The Astros have placed Brad Lidge on the 15-day disabled list with a strained left oblique muscle. It’s a shame that Lidge has gotten hurt as he was really pitching good. He has now pitched in 34 games and he’s 2-1 with a 2.34 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP so far this season. Lidge has pitched 34.2 innings and he has allowed 28 hits, walked 16 batters and he has whiffed 44 batters. The Astros have recalled lefty Stephen Randolph from the minors and he will work out of the bullpen. Randolph has been outstanding in AAA ball so far this season. In 18 games, Randolph is 6-0 with 3 saves, a 2.34 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP this season. He has thrown 34.2 innings and he’s allowed 17 hits, walked 9 batters and whiffed 57. The whole key with Randolph is throwing strikes. He has good stuff.

Wandy Rodriguez and Chris Sampson have both been pleasant surprises so far this season. With Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens bolting to New York the Astros needed someone to step up and the kids have done a good job. Wandy Rodriguez should have a much better record than 4-6 as he has a 4.19 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. Rodriguez has an outstanding strikeout to walk ratio of 3.9 (71-18) which has him tied for 13th in all of baseball for pitchers who have made at least 5 starts. That’s really important in Houston where the ball flies out of the stadium at an alarming rate. Rookie Chris Sampson earned his way into the rotation with a solid Spring Training and his good pitching has carried over into the regular season. Sampson is 6-5 with a 3.29 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP so far this season. Sampson is also a strike thrower as he’s only allowing 2.23 walks per 9 innings. Both Rodriguez & Sampson would have better records if not for the bullpen troubles the Astros have had so far this season.

Adam Everett collided going for a pop up in left field with Carlos Lee and he fractured his right leg. He will miss the next 4-8 weeks for the Astros. In 62 games this season, Everett is 49 for 213 (.230 avg, .597 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 2 homers, 15 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Look for Mark Loretta to serve as the Astros starting shortstop until Everett is ready to return. This will hurt the defense but help the offense as Loretta is a much better hitter than Everett is. Loretta has played in 48 games this season and he’s 45 for 146 (.308 avg, .774 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 1 homer and 15 RBIs.

The Astros have signed Chan Ho Park to a minor league contract. Manager Phil Garner said that Park will go down to AAA for 2-3 weeks and then the Astros will re-evaluate whether to bring up Park or not. Park started 1 game for the Mets this season and he lost it by pitching 4 innings and allowing 6 hits, 7 earned runs, 2 homers, walked 2 batters and whiffed 4. Park has been a decent pitcher in the past so it’s not surprising that the Astros will give him a chance. He has thrown in 324 games (275 starts) over his major league career and he sports a 113-88 record with a 4.40 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP.

You knew that Lance Berkman was going to go off at some point this season and he’s started up lately. In his last 7 games, he is 9 for 26 (.346 avg, 1.085 OPS) with 4 runs scored, 2 homers and 7 RBIs. Berkman’s average has risen to .251 on the season and that will continue to improve. Berkman just needs to behave himself as he’s been getting tossed from too many games lately.