Grossman leaves game with injury

HOUSTON -- Astros left fielder Robbie Grossman had to be pulled from Tuesday's 9-6 loss to the Twins in the middle of his at-bat in the 12th inning after suffering a strained right oblique while swinging the bat. It's unclear the extent of the injury.

"It just bit me on the swing," said Grossman, who went 2-for-5 and is hitting .322 since he was called up for the second time on July 28. "We'll see how it feels [Wednesday] and go from there."

Astros manager Bo Porter noticed his leadoff man grimace on the swing and sent assistant athletic trainer Rex Jones to the plate to check on the rookie. Matt Pagnozzi, acquired by the Astros in a trade late Monday, took Grossman's place in the box and grounded out to end the game.

Grossman said he had a similar injury a few years ago.

"At this stage of the season, you just don't want to end up having a guy miss a considerable amount of time," Porter said. "It was best to get him out at that point and allow the trainers to do everything they can to get him healthy."