Third-base coach Pettis to sit out road trip
Astros third-base coach Gary Pettis will not travel with the Astros on their road trip to Seattle and Arlington because of what the Astros described as hip discomfort and what manager Dusty Baker described Sunday as “physical problems.”
Pettis, 62, has been absent since Sept. 16 and has missed four games. First-base coach Omar Lopez has filled in and Sunday delivered a Pettislike windmill go-ahead for George Springer to sprint home to complete an inside-the-park homer.
“(Pettis) has sent me on stuff that has been a lot closer,” Springer said. “I trust whoever is out there. If (Lopez) had said stop, I would have stopped.”
Inhospitable road now team’s home
Even without fans to heap abuse upon the Astros in the wake of the offseason sign-stealing scandal, the road has not been hospitable to them, and the road is now their home for the balance of whatever season remains for them.
Houston is 7-18 in games away from Minute Maid Park — “It’s terrible,” manager Dusty Baker said of the team’s road record — including a 3-12 mark against their American League West rivals with three games upcoming at Seattle and four at Arlington against the Rangers.
“I told everybody that the (AL West) was the best division in baseball, and the West hasn’t been good to us,” Baker said. “We’ve lost a bunch of close games on the road, and especially early, it was weird because (players) couldn’t get together.”
As they left for Seattle on Sunday, the Astros also faced a considerable quandary in deciding how much to pack. After the road trip, if they qualify for the playoffs, they will begin the postseason away from home, likely at Oakland. If they advance, they will play in the Division Series in San Diego or Los Angeles.
The AL Championship Series is in San Diego, and the World Series in Arlington.
And that prompts the question: How much do you pack, and how much do you trust hotel laundry service?
On the latter front, Baker is a considerable skeptic.
“You’re afraid to send (clothes) to the laundry because sometimes you don’t get your laundry back before you leave and they tell you they can’t find it,” the manager said.
“What about your jeans and slacks? They ain’t washing my slacks. They’ll come back looking like Pee Wee Herman after they put them in the dryer. That is going to be the challenge: running out of stuff that you take for granted, and you can’t go to a Walgreens or CVS.”
Strom: Verlander will recover OK
Astros pitching coach Brent Strom, a veteran of Tommy John surgery during his playing days and overseer of countless pitchers who have undergone the procedure since then, is optimistic that 2019 Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander will have a successful recovery from upcoming surgery.
Verlander, who has been on the injured list since pitching on opening day in late July, disclosed Saturday that he would undergo season-ending surgery after suffering a setback in his attempt to return to the roster before the end of the regular season.
Strom, who in the late 1970s was the second player to undergo the surgical graft procedure, said that while rehabilitation methods have improved over the years, the risks involved with recovery are still considerable.
“One thing about (Verlander) is that he is a very strong-willed guy,” Strom said. “I don’t think the rehab will affect him at all. I think he wants to continue pitching.”
Struggling Altuve stays optimistic
Astros second baseman Jose Altuve endured yet another 0-for-4 day Sunday, dropping his batting average to .213, but said he remains optimistic he can take a turn toward form as the regular season winds down and a potential playoff opportunity awaits.
“Obviously, it hasn’t been easy,” Altuve said. “These eight games can help me and the team to where we want to be for the playoffs, and then we can go out and play really good and win as many games as we can.”