Astros go quietly in finale vs. Cardinals without Bregman, Tucker

HOUSTON -- Most of the focus lately has been on the rash of injuries plaguing the Astros pitching staff, but Wednesday’s 4-2 loss to the Cardinals could be attributed more to what’s happening in the short term on the offensive side.

The good news is that Alex Bregman is confident that the soreness in his left hand won’t linger into the weekend series in Anaheim. The bad news is that he was unavailable to finish out the 3-3 homestand and was instead sidelined, along with Kyle Tucker, as the Astros went quietly in the series finale against the Cardinals at Minute Maid Park.

Bregman, who was plunked squarely on his hand in the first inning Tuesday, was in the lineup Wednesday morning. But after he took a few swings in the batting cage, it became apparent playing wasn’t a realistic option. He was scratched about than an hour before first pitch, replaced at third by Mauricio Dubon.

Bregman’s hand was visibly swollen as he addressed reporters at his locker following the loss.

“I just took some swings -- it was super tender and sore,” Bregman said, adding that X-rays taken on his hand were clean. “Went to just double-check, everything checked out good. I’ll be ready to go on Friday.”

Manager Joe Espada said after the game that Bregman would have been available as a pinch-hitter had the situation called for it. That opportunity never arrived. The ninth inning came and went quickly, with Yordan Alvarez flying out and Jake Meyers and Jon Singleton striking out to end the game.

Given they were playing without two of their best hitters, this quiet loss wasn’t unexpected. Long term, it’s a positive for the Astros that neither Bregman nor Tucker, who is still recovering from a foul ball he took off the shin in the opener vs. the Cardinals, has landed on the injured list. But those absences left the bench short for this game -- and that’s something they can’t afford to do multiple days in a row.

Espada said that of the two players, Bregman is in a “better spot” to start Friday’s opener in Anaheim, based on how much the third baseman’s hand improved over the course of the day Wednesday and the fact that he would have been able to pinch-hit had they needed him. Tucker is “making progress,” but Espada indicated that is more of a wait-and-see scenario.

The Astros who did play Wednesday were able to do very little against a dominant Miles Mikolas, who needed just 62 pitches to get through six innings. He allowed two baserunners through the first four innings before yielding solo homers to Yainer Diaz and Trey Cabbage in the fifth.

The opposite-field 344-foot homer was Diaz’s third long ball in three games. The catcher recorded six RBIs during the series with the Cardinals.

“This whole week, I felt the same,” Diaz said through interpreter Jenloy Herrera. “I felt good, felt the same this whole week. Just trying to stay within my plan, try not to deviate from it and just work on the things that I've been working on the last few days. And I'm just hoping this continues in the coming days.”

The Cardinals jumped to a three-run lead after five, aided in part by a missed call by home-plate umpire Mark Carlson. With one out in the fifth and the count full on Pedro Pagés, Carlson called a ball on a pitch that was over the plate -- a clear strike. Then two runs scored, both with two outs in the inning.

“It’s disappointing, but umpires miss pitches all the time,” Espada said. “You’ve still got to find a way to get past that and make pitches. It was a big pitch at the moment, but we had opportunities there and later in the game to kind of make up for that.”

The Astros have a scheduled off-day on Thursday, a welcome break for a hobbled team that has been playing shorthanded. While the pitching has longer-term issues, the lineup could get a boost as early as Friday, if Bregman and Tucker can recover quickly.

“Those are two very important pieces of our ballclub, but we’ve got to find ways to grind through stretches like this,” Espada said.