McCormick makes case for more playing time with clutch triple

ARLINGTON -- As Chas McCormick continues his battle for consistent playing time in the outfield, moments like the eighth inning Sunday afternoon can only help further his case to be an everyday presence in manager Dusty Baker’s lineup.

McCormick came through with perhaps the Astros’ biggest hit of the season so far, ripping a bases-clearing triple off the right-field wall with two outs to break a tie and help send the Astros to a 5-3 win over the first-place Rangers.

“I’m just happy to contribute and help the team win,” McCormick said. “I wanted to come through there with two outs, wanted to be aggressive and ready to hit. Thankfully, we got a win today because that was huge. And if we can get a win tomorrow, that will be even bigger.”

McCormick’s triple put the Astros ahead, 4-1, and the Rangers made it a one-run game in the bottom of the eighth when Nathaniel Lowe blasted a two-run homer off Houston reliever Bryan Abreu. Jose Altuve slugged his second homer of the series in the ninth inning -- the 198th of his career.

“It means a lot because like I said when we got here, they‘re in first place and are a great team,” Altuve said. “We’re trying to get as close to them as we can, and winning tomorrow will be important.”

The win moved the Astros to within four games of the Rangers atop the American League West and guaranteed them at least a split in the key four-game series at Globe Life Field -- a series in which Houston is without shortstop Jeremy Peña (neck stiffness) and two players who were named to the All-Star team on Sunday -- slugger Yordan Alvarez (oblique) and starting pitcher Framber Valdez (ankle).

The Astros had to turn to rookie right-hander Shawn Dubin on Sunday -- their fourth consecutive rookie starting pitcher -- and he held the Rangers to one run in four innings, throwing 68 pitches. That was about as much as Houston could have expected from Dubin, the Astros' No. 23 prospect per MLB Pipeline, in his first Major League start.

“That puts us in position to win the series and leave three games out,” Baker said. “We battled today. Our bullpen did a great job. Dubin did an outstanding job. We took him far…we were thinking three, and he went four.

“We got some clutch hits because we left some runners out there early in the game, and I was hoping that wouldn’t come back to haunt us. That was a big triple by Chas, especially with two outs. That’s a big way to do that.”

McCormick, who’s started 12 games in left field, 26 in center, three in right and one at designated hitter, has proven to be a valuable contributor no matter where he plays. His .797 OPS is fourth on the team beyond Alvarez (.978), Altuve (.862) and Kyle Tucker (.827). Still, rookie Corey Julks has been getting the bulk of the starts in left, and Jake Meyers has gotten most of the starts in center.

In the eighth inning, McCormick showed his defensive skills, too, with a diving catch to end the inning, stranding a runner at first base in a tie game.

“It’s tough to see because you have the dark roof and you can see the sky, so it kind of goes in and out [of view],” he said. “It’s hard to read the ball a little bit. I took a step back a little bit and I had to come in, obviously. It was tough to see, but in big games like this you’ve got to be ready to go with anything.”

McCormick hasn’t hit a grand slam in his career, though he came close Sunday. He rocketed a Josh Sborz fastball to right field with an 100 mph exit velocity, and it hit just below the yellow line. The ball traveled 348 feet and would have been a homer at 15 parks, including Minute Maid Park.

McCormick said he’s been working on trying to hit the ball to right field more, which is his strength.

“[Assistant hitting coach Jason] Kanzler helped me out a little bit a couple of days ago, trying to get a new drill going and I think it’s been working,” he said. “My swings feel a little [better]. I can stay inside it and I put a good swing on it today.”