Altuve makes club history, but Baker taking return slow

HOUSTON -- The good news for the Astros on an otherwise forgettable Saturday afternoon at Minute Maid Park saw the resurgence of Jose Altuve, who banged out four hits, including a home run, to pass Craig Biggio for the most four-hit games in club history.

The bad news is Altuve will be out of the lineup for Sunday’s series finale against the Reds, who beat the Astros, 10-3, and will be going for a road sweep. Astros manager Dusty Baker is sticking with his plan to give Altuve occasional rest, even though he accounted for four of Houston’s seven hits Saturday.

“It’s tough because he took some mighty swings today, and I’m still being cautious about his legs and his side and everything else,” Baker said. “He’s feeling OK, but I’ve got to do what I’ve got to do to have him for the long run. It’s a tough decision, but it’s my decision.”

Altuve, who entered Saturday batting .162 with one RBI in his previous nine games, singled and stole a base in the first inning, doubled in the third and fifth innings and launched his third homer of the season -- an opposite-field shot -- in the seventh. It was the 35th four-hit game of his career, one ahead of Biggio.

“I said it many times, every time that I get my name next to his, it’s an honor for me,” Altuve said. “[Biggio] is a Hall of Famer, 3,000 hits, Houston hero. He's a great guy, and he’s been helping me a lot, so it’s an honor.”

Altuve has never had a five-hit game in his career and didn’t get a chance to try Saturday after the Astros managed only one baserunner in the final two innings following his homer. His home run left the bat at 105.1 mph, and both doubles were hit hard -- 100.2 mph in the third and 101.3 mph in the fifth.

“The double to right field and the homer, I have to admit they were pretty good swings,” Altuve said. “That’s the kind of swing I want to put on the ball more often.”

Still, the Astros are batting .202 (20-for-99) during a three-game losing streak with two homers; Yainer Diaz went deep in the sixth inning Saturday. The club is 1-for-25 with runners in scoring position in those three games.

Altuve missed the first 43 games of the regular season after having surgery to repair a fractured thumb suffered when he was struck by a pitch in the World Baseball Classic. He missed four games earlier this month with a mild oblique strain.

“I think I’m that kind of player that when I’m playing more and more, I’m going to get better at home plate,” Altuve said. “I think I’ve been like that my whole career, and it’s going to be like this year again, especially when missing pretty much all Spring Training and the first two months [of the regular season]. It seems like I need some at-bats to get ready. I’ve been working really hard in BP and in the cage with my hitting coaches, and I have to give a lot of credit to them for the results we have today because we put in a lot of effort together.”

Baker said Saturday that Altuve is still in Spring Training mode because he’s missed 47 games this year because of injuries. Still, he’s up to 91 plate appearances, which is more than he would get in a typical Spring Training schedule.

“I want him to stay fresh, even though it’s a thin line between keeping him ready and then kind of overplaying him at this point in time,” Baker said.

If anyone knows the benefit of being healthy for the playoffs, it’s Altuve, who has played in 92 playoff games in his career and has 23 career postseason homers -- the second-most all-time. The goal is to be on the field in October, not every day in June.

“For me, the most important thing is to stay healthy all year round,” he said. “I lost a couple of months already, and the last thing I want is to keep getting hurt, so I trust the coaching staff and everybody that’s going to make the lineup the next day. Whatever they decide, I’m going to go out there and do it. I’m not really smart [at] making those kinds of decisions. I’m a guy who wants to play every day and [do] whatever they say.”