41 Brad Peacock RP

Peacock allowed a run on two hits and one walk while striking out three in the ninth inning of Saturday's 10-4 win over Arizona.

Peacock made his first appearance since missing three games because of hand, foot and mouth disease. Overall, he hadn't pitched in 10 days and the rust showed. The right-hander needed 25 pitches (14 strikes) to close out the blowout win.

Peacock was sent home with hand, foot and mouth disease Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Peacock isn't the first pitcher to come down with the disease this season -- Noah Syndergaard in late July and J.A. Happ in early August both required minimum stays on the disabled list while battling the illness. With expanded September rosters, Peacock likely won't be required to miss 10 full days.

Peacock covered 1.2 scoreless innings as the opening pitcher Tuesday in the Astros' 3-2 victory over the Mariners. He didn't factor into the decision and allowed three base hits and no walks while striking out two.

With Lance McCullers (forearm) on the 10-day disabled list, the Astros were forced to incorporate a new starter into the mix for the first time all season. Peacock, who made 21 starts for Houston in 2017, ended up being manager A.J. Hinch's choice for the nod, but because the right-hander hadn't worked more than three innings in any of his prior appearances this season, he had a short leash Tuesday. Peacock should receive a slight bump up from the 36 pitches he tossed in Seattle in his next outing, which is expected to come Sunday versus the Angels. There's a good possibility that the Astros will once again piggyback him with Framber Valdez, who gave up an unearned run over 4.1 innings in relief of Peacock en route to claiming the win.

Peacock will start Tuesday against the Mariners, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Manager A.J. Hinch hinted that this might be a bullpen game, so we're not expecting Peacock to be around long enough to qualify for a win. Hinch said he would "mix and match" among the nine relievers at his disposal. Peacock, who has 67 starts during his career, has not thrown more than 40 pitches this season.

Peacock (2-4) entered Saturday's game after Lance McCullers (elbow) was removed prior to the fifth inning and pitched two scoreless innings to pick up the win over the Dodgers.

McCullers is heading back to Houston to be evaluated and could miss his next turn scheduled for Friday. If so, Peacock is a former starter that could get a spot start, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. Collin McHugh is another option to fill in for McCullers.