12 Max Stassi C

Stassi believes he found the root cause of his offensive fade over the second half of 2018, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Stassi was a surprise contributor in 2018, when he opened with nine extra-base hits over his first 74 plate appearances on his way to a .787 OPS in the first half. Opposing pitchers adjusted and Stassi faded to a .485 OPS after the All-Star break, forcing the Astros to add Martin Maldonado and move Stassi to third on the depth chart. The 27-year-old catcher was on plane during the early part of the season before the fade. The problem, according to Stassi, is that he'd "come out" of his legs in his batting stance and, therefore, was unable to cover all parts of the strike zone. He returns in 2019 as the primary backup to Robinson Chirinos and must discover a way to sustain offense for the full season.

Stassi went 1-for-2 with a walk and a run scored in Wednesday's win over the Athletics.

Stassi's fourth-inning single was his first hit in two weeks, breaking an 0-for-13 skid. An unproductive bat -- the hit raised his second-half average to .173 -- is one reason why Stassi's lost playing time to newcomer Martin Maldonado, who has started seven of the last 10 games behind the dish. With Brian McCann (knee) expected back when rosters expand Sept. 1, Stassi's playing time will further dry up.

Stassi is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Rockies.

Martin Maldonado draws the start in the series opener. There's been a fairly even split in playing time between Stassi and Maldonado, who is making his second consecutive start.

Stassi went 2-for-4 with a home run and three RBI in Wednesday's 8-3 win over Seattle.

Stassi's three-run bomb in the fifth inning put the game out of reach and secured Houston's second consecutive win after a five-game losing streak. It was Stassi's first homer in 25 games. Over the first two-and-a-half months, Stassi was putting on a pretty good show of power, slugging .500 with seven homers over the first 40 games. Since then, however, the catcher has slugged .328 with one homer over the last 25 games. It's not surprising he's been unable to sustain the early power; Stassi has had more plate appearances (211) in the majors this season than he's had in the previous five seasons combined (89).

Stassi is out of the lineup Sunday against the Rangers.

Stassi started the last two games behind the plate, even though the newly acquired Martin Maldonado was available for both contests. While he'll give way to Maldonado on Sunday, it appears Stassi still may have a chance to retain the primary catching role, though it's more likely manager A.J. Hinch will go with some sort of timeshare arrangement behind the plate.