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Astros weighing McHugh, Oberholtzer for rotation

OAKLAND -- The Astros have a tough decision to make in the next few days when it comes to their pitching rotation.

With right-hander Collin McHugh coming through his Minor League rehab start on Tuesday at Triple-A Oklahoma City with no problems and left-hander Brett Oberholtzer throwing seven strong innings in McHugh's place Tuesday in Oakland, one of them will get to start again for Houston on Sunday.

The Astros announced their rotation for the first two games of this weekend's series against Miami, but Sunday remains TBA.

Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow spoke with Triple-A manager Tony DeFrancesco late Tuesday about McHugh, who threw 80 pitches in five innings. He was placed on the DL this month when the fingernail on the middle finger of his right hand pulled away from the skin.

"He threw the ball very well," Luhnow said. "The pitches were sharp and he felt good. He's ready to be plugged back in and we just need to figure out what we're going to do. We're in this advantageous position of having six healthy, valuable starters who are all pitching well. It's a good spot to be in."

After going 0-6 with a 5.68 ERA in seven starts before being sent down, Oberholtzer has gone 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA in the six starts in which he's bounced between Houston and the Minor Leagues while filling in as a spot starter.

"The way he competes and his attitude throughout this whole thing has been extraordinary," Luhnow said. "He deserves to be pitching in the big leagues, all of them do, and that's a process [manager] Bo [Porter] and I are going to have to sort out somehow."

Brian McTaggart is a reporter for MLB.com and writes an MLBlog, Tag's Lines. Follow @brianmctaggart on Twitter.
Read More: Houston Astros, Brett Oberholtzer, Collin McHugh