Biggio gets Hall of Fame reception at home
Less than a month after Craig Biggio was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, the Astros’ legend once again declared his love for Houston fans Saturday night.
“Thank you,” Biggio told the Minute Maid Park crowd during the pregame ceremony celebrating his induction into the Hall of Fame. “I love you guys. I really do.”
Former Astros general manager Gerry Hunsicker, who built the 2004 club that reached Game 7 of the NLCS and the 2005 club that reached the World Series, declared Biggio’s induction on July 26 as the second-greatest moment in franchise history.
“I would also suggest that the most important date in Astros history was June the 8th, 1987,” Hunsicker said. “That was the day that the Houston Astros made one of the smartest decisions in the history of the franchise and drafted and signed Craig Biggio to his first Astros professional baseball contract.”
That line received the loudest ovation until Biggio addressed the crowd, which often serenaded him with the familiar “B! G!O! B! G!O!” chants.
Tucker optioned to Class AAA
The Astros optioned outfielder Preston Tucker to Class AAA Fresno after Saturday’s win to make room for righthander Lance McCullers on the 25-man roster. Barring an injury, the rookie slugger will be recalled after rosters expand on Sept. 1
“I told Tuck it’s for a couple of reasons,” Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. “No. 1, he’s in the area of the roster where he’s got options, and we have the opportunity now to get him some at-bats. I don’t think his swing has been particularly sharp in the last couple of weeks, really since the road trip.”
Tucker hit .150 (3-for20) with a home run on the homestand. Despite the move, he will be eligible for the postseason roster because he’s already in the organization.
“I’m just trying to get consistent at-bats,” he said. “We’re so backed up here. I’m just trying to get as many at-bats as I can. … Once I did the math, I figured I’m one of the few guys with options and we have plenty of outfielders, so I figured I’ll add it up.”
Crawford makes himself at home
Dodgers outfielder Carl Crawford is back home during this threegame series against the Astros.
Unhappy when he was with the Red Sox in 2011-12, Crawford’s settled into Los Angeles, now in his third year with the Dodgers. He called it a “complete change.”
Crawford entered Saturday hitting .405 in his last 10 games. That’s after he lost 75 games this season because of a right oblique strain, coming off the disabled list July 21 and hitting .310 in that time.
“Health is good. Just wanting to contribute,” Crawford said. “I’m not starting every day anymore, that’s driving me as well. … I’m just trying to do my part whenever I can and still contribute and try to stay healthy at least.
Being in Houston is a great feeling, too.
“I love being in Houston,” said Crawford, who went to Davis High School. “Never a time when I’m not happy about coming home. No matter what happens, you know? I’m always happy to be home.”
Rotation lined up for Yankees
Astros manager A.J. Hinch has set up his rotation for the upcoming three-game series against the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.
Scott Feldman will start the opener Monday night. He’ll be followed by ace lefthander Dallas Keuchel on Tuesday and righthander Collin McHugh on Wednesday.
The Astros have Thursday off, giving Hinch a chance to alter his rotation before beginning a three-game series at Minnesota on Friday. Righthander Mike Fiers, who threw a career-high 134 pitches during his nohitter Friday, won’t pitch again until the weekend. He was never in the plans for the Yankees series, so the day off Thursday makes it easier to give him extra rest without disrupting the six-man rotation.
Hinch told Fiers he’ll start Saturday or Sunday against the Twins, meaning the righthander will either pitch on a full week’s rest or eight days of rest instead of the usual four days. Because the Astros are on a six-man rotation and Thursday’s day off, lefthander Scott Kazmir can slip into Friday’s start against the Twins and still have five days of rest.