The Houston Astros are exploring their options without designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, who landed on the 10-day injured list due to a right oblique injury on Friday.

The Astros will look to regroup when they continue a three-game series against the host Cleveland Guardians on Saturday.

Yainer Diaz started at DH in place of Alvarez on Friday, when the Astros fell 10-9 to the Guardians in 14 innings. Cleveland won the contest on run-scoring doubles by Tyler Freeman and Will Brennan in the final frame as Houston squandered a lead for the fifth time on the night.

“It’s a marathon,” Brennan said. “Who knew that game would’ve gone 14 innings. Usually those last about until the 10th or 11th. So it’s really important that we kept our minds in it and stuck around and battled. That’s what we do.”

Cleveland has won three straight, while Houston has dropped a season-high four consecutive games.

The Astros will be hard-pressed to replace Alvarez, who was batting .272 with 17 home runs and a major-league-high 55 RBIs in 57 games.

“Guys just have to pick it up,” Houston manager Dusty Baker said. “We still have some horses here. We have some guys who come to play. We’ve just got to tighten our game up. We might have to change our philosophy some since we don’t have that big bat to hit the ball out of the ballpark, but we’ll find a way.”

Diaz, normally a backup catcher, went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI on Friday. Another catcher, Cesar Salazar, also could get additional at-bats in Alvarez’s absence.

Houston will send right-hander J.P. France (1-1, 3.44 ERA) to the mound on Saturday. The 28-year-old rookie received a no-decision after allowing three hits over seven innings of one-run ball against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday. He had a no-hitter for the first 5 1/3 innings of that contest.

France has settled into the Houston rotation with a 29-to-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio over his first six career starts covering 34 innings. He will be facing the Guardians for the first time.

“I don’t think you can ever really get comfortable because once you start to get comfortable, that’s when bad stuff tends to happen,” France said. “But once I’m on the field, it kind of feels like home.”

Cleveland will counter with right-hander Triston McKenzie (0-0, 0.00), who is hoping to build on a successful season debut. He returned after being out with a teres major muscle strain and allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out 10 over five scoreless innings against the Minnesota Twins on Sunday.

“I thought that was more than you could expect,” Guardians manager Terry Francona said. “I mean, he worked so hard and he was diligent in everything. But then you get into a major league game and it’s different. But to see him come out, use all of his pitches, have his fastball have some life through the zone — that flew past encouraging.”

Jose Altuve is 3-for-7 with two homers against McKenzie, who is 2-1 with a 2.84 ERA in three career starts vs. Houston.

Cleveland’s offense has picked up over the past week with Josh Naylor leading the charge. The first baseman is 18-for-36 (.500) with 13 RBIs and 11 runs during his career-high, nine-game hitting streak.

Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez is also on a hot streak, going 6-for-9 with four homers, a double and six RBIs in the past two games.

–Field Level Media

The Tampa Bay Rays will look for their eighth straight win on Saturday when they host the Texas Rangers in the second contest of a three-game series between baseball’s two winningest teams in St. Petersburg, Fla.

The American League East-leading Rays (47-19) cruised to an 8-3 victory over the American League West-leading Rangers (40-22) in the opener.

The Rays got two home runs and a career-high six RBIs from Isaac Paredes, while Tyler Glasnow was terrific on the mound, allowing just a run on one hit to go along with six strikeouts and three walks over six innings on Friday.

The Rangers, who have dropped two straight after winning seven of the previous eight, will need to beat the Rays twice if they are to win their seventh straight series. Tampa Bay is a major-league-best 30-6 at home this season.

The Rays will look to take the series on Saturday behind 22-year-old rookie Taj Bradley (4-2, 3.60 ERA). The right-hander allowed two runs on six hits with six strikeouts and three walks over five innings to pick up a 6-2 win against the Boston Red Sox on Sunday.

Bradley has allowed more than three runs just once in seven starts this season. He has 48 strikeouts and just eight walks in 35 innings.

“I’m not the kind of person to get too caught up in anything,” Bradley said. “If I were to meet a celebrity or pitch in a big game, I wouldn’t be making too much of a moment of it. I always downplay things. I mean, you do get your nerves, but I don’t build it up. Someone might say, ‘Oh, you made your debut,’ or ‘Oh, you got a win against the Red Sox,’ but I just go about my day.”

Bradley will have a tough assignment when he faces the Rangers for the first time in his brief career. Texas has scored a major-league-high 389 runs this season (Tampa Bay is second with 380), and the Rangers have scored at least six runs in 12 of their past 25 games.

Texas has scored at least 10 runs in 16 games this season, the best total in the big leagues. The Rays are next with eight double-digit games.

The Rangers will send ace right-hander Nathan Eovaldi (8-2, 2.24) to the mound on Saturday. Eovaldi allowed one hit and no walks over six shutout innings while striking out seven in a 12-3 win over the visiting Seattle Mariners on Sunday.

“Everybody I feel like is groovin’ right now,” Eovaldi said after his latest start. “You can’t say enough about our offense. It just makes my job a little easier to go out there and attack the guys knowing that I’ve got a few runs to play with.”

Eovaldi, who has given up more than one earned run in just one of his past seven starts, hasn’t been nearly as dominant throughout his career against the Rays. He is 5-6 with a 4.04 ERA in 15 appearances, including 13 starts, against Tampa Bay.

–Field Level Media

The Atlanta Braves will use another of their young pitchers on Saturday when they host the Washington Nationals and try to extend their winning streak to seven games.

Atlanta will start rookie Jared Shuster (2-2, 4.99 ERA) against Washington’s MacKenzie Gore (3-4, 3.66) in a battle of left-handers.

The Braves won the opening game of the three-games series 3-2 on Friday by scoring twice in the eighth inning. It was their fifth straight come-from-behind victory. The Nationals took their fifth loss in a row.

Shuster, 24, will follow 20-year-old Braves rookie AJ Smith-Shawver, who pitched 5 1/3 innings and allowed two runs, both unearned, in his first major league start on Friday.

Shuster made his major league debut against the Nationals on April 2 and took the loss after allowing four runs in 4 2/3 innings. Shuster made one more start before being sent to Triple-A Gwinnett. He was summoned back to Atlanta in mid-May and was reinserted in the rotation.

Since being recalled, Shuster has made four starts, going 2-1 with a 3.68 ERA. In his latest start, a May 31 win at Oakland, he allowed two runs on three hits with four walks and one strikeout in 5 1/3 innings.

“I think I’m just throwing a lot more strikes,” Shuster said. “A couple more walks (against the A’s), but other than that I got some weak contact, pretty efficient. I think since I’ve been up, I’m just trusting myself more and being more in sync with my deliveries. It helped a lot.”

For Washington, Gore, 24, was a first-round draft choice of the San Diego Padres in 2017 but was shipped to the Nationals as a key piece in the Juan Soto trade last August.

Gore has been a cornerstone of the Washington rotation this season, though he is winless in his past seven starts.

In his most recent outing, last Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies, Gore pitched six innings and allowed three runs on nine hits and no walks with six strikeouts. His best start came at Kansas City on May 28, when he threw seven innings, his longest outing of the season, and allowed only one run on three hits and one walk while logging a career-high 11 strikeouts.

“Just aggressive,” Gore said. “I want to be the best version of myself. I like executing pitches and doing what I’m supposed to do. Just being aggressive and going at guys, and we’re doing an OK job with that. Just have been throwing some bad pitches that have been homers or just hits that really cost me the last however-it’s-been.”

Gore has made two career starts against the Braves, going 1-0 with a 2.53 ERA. He beat them on April 2 when he gave up one run on three hits over 5 1/3 innings. He walked four and struck out six.

Gore will attempt to slow Atlanta’s Orlando Arcia, who continues to provide key hits. The second baseman drove in two runs on Friday, including what proved to be the game-winner in the eighth.

On the current homestand, Arcia is batting .500 (8-for-16) with a double, a home run and six RBIs, raising his batting average to .324.

–Field Level Media

The Oakland Athletics look to earn just their fourth series win of the season as they take on the host Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday afternoon.

The Athletics won their season-high third game in a row on Friday night, defeating Milwaukee 5-2 in the opener of a three-game set.

“It’s been good, pretty smooth,” right fielder Ramon Laureano said after the game regarding the mood in the Athletics’ clubhouse. “Hopefully we can continue this and have a good month of June.”

After taking two out of three in Pittsburgh, Oakland had an off day before beginning the series in Milwaukee. The Athletics’ manager was pleased with his team’s effort following the travel day.

“You tend to worry about a lag or lower level of energy, but these guys came out tonight and showed the fight that we’ve been talking about all year,” Mark Kotsay said. “We’re continuing to grind. It’s a good sign that we’re fighting.”

The Athletics were able to chase Adrian Houser in the fifth inning on Friday. The Milwaukee starter had allowed more than three earned runs in an outing just once this season before yielding five against Oakland.

“Credit to them. They had a good game plan, didn’t chase much,” Houser said. “I think everyone forgets they’re still a major league baseball team, they’re still talented, they’re still competitors.”

Friday saw a couple familiar faces return to Milwaukee for the first time in a while. Esteury Ruiz was a Brewer for a short time in 2022 after being part of the August trade that sent Josh Hader to San Diego. Then in the offseason, he was sent to Oakland as part of the three-team deal that sent Sean Murphy to the Atlanta Braves and William Contreras to the Brewers.

Also, infielder Jace Peterson, who spent the past three seasons with Milwaukee, is now hitting .221 with Oakland.

Additionally, A’s reliever Lucas Erceg was an infield prospect in the Brewers’ system from 2016-22. He transitioned to pitching full time after the 2021 season, and Oakland purchased his contract from Milwaukee last month. He is 1-0 with a 3.75 ERA in nine appearances (12 innings) for the A’s.

Paul Blackburn (0-0, 6.00 ERA) will take the mound for Oakland on Saturday. The 29-year-old right hander missed the first two months this season due to hand injuries. He has made two starts, totaling nine innings, since returning. In nine total innings, Blackburn has struck out nine while allowing six hits and four walks.

Blackburn will be opposing the Brewers for the first time in his career.

Milwaukee’s Julio Teheran (1-2, 1.56 ERA) will attempt to continue his hot start with his new team.

After being signed as a free agent on May 25, Teheran has made three starts with Milwaukee. In 17 1/3 innings, he has allowed just three earned runs while striking out 10 and walking two.

In three career starts vs. Oakland, Teheran is 1-0 with a 5.56 ERA.

This is the first series between the teams since the 2019 season and the first time Oakland has been in Milwaukee since 2016.

The Athletics are just 8-26 on the road this season, the worst away mark in the majors.

–Field Level Media

The Baltimore Orioles haven’t experienced sustained success over the past few weeks.

Now they have a chance to get something going.

The Orioles will pursue their third consecutive win when they face the visiting Kansas City Royals on Saturday in the middle game of a three-game series.

Baltimore won 3-2 Friday in the series opener, giving the Orioles consecutive victories for the first time since May 24-25.

“We had a tough stretch on the road there, the schedule and just not being able to put up enough runs,” Orioles left fielder Austin Hays said. “To bounce back and get a big Game 1 win was huge for us.”

The Royals have lost four games in a row and seven of their past eight. In that eight-game stretch, they have scored more than two runs just twice — and lost both times.

“Anytime you don’t hit, there’s a guy on the other side of the field trying to get you out,” Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro said.

Kansas City’s starting pitcher Saturday will be right-hander Brady Singer (4-4, 6.45 ERA), who has won his past two decisions and is coming off his best outing of the season. He blanked the Colorado Rockies for 5 2/3 innings and didn’t issue a walk while striking out seven on Sunday.

Singer is set to make his 13th start of the season but only his fifth in a road game. He surrendered five or more runs in two of the previous road outings, though the Royals are 3-1 in the games he started outside of Kansas City.

Even with 78 career appearances, with 75 of those starts, spread across parts of four seasons, Singer has faced the Orioles just once. He lost to Baltimore on July 17, 2021, after giving up seven runs in two-plus innings at Kansas City.

The Orioles will bring left-hander Cole Irvin (0-2, 10.38) back from Triple-A Norfolk to pitch on Saturday.

“We’re looking forward to watching him start,” Baltimore manager Brandon Hyde said.

Irvin struggled with the Orioles earlier this season. He made three starts in April, was sent back to Norfolk, then was recalled and used for just one-third of an inning out of the bullpen during his only major league appearance in May.

Irvin appreciates getting another chance.

“Part of my job is to be a pro and continue working no matter what level I’m at,” he said. “The expectation of us is, when your number is called is to be ready and take the ball.”

Baltimore has questions about its lineup, as first baseman Ryan Mountcastle missed the Friday game because of an illness.

“Just not feeling real good. (He) tried to play through it (Thursday),” Hyde said. “I could tell he wasn’t feeling well. He tried to battle through it and still was feeling sick.”

Mountcastle is slumping at the plate, as he is 4-for-30 (.133) with no homers and two RBIs over his past eight games.

Hays came through for the Orioles on Friday with a home run and double. He was in the leadoff spot for the 12th time this season.

Kansas City might have questions regarding its first baseman for Saturday as well. Vinnie Pasquantino left Friday’s game with discomfort in his right shoulder.

–Field Level Media

The Pittsburgh Pirates’ Ke’Bryan Hayes is a slick-fielding third baseman who has been a Gold Glove runner-up. Lately, his offense has been catching up, as the visiting New York Mets are discovering.

Even as every Pittsburgh starter had a hit in a 14-7 blowout of the Mets on Friday, Hayes stood out. He was 5-for-5, tying a career high for hits in a game, with four RBIs and three runs scored.

Hayes has an eight-game hitting streak, with two homers, three doubles and 11 RBIs. He has raised his batting average in that span from .216 to .266.

“Coming off that A’s series, and refueling on an off day (Thursday), we just wanted to be aggressive and swing the bats,” Hayes told AT&T Sportsnet.

The 26-year-old Hayes said he has been “just getting myself in a better position to hit the ball, then being aggressive and trusting my athleticism. At the end of the day, having more confidence.”

The Pirates ended a two-game losing streak, with both defeats coming in blowout fashion against the worst team in baseball, the Oakland Athletics.

The Mets had no such luck in erasing memories of recent games. Friday’s lopsided loss — they trailed 14-2 entering the ninth — extended their losing streak to a season-worst seven games.

New York was just swept by the Braves, and Mets manager Buck Showalter was asked if his team had a hangover effect.

“Looked like it,” Showalter said. “Didn’t pitch well, and that usually does a lot of it. And made (two) errors. It is what it is.”

The flavor of the games during the Mets’ losing streak has been all over the place, with them being outscored 51-31 in the eight games.

Both teams got discouraging injury news Friday.

Mets slugger Pete Alonso went on the 10-day injured list because of a bone bruise and sprain of his left wrist, where he got hit by a pitch Wednesday. He’s expected to be out three-to-four weeks, if not longer.

Things were even worse for Pittsburgh. Starter Vince Velasquez had season-ending elbow surgery after going on the injury list, trying to come back, and then going on the IL again.

On Saturday, New York right-hander Kodai Senga (5-3, 3.75 ERA) is expected to start opposite Pittsburgh right-hander Johan Oviedo (3-4, 4.29).

Senga, who has never faced the Pirates, might be happy to get onto a different schedule.

His last time out, Sunday against Toronto, Senga was pitching on four days’ rest for the first time. He gave up four runs and four hits in 2 2/3 innings, with five walks and three strikeouts. He did not get a decision.

Senga, who pitched weekly in Japan, said through an interpreter that he felt fine physically, but “there were a lot of times when their lineup would be taking a lot of my off-speed offerings.”

Oviedo seemed headed to victory his last time out, on Monday against Oakland, after giving up three runs, two earned, in seven innings, but he ended up without a decision in a seesaw game won by the Athletics 5-4.

Against the Mets, Oviedo has taken some lumps. He is 0-2 with a 10.24 ERA in three career starts covering just 9 2/3 innings.

–Field Level Media