior to the Trade Deadline. If anything, Houston’s surge to the top of the American League West is a signal to

HOUSTON -- Perhaps the player that Yordan Alvarez gets compared to the most is Hall of Famer David Ortiz, who was also an intimidating left-handed slugger with prodigious power. It’s a comparison that resonates when you consider each player’s ability to change the game with one swing from the left

HOUSTON -- As surprised as many around baseball will be to wake up on Aug. 1 and see the Astros in first place in the American League West, those who have paid attention over the last decade should have known better. After falling 6 1/2 games out of first place

HOUSTON -- Astros right-hander Tatsuya Imai, who recorded only two outs in his most recent start Monday against the Angels in Anaheim, will be available to pitch out of the bullpen during Houston’s pivotal series against the Rangers this weekend, manager Joe Espada said Friday. The move comes as no

This story was excerpted from Brian McTaggart’s Astros Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.