 was otherwise excellent, striking out four and allowing six hits over five innings. Ryne Stanek followed with two hitless innings, and Jose Alvarado pitched a perfect ninth for his second save.Astros starter Collin McHugh (0-1) struck out nine and allowed two runs over five innings in his return to the rotation. A 19-game winner in 2015, McHugh was moved to the bullpen last season due to Houston's rotation depth.McHugh didn't allow a hit until Yandy Diaz's leadoff double in the fifth. Kevin Kiermaier drove in Diaz with a two-out double, and Michael Perez made it 2-1 with a single, the third and final hit off McHugh.Tommy Pham drove in Tampa Bay's final run with a single in the eighth off Chris Devenski. It marked the 35th straight game in which Pham has reached base.Singles by Jose Altuve and Michael Brantley and a walk loaded the bases for the Astros in the eighth, but right fielder Avisail Garcia ran down Josh Reddick's line drive off Adam Kolarek for the third out.The Rays struck out 13 times, raising their total to 38 in the first three games of the series.WHO'S COUNTING?Rays first baseman Ji-Man Choi fielded a sharp groundball by Tony Kemp in the second inning and threw to second base to start a double play, much to the surprise of shortstop Joey Wendle, since there were two outs.BLUE LIGHT SPECIALTropicana Field is still testing blue lights to tint its roof, hoping to make it easier for players to track flyballs. In testing done after Friday's game, players were still having difficulty tracking balls that went above the lights. ''They're?making adjustments and improvements,'' Tampa Bay manager Kevin Cash said. ''Not quite what we're looking for yet.'' The lights are part of a new LED system installed throughout the ballpark.TRAINER'S ROOMAstros: SS Carlos Correa (stiff neck) might make his season debut Sunday after going through a complete workout that included batting practice.Rays: LHP Anthony Banda (Tommy John surgery) is throwing off a mound.UP NEXTAstros: LHP Wade Miley makes his Astros debut on Sunday.Rays: Tampa Bay was expected to use an opener for the first time this season, but Cash said Saturday night he will use RHP Yonny Chirinos as a traditional starter.---More MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/-Sports)
Short-handed 'Stros turn to former reliever against Rays The Astros long to avoid another protracted stretch of games with All-Star shortstop Carlos Correa performing at less than optimal health, a thought process that informed the decision to sit Correa in the opening two games of this season with another day of rest set for Saturday.Correa, who battled back injuries while producing career-worst numbers across the board last season, suffered a neck strain during the final week of spring training and has been sidelined ever since. The Astros are aiming for Correa to return to the starting lineup on Sunday in the finale of the season-opening four-game series with the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla."Today is the best I've felt ever since the injury happened," Correa said on Friday prior to the Astros' 4-2 loss. "Great progress. I'm really close to being back out there. I'm very excited." Injuries have prevented Correa from reaching his full potential. Correa played a total of 219 games over the past two seasons and has posted 600-plus plate appearances only once (2016). His replacement thus far, utility infielder Aledmys Diaz, is 0-for-7 with four strikeouts and committed a critical error in the third inning on Friday that resulted in three unearned runs.Still, the Astros won't rush Correa, not after he labored through a bad back for most of 2018. A decision regarding his preparedness won't be made until after Correa undergoes a full workout."I will wait a day too long rather than a day too short," Astros manager A. J. Hinch said.Right-hander Collin McHugh will make his season debut for the Astros on Saturday. He rejoins the rotation after spending the entirety of last season working out of the bullpen, finishing 6-2 with a 1.99 ERA over 58 appearances. He will make his first start since Oct. 1, 2017 at Boston.McHugh is 1-4 with a 2.12 ERA over seven career appearances (five starts) against the Rays, with 34 strikeouts in 34 innings. He was 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA over two relief outings last season.Right-hander Tyler Glasnow will work opposite McHugh for the Rays. He was acquired by Tampa Bay in the blockbuster trade that sent former ace Chris Archer to the Pittsburgh Pirates last July 31. A fifth-round pick in the 2011 draft, Glasnow went 1-5 with a 4.20 ERA over 11 starts with the Rays following the trade, recording 64 strikeouts over 55 2/3 innings while also surrendering 19 walks. Saturday will mark his first career appearance against the Astros.Like his counterpart with the Astros, Rays manager Kevin Cash is making a concerted effort to utilize his full roster in the early stages of the season. Hinch had right fielder Josh Reddick, catcher Max Stassi and designated hitter Tony Kemp in the lineup on Friday, none of whom got the start in the series opener. Cash is taking a similar approach with his primary reserves."Look, everybody gets out of spring fairly fresh, and sometimes you can catch yourself three weeks in or a month in where you have not utilized anybody from your bench, and that spring training becomes wasted for them," Cash told MLB.com. "We're going to make sure that everybody stays fresh and playing and helping us win games as one unit." --Field Level Media
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