AL WEST NEWS AND NOTES

HOUSTON ASTROS

All-Star shortstop Carlos Correa, who has been out for a month because of back pain, will need to complete a minor league rehab assignment before returning to the club.

But the Astros weren’t sure when Correa, who last played on June 25, will be sent out. The injury has lingered, even with the club being cautious, and an initial round of hitting aggravated his back.

❚ Right-hander Justin Verlander has pitched 23 consecutive scoreless innings at Angel Stadium, the longest stretch by an Angels rival since 1971. Since joining the Astros in August, Verlander is 5-0 with a 0.49 ERA overall against the Angels.

❚ George Springer, who was slumping heading into the break, homered in the All-Star Game and then hit his fifth career grand slam in a win over the Angels on July 21. All of his slams have come on the road, which is a club record, one more than Jeff Bagwell.

LOS ANGELES ANGELS

The Angels got a boost when Shohei Ohtani, who last pitched on June 6, was cleared to resume throwing because of improvement in his sore elbow.

Ohtani has been able to remain the team’s designated hitter while he had injections of platelet-rich plasma and stem cells as a treatment for his Grade 2 strain of the ulnar ligament. His presence has helped the lineup, but what L.A. really needs if it’s to make a second half run is Ohtani returning to the rotation.

When that might be had not been determined. But the Angels were relieved that Ohtani doesn’t appear to need Tommy John surgery.

There wasn’t a timetable for Ohtani’s return to the mound, but the earliest he could pitch again probably would be in September.

❚ In his first outing since recovering from a sore shoulder and exiting the disabled list, right-hander Nick Tropeano pitched five solid innings (two runs, one earned, two hits) in a loss to the Astros.

OAKLAND ATHLETICS

The A’s were busy before the trade deadline, as in years past. What was different this July is they were adding players and not shedding them.

With the team making an unexpected push for a wild-card spot, Oakland acquired righthander reliever Jeurys Familia from the New York Mets for two minor leaguers and $1 million in international slot money.

Following three years of finishing last, Oakland is all in.

Familia joins a stacked bullpen that features All-Star closer Blake Treinen and steady setup man Lou Trivino. Manager Bob Melvin said the trade gives him more flexibility.

❚ When the A’s drew an Oakland Coliseum record crowd of 56,310 on July 21 to

celebrate their 1989 World Series championship team, they extended their record to 39-0 when leading after seven innings. Oakland was the majors’ only undefeated team in that category.

SEATTLE MARINERS

Robinson Cano ’s 80-game penalty for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs is set to expire Aug. 14, and the Mariners were finalizing a plan to fold the second baseman back into the lineup.

Cano won’t supplant Dee Gordon at second base, at least not on a regular basis. Gordon made the transition from center field back to second base after Cano was suspended, and the Mariners are mindful of the fact that Cano’s suspension automatically makes him ineligible for the postseason.

Cano could get some starts at first base and designated hitter.

❚ Servais’ contract was extended in the wake of general manager Jerry Dipoto’s deal being extended as well. Servais’ contract was set to expire at the end of the season.

TEXAS RANGERS

With outfielder Nomar Mazara (sprained right thumb) on the disabled list, the Rangers will get another look at prospect Willie Calhoun, the prized piece they received when they traded right-hander Yu Darvish to the Los Angeles Dodgers last summer.

Calhoun came up as a second baseman, but the Rangers want to evaluate him in the outfield and at designated hitter. He was hitting .306 with eight home runs and 42 RBI in 94 games for Class AAA Round Rock (Texas) before being summoned.

But those numbers came about only after Calhoun was benched earlier in the season for not running hard to first base on a ground ball.

In a 13-game audition with the Rangers last year, Calhoun batted .265 with a homer. He hit .300 in Class AAA in 2017.

❚ Shin-Soo Choo’s on-base streak reached a franchise-record 52 games before it ended July 21. Choo’s mark tied Kevin Millar’s streak in 2007 as the longest since Orlando Cabrera had a 63-game run in 2006.

THIS WEEKS PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

DALLAS KEUCHEL, ASTROS: It’s time to fear the beard again: the 2015 American League Cy Young Award winner is on a roll. Keuchel had a no-hitter through 6 2 / 3 innings July 20 against the Angels at Anaheim and settled for a 7 2 / 3- inning gem as he ran his record to 5-0 with a 2.00 ERA in his past seven starts. It would have been the first no-hitter by an Astros left-hander.