MLB Player News

Dubon went 1-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored Monday against the Tigers.

Dubon began the season in a clear bench role, though his playing time has started to tick up at second base. Houston has shifted its order around in an effort to jump-start its offense, with Dubon starting four of the team's last eight games -- splitting evenly with Brendan Rodgers. The split of time hasn't been predictable by matchup, and one of Rodgers or Dubon is likely to emerge as the primary option based on performance.

Pena went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored Monday against the Tigers.

Pena led off Sunday, though that came against a lefty and with Jose Altuve on the bench. It was more noteworthy that he was in the same spot Monday, with Altuve hitting second in the order. While there are plenty of bigger names in the Houston lineup, Pena has been a steady producer and has increased his walk rate to 7.9 percent while getting on base at a .333 clip through 114 plate appearances.

Heim went 2-for-4 with an RBI in Monday's 2-1 loss to the Athletics.

Heim was the lone Ranger to deliver with a runner in scoring position, as the team's offensive funk continued unabated. He batted cleanup in another attempt by manager Bruce Bochy to find the right combination to shake up the offense. Texas ranks 26th in MLB with a .219 average with runners in scoring position. Heim is above the norm in that regard, batting .286 in that split. Overall, he's batting .261 with a .765 OPS over 21 games.

Santana went 2-for-3 in Monday's 11-1 loss to Minnesota.

Santana snapped a hitless run during Sunday's contest and followed up Monday with his first multi-hit effort in 10 games. He's batting .220 with a .598 OPS through 114 plate appearances.

Junis allowed one hit and struck out one over two scoreless innings in Monday's 11-1 loss to the Twins.

Junis, who entered after starter Gavin Williams lasted just two innings, took a comebacker off his left quad in the third inning. He was down for a brief time while trainers assessed the right-hander and was deemed fit to continue. He got out of that inning and set down the side in order in the fourth. Junis has been a useful arm out of the bullpen, posting a 1.93 ERA with just one walk over 14 innings.

Walker went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in an 8-5 win against the Tigers on Monday.

Walker put the Astros on the board with a two-run shot to left-center field in the fourth inning. The long ball was his fourth of the season, three of which have come over his past eight games. Walker is still slashing a modest .192/.273/.354 on the campaign, but he's shown improvement with a .267 batting average and six RBI to go along with the three homers over the aforementioned eight-game stretch.

Altuve went 2-for-4 with a home run and three total RBI in Monday's 8-5 victory versus Detroit.

Altuve had been slumping coming into the contest, batting just .143 with eight strikeouts over his previous seven games. He got a rare day off Sunday and appeared to benefit from the reset, as the veteran second baseman collected his first multi-hit game Monday since April 18. Altuve's long ball was his first since April 7, and his three RBI equaled the amount he had compiled over his previous 14 contests combined.

Flaherty (1-3) took the loss against Houston on Monday, allowing four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out four batters over five innings.

Flaherty was given an early 3-0 lead, but he coughed up two runs on a Christian Walker homer in the bottom of the fourth inning. Another Astros two-run blast -- this time by Jose Altuve -- in the sixth frame gave Houston its first lead and set Flaherty up for his third straight defeat. The veteran righty hasn't pitched all that poorly during the three-loss streak, and Monday's outing marked the first time this season he's surrendered more than three runs in a game, but his ERA has increased from 1.62 to 3.34 during that stretch. Flaherty will look to get back in the win column his next time out, which lines up to come on the road against the Angels this weekend.

Hader earned a save against the Tigers on Monday, allowing one hit and striking out two batters in a scoreless inning of work.

Hader inherited a three-run lead in the ninth frame and went right after each batter he faced, throwing 12 of his 14 total pitches for strikes. The veteran closer did give up a two-out double, but that proved to be a minor inconvenience as Hader wrapped up his eighth save in eight chances. After posting a disappointing 3.80 ERA last season, Hader has been dominant so far in 2025, allowing just one run on seven hits while registering a 19:3 K:BB over 14 innings covering 12 appearances.

Blanco allowed three runs on three hits and two walks while striking out six batters over five innings in a no-decision against Detroit on Monday.

All three runs Blanco allowed came via the long ball, as Kerry Carpenter hit a two-run shot against him in the third inning and Riley Greene added a solo homer in the fourth. Otherwise, Blanco was pretty solid, as he surrendered just one other hit and induced a healthy 19 swinging strikes. The right-hander has completed at least five frames and given up three or fewer runs in five of his six appearances this season, and his lone ugly outing was a four-run, 1.2-inning start against Minnesota on April 6.