HOUSTON — There weren’t a lot of bright spots for the Astros in Saturday’s 10-3 loss to Cincinnati, but one was Jose Altuve.
The Astros second baseman banged out four hits, including a home run, in a 4-for-4 performance. With that, Altuve passed up Hall of Famer Craig Biggio for the most four-hit games in team history. Altuve now has 35 of them, eclipsing Biggio’s 34.
Even though Altuve accounted for four of the Astros seven hits Saturday, manager Dusty Baker plans to give him the day off Sunday in the series finale, according to the Astros website. Baker said he’s taking Altuve’s return slowly after the oblique strain that sidelined him for a few games.
Altuve also missed time at the beginning of the season with a fractured hand after being hit by a pitch while playing for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic.
The Astros have dropped the first two games of the series with the Reds and are 3-7 in their last 10 games. The team is now 4.5 games behind the AL West division-leading Texas Rangers.
