AL WEST NEWS AND NOTES

HOUSTON ASTROS

Last season, Kyle Tucker was named Houston’s Minor League Player of the Year. This season, he’s going to try to help the Astros win their second consecutive World Series.

Tucker, the team’s latest sizzling prospect, was called up July 7 and figures to become a fixture in left field, especially against right-handed starters. The 21-year-old left-handed hitter, whose brother Preston played for the Astros in 2015-16, had checked all the boxes against minor leaguers.

Tucker, who was hitting .306 with 14 homers and 66 RBI for Class AAA Fresno (Calif.), can play either corner-outfield spot. But with the Astros rotating through five starters in left this year, Tucker, the fifth overall pick in the 2015 amateur draft, likely will land there.

❚ All-Star shortstop Carlos Correa, who was placed on the disabled list June 26, still is slowed by a stiff back. He could return this week, but Correa and Hinch aren’t pinpointing an exact date. “I want to be sure I’m right when I get back out there and can play all the way to late October,” Correa said.

LOS ANGELES ANGELS

With Zack Cozart out for the season and Luis Valbuena scuffling, rookie David Fletcher has been a pleasant surprise at third base. Fletcher hit .281 in his first 57 at-bats and flashed a glove that turned in numerous solid, and critical, plays. A former sixth round pick, Fletcher was quickly winning over Manager Mike Scioscia.

While Fletcher has opened eyes, Scioscia warned against dismissing Valbuena. Scioscia noted that Valbuena got hot in the second half last year.

❚ Shohei Ohtani has proved to be among the fastest Angels, and Scioscia speculated that the part-time pitcher could steal 15-20 bases a season. Ohtani was perfect in his first two attempts, including one that helped beat the Los Angeles Dodgers on July 6. “It’s not always how many you’re stealing,” Scioscia said. “If you’re stealing them at the right time, you can influence the game.”

OAKLAND ATHLETICS

Count the A’s among this year’s surprise teams. While Oakland doesn’t figure to push the Astros for the division title, it is playing some of its best baseball in years.

When the A’s took two of three games from the Cleveland Indians over the weekend, it was their six series win in their last seven and pushed their record to a season-best 10 games over .500. They hadn’t reached that standard since 2014.

❚ The A’s were encouraged by left-hander Brett Anderson’s first start in nearly two months. He blanked the Indians on three hits in five innings July 8 after recovering from a strained shoulder.

❚ Right-hander Paul Blackburn, sidelined by a forearm strain through April and May, is back on the disabled list, this time because of a tender elbow.

SEATTLE MARINERS

Backup Chris Herrmann and David Freitas, who were summoned from the minors, will handle the catching duties with Mike Zunino out until after the All-Star break.

Zunino bruised his left ankle while running the bases July 4. His work with the pitching staff will be a greater loss than his bat — he’s hitting just .189 although he does have 12 homers.

Herrmann will have to get up to speed quickly in connecting with the pitchers. He didn’t join the Mariners until a week into the season after being released by the Arizona Diamondbacks, and spring training is where catchers and pitchers usually bond.

❚ General manager Jerry Dipoto got a multiyear contract extension. Now he’ll turn his attention to keeping manager Scott Servais, whose deal expires at the end of the season.

❚ Second baseman Robinson Cano, suspended 80 games for violating Major League Baseball’s policy on performance- enhancing drugs, apologized to Seattle, his teammates and the fans in his first comments since the ruling was delivered. Cano can return on Aug. 14, but he would be ineligible for the postseason roster if the Mariners advance.

TEXAS RANGERS

Manager Jeff Banister said left-hander Martin Perez likely will return this weekend when the Rangers face the Baltimore Orioles.

Perez has been on the disabled list after a nerve issue appeared following his offseason surgery to repair his right elbow, injured in an accident at his ranch in Venezuela.

Perez, who won 13 games last year, allowed just one run in 17 1 ⁄ 3 innings (0.52 ERA) over three minor league rehab starts.

❚ Shin-Soo Choo set a franchise record July 8 by reaching base in his 47th consecutive game, the longest streak in the majors this season, and he did it in dramatic fashion with an infield single in the ninth inning. The previous team mark was 46 by Julio Franco in 1993.

PLAYER SPOTLIGHT

LANCE MCCULLERS, ASTROS: The right-hander isn’t the biggest name in Houston’s impressive rotation, but he continues to be among the American League’s winningest pitchers. McCullers (10-3) struck out a career-high 12 and didn’t allow a hit until the sixth inning in a win over the Chicago White Sox on July 6. His curveball/ changeup combo is a perfect complement to the team’s power arms.