Keuchel holds key to resurgence for optimistic Astros
They have the American League batting champion, a big-hitting shortstop and a few newcomers to boost a potent lineup.
What the Houston Astros need most, though, to get back into playoff contention is a bounce-back by Dallas Keuchel and the starting rotation.
Injuries and inconsistency were themes for Houston’s staff in 2016. That came a year after Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa and the Astros ended a long postseason drought and looked primed for the future.
Keuchel followed up his Cy Young Award campaign of 2015 when he 20-8 with a 2.48 ERA with a tough 9-12 season where his ERA ballooned to 4.55 before a shoulder injury finished him in August.
“He’s a good pitcher, there’s no question about that, and even last year he showed it at times. And he was dealing with some health issues last year, and that’s why he got shut down at the end,” general manager Jeff Luhnow said.
“He’s feeling good, feeling confident ... ,” Luhnow said.
Keuchel will start the opener Monday against the Seattle Mariners.
Yankees
New York likely will bat power-hitting catcher Gary Sanchez second in their lineup at the start of the season. Yankees manager Joe Girardi said Tuesday that he was leaning toward having Brett Gardner bat leadoff, followed by Sanchez, Greg Bird, Matt Holliday and Jacoby Ellsbury.
Orioles
Baltimore added another starting pitcher, acquiring right-hander Alec Asher from the Philadelphia Phillies for a player to be named or cash. The trade was made Tuesday, less than a week before opening day. Asher, 26, was 2-7 with a 5.88 ERA in 12 big-league starts for the Phillies in 2015 and 2016. He served an 80-game suspension for steroid use last season, when he went 21 with a 2.88 ERA in five starts.
Nationals
The team said President Donald Trump has declined an invitation to throw out the ceremonial first pitch before their game on opening day. A spokesperson for the team said that the White House said Trump would not be at the game Monday afternoon at Nationals Park against the Miami Marlins because of a scheduling conflict. President Barack Obama threw the ceremonial first pitch at the Nationals opener in 2010, marking the 100th anniversary of a presidential pitch to start the season. William Howard Taft first did it April 14, 1910.
Mets
Whatever his role, it looks as if right-hander Robert Gsellman has earned on spot on New York’s pitching staff. Gsellman, 23, struck out six in six innings Tuesday against the St. Louis Cardinals in a late audition to make the team.
Elsewhere
Speedy outfielder Peter Bourjos and infielder Scooter Gennett were on the go Tuesday as big-league teams tweaked their rosters less than a week before opening day. The Tampa Bay Rays added some depth by get Bourjos from the Chicago White Sox for cash or a player to be named. Bourjos, 29, hit .251 with five homers and 23 RBIs in 123 games with Philadelphia in 2016. He signed a minor league contract with the White Sox on Jan. 30 and batted .313 in 19 spring training games. Cincinnati claimed Scooter Gennett off waivers from the Milwaukee Brewers, giving the Reds another option at second base and a utility player off the bench.