Astros' Yainer Diaz: Will be starting catcher in 2024
Rotowire
Astros general manager Dana Brown confirmed in an interview with Randy McIlvoy of KPRC-TV on Thursday that Diaz "will be the main guy" next season at catcher.
Martin Maldonado has reached free agency, and while it's possible he could be re-signed as a backup, Diaz is in line to take over the lion's share of the catching duties for Houston next season. The 25-year-old made 85 starts -- 42 at catcher -- for the Astros in 2023, popping 23 home runs over just 377 plate appearances while posting an .846 OPS.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Out of lineup for Game 4
Rotowire
Diaz is not in the lineup Wednesday for Game 4 of the ALDS against the Twins.
Diaz takes a seat after going 0-for-5 with four strikeouts as the Astros' designated hitter Tuesday in Game 3. Yordan Alvarez will fill the DH role Wednesday in Game 4, with Michael Brantley patrolling left field and Martin Maldonado again handling the catching duties.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Will be DH for Game 3
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Diaz will start at designated hitter in Game 3 of the ALDS versus the Twins on Tuesday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Diaz had an excellent rookie season for the Astros but has been limited to one pinch-hitting appearance in the first two games of the ALDS. Presumably, his start in Game 3 will come at the expense of Michael Brantley, with Yordan Alvarez playing left field.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Not in lineup Sunday
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Diaz is not in the lineup Sunday against the Royals.
Diaz boasts an .847 OPS with 22 home runs and 57 RBI in 97 games this season for Houston, but he's been riding the pine on a fairly regular basis since Michael Brantley (shoulder) joined the active roster. Brantley is playing left field Sunday as Yordan Alvarez fills the designated-hitter role and Martin Maldonado handles catching duties.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Not in lineup Friday
Rotowire
Diaz is absent from the lineup Friday at Kansas City.
Martin Maldonado will start at catcher and Yordan Alvarez will serve as the Astros' designated hitter as Michael Brantley patrols left field. Diaz has posted a strong .847 OPS with 21 home runs in 95 major-league games this season, but he's largely been a part-time player over the last few weeks.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Slugs homer No. 20
Rotowire
Diaz went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in Saturday's 5-4 loss to the Yankees.
The rookie supplied the Astros' final offense of the night when he drove a Luis Severino slider the other way for an opposite-field homer. Diaz has cemented his spot in the lineup by slashing .303/.340/.574 since the beginning of August with seven of his 20 long balls on the season, and the 24-year-old has fallen into a pattern of starting two out of every three games -- once at DH and once at catcher.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Heads to bench Sunday
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Diaz is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Tigers.
Though Diaz is on the bench for Sunday's series finale, expect the Astros to find a way for him to stick in the lineup on a near-everyday basis. He had started in each of the last nine games, slashing .316/.350/.553 with five extra-base hits. Even with Jose Abreu having recently returned from the injured list, the Astros can keep Diaz's bat in the lineup by deploying Yordan Alvarez in the corner outfield more often or giving top catcher Martin Maldonado more frequent days off.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Racks up three hits
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Diaz went 3-for-5 with one RBI in Wednesday's 7-5 extra-inning loss to the Red Sox.
Diaz extended his hitting streak to seven games, a span in which he's gone 12-for-31 (.387) with three home runs and seven RBI. The 24-year-old has seen a bit more playing time this week with Yordan Alvarez (finger) battling an injury. Diaz is up to a .286/.302/.541 slash line with 18 home runs, 18 doubles, 46 RBI and 37 runs scored across 82 contests this season. He continues to provide cover at catcher, designated hitter and first base.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Not starting Tuesday
Rotowire
Diaz is not in the lineup Tuesday versus the Red Sox.
After drawing into the starting lineup in four straight games, Diaz will be on the bench Tuesday. The 24-year-old went 7-for-18 with five extra-base hits during his aforementioned quartet of starts, and his night off will result in Jon Singleton sliding into the DH role.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Nabs third straight start
Rotowire
Diaz will start at catcher and bat cleanup in Sunday's game against the Mariners.
After going 4-for-8 with a solo home run and a pair of doubles in the first two games of the series while making starts at first base, Diaz will move behind the dish for Sunday's finale as top backstop Martin Maldonado gets a day off. Though Diaz is without a clear path to an everyday role at any one spot, expect the Astros to find ways to keep his hot bat in the lineup at first base, catcher or designated hitter. Since the All-Star break, Diaz ranks fourth among all Astros hitters with a .976 OPS.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Pops 16th homer
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Diaz went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run Tuesday against the Marlins.
Diaz drew the start behind the dish for the third time in Houston's last six games. He has earned that increase in playing time at the plate, as he's maintained a .299 batting average with six homers, 20 RBI and 12 runs scored across 77 at-bats since the All-Star break. Diaz has also gotten sporadic looks at designated hitter, even since the return of Yordan Alvarez.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Homers in win
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Diaz went 1-for-5 with a three-run home run in Friday's win over the Yankees.
After spending most of his recent games batting in the bottom third of the order, Diaz was moved up to fifth in the lineup and delivered early, as his first inning shot off of struggling Yankees starter Luis Severino gave the Astros a lead they would not relinquish. The 24-year-old catcher is now up to 14 home runs on the season and has blasted four of those homers since the All-Star break. He continues to split time behind the plate with Martin Maldonado, but his superior offensive production could continue to lead to more at-bats as the Astros battle for the AL West crown.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: On bench Thursday
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Diaz is out of the lineup Thursday against the Yankees.
Martin Maldonado will start at catcher and bat ninth as the Astros open a big four-game series at Yankee Stadium. Diaz should start at least two of the games, whether behind the plate or as Houston's designated hitter.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Productive day at plate
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Diaz went 2-for-5 with one double, a two-run home run, an additional RBI and an additional run scored in Saturday's victory over Tampa Bay.
Diaz tagged starter Taj Bradley for a two-run shot in the second inning, marking the 24-year-old's 13th homer of the season and his third in the past six games. However, he didn't stop there, plating Chas McCormick on a fifth-inning double off Calvin Faucher. Over his last 16 games, Diaz is 15-for-54 (.278) with five home runs and 13 RBI.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Heads to bench in Alvarez's return
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Diaz is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rangers.
Diaz had started each of the last three games -- with the last two coming as a designated hitter -- but he'll cede his spot in the lineup to Yordan Alvarez (oblique), who was reinstated from the 10-day injured list Wednesday. Unless the Astros are willing to pull the plug on the struggling Martin Maldonado as their primary catcher, Diaz will likely be limited to a part-time role moving forward after he had been a near-everyday player for Houston since the beginning of June.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Sits again Saturday
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Diaz is out of the lineup Saturday against the Athletics.
Diaz also sat out of Friday's game in Oakland, though there's no word of any injury. Martin Maldonado is catching for the Astros on Saturday and Corey Julks will take a turn as the designated hitter.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Not in lineup Friday
Rotowire
Diaz is not in the lineup for Friday's game at Oakland.
Diaz started at catcher in Thursday's series opener versus the Athletics and went 0-for-3. Martin Maldonado is behind the plate Friday and David Hensley will take a turn as the Astros' designated hitter.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Reaches base three times
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Diaz went 2-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored Saturday against the Angels.
Diaz was out of the lineup for Houston's first game after the All-Star break, but he returned to hit seventh and serve as the designated hitter Saturday. He entered the game in a short-term slump, having hit just .216 across his previous 10 contests and 37 at-bats. Diaz has shown some impressive power across 193 plate appearances this season by maintaining a .224 ISO. However, he boasts just a 2.6 percent walk rate, limiting him to a .285 on-base percentage. It remains to be seen whether that will be enough to keep him in the lineup regularly as the catcher once Yordan Alvarez (oblique) is able to return.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Goes yard twice
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Diaz went 2-for-4 with two homers, three RBI and two runs scored in Wednesday's 6-4 win over the Rockies.
Diaz launched a solo shot in the bottom of the second to put the Astros on the board. The catcher wasn't done, however, taking Chase Anderson deep for a second time in the fourth to make it a 3-0 ballgame. Diaz now has three home runs over his last three games to go along with four RBI and two runs scored. He's also hit safely in five of his last seven contests.
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Astros' Yainer Diaz: Racks up three hits
Rotowire
Diaz went 3-for-6 with two doubles and one RBI in Thursday's 14-0 win over the Cardinals.
Diaz has six multi-hit efforts over 20 games in June, and he's batting .313 (25-for-80) for the month. His strong hitting has helped him force his way into the lineup on a regular basis, splitting time between designated hitter and catcher. Diaz has maintained a .275/.287/.500 slash line with seven home runs, 11 doubles, 17 RBI and 16 runs scored over 150 plate appearances. His walk rate remains low at 2.0 percent, which may make his recent success hard to sustain.
