Major League Baseball

McCullers, Astros square off with Yankees (Jun 30, 2017)

Published Jun. 30, 2017 3:34 a.m. ET

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AP

HOUSTON -- With right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. set to make his second start since returning from the 10-day disabled list last weekend, the Houston Astros are now positioned to view his brief rotation hiatus as a potential positive heading into the second half of the schedule.

McCullers will oppose the New York Yankees and right-hander Michael Pineda in the opener of a three-game series on Friday at Minute Maid Park.

By going 15 days between starts, McCullers slowed his accumulation of innings. His 81 2/3 innings already have surpassed the 81 he worked in an injury-shortened 2016 campaign.

As a rookie one season earlier, McCullers logged 125 2/3 innings, a mark he is sure to exceed this year, should he remain healthy.

The fact that the Astros (54-26) have maintained their grip on the best record in baseball despite their injuries is a plus. They just took two of three games from the Oakland A's, capped by a 6-1 win on Thursday. Now they stand to gain from McCullers and fellow starting pitchers Dallas Keuchel, Charlie Morton and Collin McHugh experiencing varying amounts of downtime.

"The underlying positive is that, almost to a man, our rotation has had a chance to take a break," Houston manager A.J. Hinch said. "You don't want guys to get hurt or even the lack of performance to warrant some rest, but in this job, any rest you can get will help you down the road, especially in the starting rotation.

"As this era develops, the 200-, 220-, 240-inning starters are going to get fewer and fewer. Once that mentality is a little bit shifted, the rest, the recovery, the being at your best at the most important innings as the season gets along, that rest will pay dividends."

McCullers (7-1, 2.53 ERA) is 2-0 with a 0.75 ERA over two career starts against the Yankees. In a 5-1 victory at Yankee Stadium on May 12, McCullers worked six shutout innings, allowing four hits and no walks while recording seven strikeouts.

Pineda (7-4, 4.12) took the loss against Houston on May 11, allowing three runs on six hits and one walk with seven strikeouts over 6 2/3 innings in a 3-2 setback. Pineda is 2-3 with a 4.62 ERA in six career starts against the Astros.

Despite grappling with the Boston Red Sox for the perch atop the American League East, the Yankees (42-35) have come to rely on a handful of youthful contributors. The offensive might of rookie right fielder Aaron Judge has been well-documented, but the Yankees are also leaning on catcher Gary Sanchez and infielder Ronald Torreyes, who were rookies last season.

Outfielder Tyler Wade made his debut on Tuesday. Outfielder Dustin Fowler did the same on Thursday night against the Chicago White Sox but sustained a season-ending knee injury on defense before making a plate appearance in New York's 4-3 loss.

The Yankees certainly have their share of grizzled veterans, but youth is being served, and there have been teachable moments aplenty of late.

"Someone asked me how my job's a little different now than it was maybe a couple weeks ago," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "I think you're teaching more than you were a couple of weeks ago. I mean, you were teaching, but you're even teaching more because there are so many young kids. When you look at the Astros, there's a lot of young kids playing there at a high level, and they can say, 'Hey, why not us?'"

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