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After an off-day on Thursday, the Houston Astros have their hands full this weekend with a tough matchup against the NL West-leading San Diego Padres. The three-game series will feature a couple of the more dangerous arms in baseball as Houston will see both Michael King and Dylan Cease.
The Astros' offense is going to need to show a lot more than they have thus far in order to have a successful weekend at Daikin Park, but that isn't the only Astros news worth keeping an eye on.
Astros News: Hector Neris signs with LA Angels
From 2022 through 2023, Hector Neris was one of the Astros' most reliable relievers. He owned a combined 2.69 ERA covering 141 appearances with the team, but since that two-year stretch, the game has not treated Neris quite as well. He struggled after signing with the Chicago Cubs and was underwhelming after reuniting with the Astros last season.
Fast forward to this season, and Neris flamed out with the Atlanta Braves thanks in large part to signing so late this spring. However, Neris' track record seems to have been enough to garner another. The Los Angeles Angels scooped up Neris on a minor-league deal, so Houston fans may be seeing the former reliever in short order as he plans to suit up for one of the Astros' division rivals.
Astros News: Houston insider provides fascinating explanation of Yordan Alvarez's struggles
Every Astros fan is well aware of Yordan Alvarez's slow start to the 2025 season. Normally, Alvarez is a consistent force at the plate, so to see him scuffle, especially against fastballs, has been a rather jarring experience. Furthermore, the "why" has been hard to explain.
Thankfully, the Houston Chronicle's Matt Kawahara did some digging into Alvarez's slump and offered up an explanation. Astros hitting coach Alex Cintron, revealed that Alvarez is diving after pitches, and has a couple minor mechanical flaws in his swing. It sounds like the Astros and Alvarez are making progress to fix the problem, so fans should expect the slugger return to form in the near future.
Astros News: Lance McCullers Jr. may only need one more rehab start
One can understand the amount of skepticism that currently surrounds Lance McCullers Jr. and his impending return. McCullers Jr. has encountered so many setbacks, and has been hurt for so long—he has not pitched in the majors since 2022—that fans are firmly in the "we'll believe it when we see it" camp regardless of how positive the update may be.
After looking good during his minor league rehab, it feels like McCullers is getting close to returning. McCullers is set to make one more rehab start next week, and if that goes by without incident and he can make it to 75-80 pitches, the right-hander could be activated from the injured list after that.