One has to really take notice that Miguel Tejada was a prominent player in the Mitchell Report over the winter and he suddenly lost his power swing. You have to wonder if that is coincidence or if Tejada’s power was all synthetic. He has played in 153 games for the Astros this season and he is 175 for 612 (.286 avg, .738 OPS) with 90 runs scored, 13 homers, 65 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. His homer and RBI totals are the lowest since 1998 when he was with the Oakland A’s. The Astros should have known better than trading for anyone the day before the Mitchell Report came out. I’m sure the Orioles knew his name was going to be in it as they are probably still laughing about this trade.

The Houston Astros have surged in the National League Central lately winning 9 of their last 10 games to pull within 2.5 games of the Brewers in the Wild Card Race. A big part of the reason for the Astros recent surge after sleepwalking the first half of the season is #1 starter Roy Oswalt’s pitching the last couple of months. In his 9 starts in August and September, Oswalt is 7-1 with a 1.56 ERA and a 0.82 WHIP. He has been even more incredible this month as he has started 3 games (2 shutouts) and he has a 3-0 record with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.38 WHIP. Oswalt’s overall numbers look pretty solid now despite him having a rough start to the season. He has started 29 games for the Astros this season and he is 15-9 with a 3.54 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. The Astros need Oswalt to keep up the good work if they are going to make the playoffs this season.

Major League Baseball has suspended Runelvys Hernandez for 50 games due to him testing positive for amphetamines. The drugs weren’t helping Hernandez this season for the Astros as he started 4 games and was 0-3 with a 8.38 ERA and a 2.22 WHIP. This will certainly end his tenure with the Astros and quite possibly end his major league career. Hernandez has pitched in 82 games (all starts) in his major league career and he has compiled a 25-36 record with a 5.50 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP.