Banged-up Astros try end skid against Cardinals

The injuries continue to add up for the Houston Astros, who lost outfielder Joey Loperfido to right quad tightness on Friday. He was unavailable for the Astros' 7-5 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday.

Loperfido underwent an MRI on Saturday and likely will be placed on the injured list, manager Joe Espada said. Houston, needing a victory on Sunday to avert a three-game series sweep, claimed outfielder Dustin Harris off waivers from the Chicago White Sox on Saturday in a move unrelated to the Loperfido injury.

Harris slashed .224/.318/.414 across 27 games with the Texas Rangers (2024-25) and White Sox (2026). The Astros, who have lost three straight overall, entered the weekend with outfielders Jake Meyers (right oblique strain) and Zach Dezenzo (right elbow sprain) on the 10-day injured list.

"Our reports have him pretty good in the (outfield) corners," Astros manager Joe Espada said of Harris. "Left-handed bat. There's some speed in there that we like. So the plan is to primarily stay in the corners, so once he gets here, we'll get him in there.

"We like the player. We would like to have him in the organization."

Right-hander Mike Burrows (1-3, 6.55 ERA) is scheduled to start the series finale for Houston.

Burrows has allowed 33 hits, tied for the most in the majors, while tied for the most earned runs (16) and homers (five) surrendered in the American League. He logged a season-best six innings in a 6-2 loss to the Seattle Mariners on Monday but allowed 11 hits and six earned runs, both season highs.

Burrows will make his first career appearance against the Cardinals.

Left-hander Matthew Liberatore (0-1, 4.29) has the starting assignment for the Cardinals.

Liberatore earned his first decision this season in his previous start, allowing four runs on six hits and three walks with two strikeouts over five innings in a 9-3 loss to the Cleveland Guardians on Monday. He posted a 3.38 ERA in his first three starts without a decision. The Cardinals won each game.

Liberatore has faced one batter in his career against the Astros, recording an out in the Cardinals' 8-5 road loss on June 4, 2024.

St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol has lauded the early-season commitment to detail from his club, one purportedly entering a rebuilding phase this season. The Cardinals set the stage for a series sweep on Sunday by combining resourceful starting pitching with an egalitarian approach to offense, with contributors up and down the lineup playing a role in the first two series wins.

Starting pitchers Kyle Leahy and Andre Pallante combined to allow four runs over 10 innings in wins on Friday and Saturday. After four different Cardinals recorded RBIs in the series opener, three Cardinals homered on Saturday to help carry the offense, including Masyn Winn and Jose Fermin going deep for the first time this season.

A collective effort yielded a pair of interleague wins this series. Marmol wants more of the same.

"We've just got to stay head down and continue to work on the things that we're working on," Marmol said. "Stay downhill. These guys have done a nice job this road trip, so we need to continue that (Sunday)."

--Field Level Media