Jun 8, 2016; Arlington, TX, USA; Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve (27) hits a two rbi double during the seventh inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Park in Arlington. Photo Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
Major League Baseball announced Monday that due to the catastrophic flooding from Tropical Storm Harvey in the Houston area, this week’s series between Texas Rangers and Houston Astros will be moved to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla.
The Rangers and Astros will play on Tuesday and Wednesday at 7:10 p.m. ET and on Thursday at 1:10 p.m. ET. The Astros will be the home team for the three-game series at the stadium of the Tampa Bay Rays.
The league also announced that the Astros’ three-game series against the New York Mets scheduled Friday through Sunday at Minute Maid Park may also be moved to Tropicana Field. That decision will be made later this week.
“The safety of our fans, players and staff remain our main priority,” Astros president of business operations Reid Ryan said in a statement. “We are extremely grateful to the Tampa Bay Rays organization for allowing us to use their facility. We’ll make a decision on this weekend’s series vs. the Mets in the upcoming days as we continue to monitor the conditions. In the meantime, our thoughts and prayers are with all of those affected by the Hurricane.”
MLB and the Major League Baseball Players Association announced that the parties will jointly donate $1 million to various relief efforts for the damage throughout the state of Texas created by Hurricane Harvey, including to the American Red Cross.
–The Washington Nationals reinstated right-hander Max Scherzer from the 10-day disabled list ahead of his start against the Miami Marlins.
In addition, the Nationals returned from rehab assignment and reinstated outfielder Jayson Werth from the 60-day disabled list, and optioned outfielders Rafael Bautista and Andrew Stevenson to Triple-A Syracuse.
Scherzer, 33, returns to the Nationals’ active roster after just the second disabled list stint of his major league career. The 2016 National League Cy Young Award winner missed two starts (12 games) with inflammation in the left side of his neck.
Werth, 38, rejoins the Nationals after missing 75 games with a left foot contusion. He appeared in six rehab games (three at Triple-A and three with Class A Potomac), going 3-for-13 with a double, a run, and four walks. Before his injury, suffered when he fouled a ball into his foot at Oakland, Werth was hitting .262 with a .367 on-base percentage and a .446 slugging percentage this season. In 47 games, Werth has eight home runs and 18 RBIs.
–New York Mets right-hander Matt Harvey is tentatively scheduled to make his first start in more than two months in Friday’s game against the Houston Astros, the New York Post reported.
Whether that game will be played in Houston is unclear as the Astros are playing the Texas Rangers in St. Petersburg, Fla., early this week because of the effects of Tropical Storm Harvey.
Harvey was diagnosed with “a stress injury to the scapula bone in the right shoulder,” according to the Mets. He has not pitched since June 14, when he gave up four runs and four hits in four innings against the Chicago Cubs.
Harvey has a 4-3 record with a 5.25 ERA this season.
–The Toronto Blue Jays designated outfielder Norichika Aoki for assignment, one day after he went 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs in a 7-2 loss to the Minnesota Twins.
The Blue Jays also recalled right-hander Leonel Campos from Triple-A Buffalo to bolster an overworked bullpen.
Aoki was batting .281 in 12 games with three homers and eight RBIs after joining the Blue Jays on July 31 in a trade with Houston for left-hander Francisco Liriano. The 35-year-old is batting .274 with five homers and 27 RBIs in 83 games overall this season.
Campos owns a 3.38 ERA without a decision in nine outings (10 2/3 innings) with Toronto. He is 3-0 with a 1.76 ERA in 24 games with Buffalo.
