Astros Triple-A Notes: Altuve, McHugh, Stassi make rehab appearances

Three Astros made rehab appearances for the Round Rock Express, with mixed results.

Several injured Astros are on the mend, and three of them have been attempting to shake off the rust in Round Rock. Jose Altuve, Collin McHugh and Max Stassi have all appeared with the Express over the past few days, but only Stassi has had good results thus far.

Meanwhile, Kyle Tucker continues to decimate baseballs, and Corbin Martin turned in a solid outing. A few other Round Rock players are commanding some attention as well.

The Three Musketeers

The most prominent of all the rehabbing players is of course Altuve, but he hasn’t quite looked like his MVP self at the plate. He went 0-for-4 on Friday and 1-for-4 with a walk on Sunday. It’s a small sample, of course, and the good news is he’s out on the field with no major issues.

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McHugh made a relief appearance on Friday, but gave up two runs on one hit and one walk in 0.2 innings. That one hit he allowed was indeed a home run, which was a problem for him earlier this year with the Astros. Time will tell if McHugh is coming back as a starter or a reliever.

Stassi, on the other hand, has looked good at the plate. Through two games, he’s notched three hits and a walk, including a homer and three RBIs. He did make a throwing error in Sunday’s game, but it looks like he may just about be ready to return.

Top Prospects Looking Good

Tucker, the Astros’ top position player prospect, is hitting .435 in his last 10 games with five homers and 15 RBIs. He’s riding an eight-game hit streak and currently has a four-game streak with two or more hits. He’s up to .287/.360/.649 with 23 homers and 55 RBIs in 64 games.

After a rough return to Round Rock, Martin looked better in his outing on Sunday. He earned the win by completing five innings, giving up two runs on six hits and three walks with eight strikeouts. There’s still room for improvement, of course, but it’s a step in the right direction.

Ferguson, Rojas, Tanielu Impress

Outfielder Drew Ferguson is enjoying a nice stretch, hitting .439 in his last 10 games. He’s up to .303/.409/.509 on the season with 13 doubles and seven homers. The 26-year-old was selected by the Giants in the Rule 5 Draft in December, but returned to the Astros in March.

Listed as a third baseman, Joshua Rojas has played all four infield positions and some left field this season. He hit .322/.405/.561 for Corpus Christi before being called up, and is seeing no drop-off in performance. In 16 games for Round Rock, he’s at .328/.418/.567 with more walks (10) than strikeouts (nine), and seven stolen bases in seven attempts.

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Nick Tanielu is an RBI machine right now, having driven in 22 runs in his last 11 games. He was recently named PCL Player of the Week for his efforts, and has split time between second base and third base this season. He’s also pitched one scoreless inning for good measure.

***Statistics courtesy of MiLB.com***