28-year old lefty swinging starting CF Michael Bourn has been solid for the Astros this year. He has been very consistent both with the bat in his hands or the mitt on one of them. Bourn has played in 52 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 54 for 205 (.263 avg, .692 OPS) with 34 runs scored, 1 homer, 16 RBIs and 18 stolen bases. Bourn’s speed both in the field and on the basepaths really seems to spark the Astros when they really need it. They need him to keep up the good work.

The Astros have placed 32-year old lefty starting pitcher Wandy Rodriguez on the 15-day disabled list due to fluid in his pitching elbow. Rodriguez has pitched in 10 games (all starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 3-3 with a 3.41 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP. The Astros have called up 20-year old righty starting pitcher Jordan Lyles to replace Rodriguez in the starting rotation. Lyles came into this season as the Astros’ #1 prospect according to Baseball America. Lyles has pitched in 10 games (all starts) in AAA-ball so far this year and he is 3-3 with a 3.20 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. He has pitched in 78 games (77 starts) in his first four years in the minors and he is 20-29 with a 4.08 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP.

The Astros have placed 31-year old righty swinging catcher Humberto Quintero on the 15-day disabled list due to a sprained right ankle. Quintero has played in 32 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 27 for 109 (.248 avg, .606 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 0 homers, 9 RBIs and 1 stolen base. The Astros have called up 35-year old righty swinging catcher Robinson Cancel from AAA. Cancel has played in 30 games in AAA-ball this year and he is 33 for 102 (.324 avg, .815 OPS) with 12 runs scored, 2 homers, 11 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. He last played in the majors back in 2009 with the Brewers. Cancel has played in 43 games in parts of three years in the majors and he is 20 for 94 (.213 avg, .547 OPS) with 10 runs scored, 1 homer, 10 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Cancel will share time behind the plate with J.R. Towles until Quintero is ready to return to action. Towles has played in 23 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 16 for 70 (.229 avg, .696 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 2 homers and 5 RBIs.

The Houston Astros have signed 35-year old righty starting pitcher Ryan Drese to a minor league deal. Drese has pitched in 9 games (6 starts) in AAA-ball so far this year (for the Orioles) and he was 2-3 with a 6.55 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP. He gave up 64 hits in only 44 innings pitched so far this year and he only has whiffed 11 batters, so he’s not missing many bats. Drese last pitched in the majors back in 2006 with the Nationals. He has pitched in 105 games (96 starts) in six years in the majors and he is 34-39 with a 5.31 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. The Astros have also released 32-year old lefty swinging IF/OF Joe Inglett. Inglett played in 20 games for the Astros this year and he was 6 for 27 (.222 avg, .481 OPS) with 3 runs scored and 1 RBI.

The Astros have claimed 24-year old righty reliever Blake King off waivers from the Cardinals. King came into this season as the Cardinals’ #22 prospect according to Baseball America. King has had a rough time in the minors so far this year. He has pitched in 17 games (0 starts) in AA+AAA-ball so far this year and he is 2-0 with a 11.30 ERA and a 2.79 WHIP. He has walked 24 batters in only 14 1/3 innings but he has whiffed 19 batters also. King has now pitched in 193 games (48 starts) in his first six years in the minors and he is 25-24 with a 4.14 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. King has a nice upside, so I like this pickup for the Astros.