The Astros split an entertaining four-game series with the New York Yankees. Every game was exciting and the sold-out crowd at Minute Maid Park was electric and as loud as I've heard the stadium in years. The Astros received excellent starting pitching in three of the games: Dallas Keuchel, Vincent Velasquez and Collin McHugh gave up a combined three earned runs over their 23.1 innings of work.

Unfortunately with a 2-0 lead and seemingly on their way to another win, the bullpen and usually reliable reliever Will Harris, gave up a three-run homer in the late innings against Yankees outfielder Chris Young (who was born and raised in Houston), and took a 3-2 loss in the game that Velasquez had pitched. And the second loss the Astros suffered in this series they had came back from a 6-0 deficit to tie the game 6-6 but ended up losing 9-6.

Our bullpen has been a bit faulty and costing us some games lately. Nowhere near as dominating as they were earlier this season. Had the bullpen been pitching well the Astros could have likely swept this four-game series, but as has been the case all season, the Astros can't seem to run away with the American League West. They continue to do just enough to stay in first place but the other teams are still within striking distance.

In fact, our last five or six losses were of the heartbreaking and frustrating variety. But that's just baseball to me.

Houston (44-34) leads the AL West by four games over the Los Angeles Angels and is poised to end a six-year stretch of losing seasons and qualify for the playoffs for the first time in 10 years. The Astros lead the majors with 110 homers and 728 strikeouts (feast or famine offensive production), and also are among baseball's leaders with 241 walks as a team. The team on-base percentage isn't bad despite all the strikeouts and a few everyday starters hitting under .200 - Luis Valbuena at third base is hitting .195 but with a team leading 19 home runs and Chris Carter is hitting .198 with 13 home runs.

Thankfully the Astros have three guys at the top of the lineup playing at an all-star level and consistently causing havoc with their good hitting, speed and especially defense. All three players can do it all: George Springer, Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve. It's an absolute pleasure to watch these three guys play every single day. In some ways Astros fans are spoiled right now but we deserve it after so many horrible seasons in a row. Since the first time since the Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio era, and to some degree Lance Berkman, we finally have some everyday players who are worth the price of admission win or lose.

Superstar rookie and 20-year-old Carlos Correa was called up to the big leagues a little late this year (only 20 games played as of now) otherwise he'd be going to the all-star game playing like he has been. He's putting up some crazy good numbers. In fact, he has the best all-around stats through 20 games of any shortstop in the history of the game. That's not even mentioning his sensational defense and highlight-worthy plays in the field. At some point he probably will go through some struggles, as all young players do, but this kid seems to be a franchise player who can adjust to Major League pitching.

The Houston Astros host the defending American League champion and red-hot Kansas City Royals tonight at Minute Maid Park (7:10 PM). Two of the best teams in the American League are on display. The Royals are the best-record team in the AL right now at 44-28. This three-game series could tell us a lot of how good the Astros really are but I simply take things one game at a time. It's a marathon season.

The flame-throwing rookie, Lance McCullers (3-2, 2.33 ERA), will be on the mound for the Astros tonight. Hopefully he can set the tone for what turns out to be a winning series against the Royals. The Astros also have Dallas Keuchel (9-3, 2.17 ERA) set to pitch in the second game against the Royals. So I feel pretty good about the Astros' chances to take two out of three if things go well. A sweep would be fantastic but the Royals are too good to expect a sweep against.

Another bright spot for the Astros is that starting pitcher Collin McHugh (9-3, 4.51 ERA) has been pitching well during his past few starts. Despite a high ERA this year he's more than capable of being a solid number three starter. He's still on pace to win 18 games. He doesn't have ace-like stuff like rookie Lance McCullers but he's dependable.

The Astros will try to trade for a big-name pitcher like Cole Hamels from the Phillies or Johnny Cueto from the Reds very soon. Somebody who can form a potentially strong duo with Dallas Keuchel in the second half of the season and even playoffs. They still have a month left before the July 31 trading deadline and the Astros have several elite prospects dominating the minor leagues who they can offer in a potential deal to acquire another front-line starter and perhaps another good reliever on top of that.

The Astros farm system has been so good. the best in baseball according to many experts, they already have seven rookies on their Major League roster right now: Carlos Correa, Lance McCullers, Preston Tucker, Domingo Santana, Jon Singleton, Vincent Velasquez and Michael Feliz.

Obviously of all the rookies I just mentioned, it's safe to say that Carlos Correa and Lance McCullers are franchise building players and untouchable trading wise. The Phillies would deal Cole Hamels to the Astros in a heartbeat for both players, for example, but it's not worth it for the Astros, I'm just trying to point out that we have the young talent to acquire a big-name pitcher at the trading deadline.

But any of those other guys could be traded. Not to mention 21-year-old Brett Phillips, who's quickly rising as an elite outfield prospect in the minor leagues. And perhaps even former first overall pick from a couple years ago, pitcher Mark Appel (recently promoted to Triple-A), and outfielder/second baseman Tony Kemp, who were both named to the futures all-star game.

While the Astros would love to have Cole Hamels they are very high on Johnny Cueto. Either one would help our starting rotation. I'm sure the Phillies and Reds have scouts watching a lot of the young players in the Astros system. The Astros also like Scott Kazmir from the Athletics but teams in the same division rarely trade with each other. When a trade does go down I'll discuss it then. For now all the Houston Astros can do is keep grinding out some wins, staying in first place in the AL West, and allowing all of their young talent to shine by playing them as much as possible.

Another thing to remember: Sometimes the best trades you can make are the ones you don't make.

The 2015 Houston Astros are in a position of strength right now. The future looks bright for many years to come. It just so happens that they are becoming legitimate playoff contenders a little earlier than some people expected. That doesn't mean they have to "go all out" to clinch the American League West division title this year. They could still put themselves in position to make the playoffs for the next six, seven, eight years in a row just by keeping all of their young talent and filling in their other needs in free agency.

The Astros sent a bit of a statement with a 6-1 win over the defending AL champion Royals. Rookie phenom, Lance McCullers, was able to show good command of his breaking pitches. When he does that he's as good as it gets with the excellent stuff he has. His fastball is electric, best on the team velocity wise, with some extra movement on it that can make it tough to hit. He allowed only four hits and one run over his seven strong innings. Six strikeouts and he improved his record to 4-2 with a 2.19 ERA.

It was one of those games where they came to play and they showed the Royals that having a team full of "voted all stars" doesn't mean much on the field. Jose Altuve, in particular, showed why he should be starting at second base for the American League team over the less deserving Omar Infante. All Altuve did was flash around his glove with several great defensive plays, along with a home run, to the applause of the hometown crowd. Infante on the other hand went 0-for-4 and his season batting average dropped to .233. His numbers fail in comparison to Altuve all across the board.

Altuve and Correa are becoming the best "double play turned" in baseball. They both are vacuums out there in the middle infield. The Astros became the first team in the American League to reach 45 wins this year. They'll look for win #46 later tonight with ace and possible all-star starter, Dallas Keuchel, on the mound. Keuchel has been absolute perfection at home this season (7-0. 1.39 ERA). He'll look to continue that home dominance as he attempts to reach his 10th win of the year.

Three wins in a row for the Astros as they shutout the Royals, 4-0. Dallas Keuchel was dominant yet again as he tossed eight shutout innings, along with seven strikeouts and no walks. to improve his season record to 10-3 with an American League leading 2.03 ERA. He's been the best pitcher in the game this season as far as I'm concerned, and he has a scoreless streak of 17 straight innings over his last two shutout starts.

George Springer's two-run homer to left field (13 on the year), that was measured at 380 feet, was all the offense the Astros would need. The first place Astros (46-34) aim for the three-game sweep against the Royals at 7:10 PM tonight. It's July the 1st and a new month arrives with rookie starter Vincent Velasquez (0-0, 3.72 ERA) looking to notch his first big league win. It will be his fifth career start.

The Houston Astros defeated the Kansas City Royals 6-5 to sweep their three-game series against the defending American League champions. Manager A.J. Hinch decided to give Carlos Correa the night off after the rookie phenom went hitless in his last two games. Chris Carter and Marwin Gonzalez both homered to pick up the offensive slack. Evan Gattis hit a two-run single and Jose Altuve notched an RBI single.

Rookie starter Vincent Velasquez picked up another touch luck no-decision. After struggling early in the game and giving up three earned runs in the first two innings he settled down nicely and retired fifteen straight Kansas City batters. He left the game with a 5-3 lead in the top of the 7th, and a runner on base, but the Royals tied the game 5-5 off reliever Josh Fields. He's yet to receive a win or loss during his five MLB starts. During his post-game interview the humbled Velasquez displayed some maturity and said he didn't care because he's happy the team picked up the win.

With a 47-34 record the Astros have the most wins in the American League as they continue to play some good baseball. They increased their division lead over the Angels to five games and they are now six games ahead of the third place Texas Rangers. It's been challenging to pick up a lot of games in the standings because those other teams had been winning a lot of games recently as well. The Rangers play the Angels over the weekend so this is a good chance to potentially be guaranteed to pick up some ground on one of those teams.

Houston has the day off on Thursday but they will try to win five games in a row Friday Night at Boston. The Astros have called up starting pitcher Dan Straily from Triple-A Fresno, who they traded for last off-season, to make his first start of the 2015 season. Houston could use some starting pitching help with Scott Feldman still on the disabled list and Brett Oberholtzer recently sent back down to the minor leagues.

The July 31 MLB trading deadline can't arrive fast enough for me. I'm anxious to see if the Astros can finalize a big trade and acquire another all-star caliber pitcher that can form a nice duo down the stretch with ERA leader Dallas Keuchel. I'd be very happy to see them trade for Cole Hamels of the Phillies or Johnny Cueto of the Reds. Both of them are the top two starting pitchers on the trade market right now. I think the Astros are leaning towards making an aggressive push to try and acquire Cueto over Hamels at the moment, but with so many trade rumors you can't believe what you see or hear until it actually happens.

The Astros most improved player this year and their emotional leader in the club house, right fielder George Springer, will be out at least six weeks with a fractured right wrist, after Royals starting pitcher Edinson Volquez hit him in the wrist with a 96 MPH fastball last night. When it first happened Springer grimaced in pain but remained in the game. He was taken out of the game an inning later but I was hoping it wasn't as serious and just for precautionary measures.

George Springer was playing so well and hitting as good as any leadoff hitter in the game. He was struggling at the plate and hitting under .200 early in the season but once he became a leadoff hitter his numbers quickly elevated to all-star caliber status. His defense in right field is arguably the best in the game to go along with a strong throwing arm.

Springer's loss is going to test the first-place Astros but they do have a lot of depth all around. I suppose this could mean more playing time for Domingo Santana and Preston Tucker. Preferably both will play at the same time now. They also have an exciting outfield prospect named Tony Kemp at Triple-A but it looks like they called up Alex Presley instead. A guy who has Major League experience in the outfield.

In recent games the Astros have also played Evan Gattis in left field to allow Jon Singleton and Chris Carter to play first base and DH. Manager A.J. Hinch has been finding ways to maximize the lineup. The Astros were already without two outfielders due to injuries, Colby Rasmus and Jake Marisnick. One or both could return tomorrow night as well.

On the plus side, the Astros have today off and they only have ten games left before the all-star break. And great contact hitter Jed Lowrie, who was carrying the team and hitting .300 with 4 home runs the first two weeks of the season, is going to return in a few weeks. He suffered a broken thumb and it was a three-month long setback. Thankfully Springer's injury is only expected to be half as long.

We still have Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa to set the tone at the top of the batting order.

Houston has a lot of depth so I'm not too concerned with the lack of talent without George Springer. Let's see how this team does during this 10-game road trip before the all-star break: 3 at Boston, 4 at Cleveland, 3 at Tampa Bay. I really don't think we'll see that much drop off. This team has played well all season long even with key players being injured. When Jose Altuve was out they actually stringed together many wins without him.

Most teams probably couldn't play as good, if not better, when a star player is injured but the Astros have already shown they can.

What an exciting way to kick off the 4th of July weekend!

The Houston Astros won a thrilling and wild 12-8 game in 10 innings at Boston to secure their fifth win in a row. Jose Altuve extended his hitting streak to eleven games with three hits total and he scored a pair of runs. Superstar rookie Carlos Correa smashed his sixth homer of the year to go along with three hits and two RBIs. The 20-year-old shortstop sensation is taking the Major Leagues by storm.

The Astros pounded out a season high 17 hits total and it was a great team effort all around.
Preston Tucker, Evan Gattis and Alex Presley all had two hits apiece. The Astros keep finding ways to win.
It doesn't matter who plays or the constant lineup changes manager A.J. Hinches uses: Just win, baby!

It was also nice to see George Springer in the dugout cheering on the team and smiling, high fiving people with his enthusiasm, and enjoying the game. Even though he's going to miss at least six weeks with his wrist injury he still traveled with the team and continues to be a big part of their success and club house environment. Other players will step up and play well. It's been that way all year long. The Astros have several good outfielders they can plug in and play. The Astros have arguably the best depth of any American League team and certainly the best farm system in all of baseball

With a 48-34 record, comfortably in first place if things keep going well, the Astros will try to win six games in a row tomorrow afternoon (12:35 PM) with Collin McHugh (9-3, 4.51 ERA) on the mound. McHugh has been pitching well lately and can join team ace Dallas Keuchel with a 10th win. Keuchel still has two more starts before the all-star break so he has a chance to reach 12 wins pre all-star break.

The Astros five-game winning streak was snapped with a 6-1 loss at Boston on the 4th of July. They couldn't continue those same fireworks from the night before. You have to tip your cap to Red Sox starting pitcher, Clay Buchholz, who tossed a complete game and only gave up one run to go along with eight strikeouts and six hits. This was one of those games that the Astros needed a solid pitching performance just to have a chance to win but we gave up too many runs for the second straight game. You can't expect to score 7+ runs, much less 12 like the night before, every game.

Hopefully the Astros can win the three-game series at Boston later today with an exciting rubber game starting at 12:35 PM. Brilliant rookie Lance McCullers (4-2, 2.19 ERA) will be on the mound so I feel pretty good about the Astros' chances to win today. It's only our third game without George Springer (1-1 record) so it's too soon to see how everything plays out. Dallas Keuchel is scheduled to pitch at Cleveland tomorrow so this could be the beginning of a new winning streak.

It's all about grinding out wins and staying in first place. And hopefully making a big trade to acquire another reliable top-of-the-rotation pitcher, to go along with Keuchel and McCullers, as the July 31st trading deadline nears. This team has all the makings of something special and potentially an exciting playoff run. They just need to make due without George Springer for the next several weeks and continue to play hard. The all-star break is coming up after next Sunday so they'll have a chance to calm things down before a strong second-half run.