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Abraham Toro

Mariners, Astros Swap Kendall Graveman For Abraham Toro In Four-Player Trade

By Steve Adams | July 27, 2021 at 6:07pm CDT

In a rare and rather stunning swap between a pair of division rivals who are both in contention, the Mariners have traded closer Kendall Graveman and recently designated-for-assignment righty Rafael Montero to the Astros in exchange for young infielder Abraham Toro and veteran righty Joe Smith, according to both clubs. The trade is even more eye-opening when considering that the two clubs are gearing up to play each other in the second game of a three-game set tonight.

Trading Graveman at all registers as a moderate surprise, given the Mariners’ recent climb in the standings and stated desire to improve the 2021 roster. To see him traded to the division-leading Astros while the two squads are playing one another is downright jarring. That said, Graveman is a free agent at season’s end, and in Toro, the Mariners are acquiring five seasons of control over an infielder who has been considered one of Houston’s more promising young prospects for the past few years.

In speaking to the media about the trade, Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto plainly acknowledged that as a standalone transaction, it’s a head-scratching move. But Dipoto also emphasized some patience, suggesting this move is but one of a sequence of trades designed to improve the Mariners’ chances both in 2021 and over the long-term down the road (Twitter thread via MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer). Dipoto suggested a subsequent trade or trades could come together as soon as tonight or in the coming days, but it seems as though this is but one of a series of moves for which the Mariners are angling; time will tell just how the moves look when judged in their totality.

Toro, 24, hasn’t yet pieced things together in limited big league action, but he’s decimated Triple-A pitching (.392/.497/.600 in 33 games) and posted strong numbers in pitcher-friendly Double-A settings (.282/.369/.468 in 148 games). The switch-hitting Toro provides the Mariners with a possible long-term option at third base, but he’s also logged considerable time at second base — another area where the Mariners have been known to be seeking help. That long-term fit isn’t likely to matter much to the clubhouse, however, and Divish rather unsurprisingly tweets that the decision to trade Graveman to their top division rival was not well-received among Seattle players.

That’s understandable on Seattle’s end, given just how dominant Graveman has become since transitioning to the bullpen late in the 2020 season. The former Athletics starter has bounced back from an injury-lost 2019 season to emerge as one of the American League’s more effective relievers. In 33 innings this season, Graveman has pitched to a 0.82 ERA with a 28.1 percent strikeout rate, a 6.6 walk rate and a 53.9 percent ground-ball rate. Dating back to his shift to the bullpen in 2020, he’s compiled 43 innings of 1.47 ERA ball.

Graveman is likely all the more appealing to the luxury-conscious Astros because of his affordable salary. He’s playing on a one-year, $1.25MM contract. Incentives have already boosted that base salary by $400K, and the contract overall contains a total of $3MM in reachable incentives. That said, $1.5MM of those are tied up in games finished, and manager Dusty Baker has already indicated that Ryan Pressly is likely to continue as his closer. Graveman could still collect six more stray games finished to reach his first of three would-be $500K bonuses tied to games finished, but it’s unlikely he reaches the 30 and 40 games finished needed to unlock the next pair of $500K bonuses. In all, the contract will likely top out paying him somewhere in the range of $2.65MM based on incentives tied to days on the roster, games finished and total innings pitched.

Montero’s inclusion in the trade is likely a pure accounting measure. The combined salaries of Montero and Graveman ought to clock in somewhere in the same ballpark as Smith’s $4MM salary and luxury-tax hit, though depending on the status of Graveman’s incentives, the Astros could come out either a bit ahead or a bit behind where they were previously projected.

Montero opened the season as the closer in Seattle but struggled early and has been mired in a catastrophic slump of late, yielding 16 runs in his past 11 innings. The ’Stros may have their own ideas on how to help a reliever who was quite good with the Rangers in 2019-20 right the ship, but Montero’s inclusion doesn’t appear to be a key part of the swap. At best he’s a roll of the dice, and at worst he’s a financial counterweight who could be cut loose quickly if his struggles persist.

The same is largely true of Smith, who opted out of the 2020 season after signing a two-year deal in Houston and has been clobbered for a 7.48 ERA in 21 2/3 innings this year. Some of that has been attributable to a sky-high .413 batting average on balls in play, but Smith is sporting a career-low strikeout rate, a grounder rate that’s well off his peak levels and has also been quite homer-prone. As with Houston and Montero, perhaps the Mariners have an idea or two about how to get the veteran righty back on track, but the trade is much more about Graveman and Toro than about the struggling relievers accompanying those two players.

Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times first tweeted that Toro and a reliever were going to the Mariners in exchange for two players. MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart provided the full context on the trade.

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Houston Astros Newsstand Seattle Mariners Transactions Abraham Toro Joe Smith Kendall Graveman Rafael Montero

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COVID Notes: 3/30/21

By Mark Polishuk | March 30, 2021 at 1:41pm CDT

The latest on coronavirus-related situations around the sport…

  • The Astros announced that Myles Straw, Abraham Toro, and Garrett Stubbs have rejoined the team after clearing COVID-19 protocols.  (MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart was among those to report the news.)  The trio were absent for contract-tracing purposes in the wake of another positive test within Houston’s camp.
  • Matt Barnes’ positive COVID-19 test over the weekend was determined to be a false positive or a non-infectious positive, and the reliever has been cleared to return to Red Sox camp.  Barnes tested negative several times before being allowed to rejoin the team, and with only a few days of action missed, Barnes tells Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe and other reporters that he is ready for Opening Day.
  • Tigers pitching coach Chris Fetter tested positive for COVID-19, manager A.J. Hinch told reporters (including MLB.com’s Jason Beck) yesterday.  Other coaches are out of camp while contact tracing and further tests are administered, though it appears to be somewhat precautionary, as Hinch said that “no one else — player, staff — has been impacted or affected by this.”  The Tigers have yet to decide who will act as on the on-field pitching coach while Fetter is quarantined.  Fetter is entering his first season with the organization after previously working as the University of Michigan’s pitching coach.
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Boston Red Sox Detroit Tigers Houston Astros Notes Abraham Toro Chris Fetter Coronavirus Garrett Stubbs Matt Barnes Myles Straw

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COVID Notes: 3/28/21

By Mark Polishuk | March 28, 2021 at 9:35am CDT

The latest coronavirus situations to monitor around baseball…

Latest Updates

  • Right-hander Spencer Turnbull will miss at least the Tigers’ first few series of the year, manager A.J. Hinch told MLB.com’s Jason Beck and other reporters.  Turnbull has been away from Spring Training camp since March 20 due to healthy and safety protocols, and the club placed him on the COVID injured list earlier this week.  Back on March 20, Hinch made the point to note that Turnbull wasn’t in violation of any team rules himself, so it’s possible Turnbull just needs some extra time to ramp up after pitching only nine Grapefruit League innings.

Earlier Today

  • Utilityman Abraham Toro and catcher/outfielder Garrett Stubbs are away from camp due to health and safety protocols, Astros manager Dusty Baker told MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart (Twitter link) and other reporters.  The Houston Chronicle’s Chandler Rome reported yesterday that a player in the Astros’ camp is a presumed positive COVID-19 case, and that at least three players (presumably Toro, Stubbs, and Myles Straw) were quarantined for contact tracing purposes.  Baker hopes to have the players back in camp within the next one or two days.
  • Eight members of the Red Sox organization are away from camp for contact-tracing purposes in the wake of Matt Barnes’ positive COVID-19 test, manager Alex Cora told reporters (including The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey and The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier).  Four of the eight-person group are automatically in isolation due to being close contacts with Barnes, though Cora didn’t specify how many of the eight were players.  Assuming negative tests, any players included within the eight-person group would likely be ready to play Thursday on Opening Day.
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Boston Red Sox Detroit Tigers Houston Astros Notes Abraham Toro Coronavirus Garrett Stubbs Spencer Turnbull

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AL West Notes: Rangers, Lyles, Astros, Díaz, Odorizzi, Javier

By TC Zencka | March 13, 2021 at 9:34am CDT

Jordan Lyles won’t get turns as a traditional starter to open the season for the Rangers, and he’s not thrilled about it, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (via Twitter). Rangers manager Chris Woodward told the 6’5″ right-hander that he’s likely headed for 50-60 pitch outings, at least to start the season. Lyles surrendered more earned runs than any other pitcher in 2020, finishing with a 7.02 ERA/5.95 FIP in 57 2/3 innings. Outside of a 2-inning outing to start the season, Lyles served as a starter, though he did twice enter the game following an opener. Despite his struggles, Lyles averaged 88 pitches per outing as a starter/follower. The Rangers presumably want to protect Lyles while getting an extended look at some of their younger hurlers like Taylor Hearn and Brett Martin. Staying in Texas…

  • Chander Rome of the Houston Chronicle wonders if Aledmys Díaz might make some sense as a trade candidate for the Astros. The utility man is set to make $3MM this year, and the Astros would love to trim a little off the top of their payroll. Díaz has slashed .265/.337/.470 in 306 plate appearances the past two seasons as one of the first guys off the bench. Robel Garcia and Abraham Toro are competing for the second utility guy off the bench, and it certainly makes some sense to consider a Díaz trade if there’s one to be had. That said, Diaz is the best fit as a backup at shortstop, and Carlos Correa hasn’t exactly been an iron man. The Astros could also try to move Brooks Raley ($2MM), Joe Smith ($4MM) or Martin Maldonado ($3.5MM) as a way to trim the payroll, though the latter isn’t particularly likely.
  • Elsewhere on the Astros’ roster, they’re going to need to utilize their pitching depth from the jump. Recently-signed Jake Odorizzi isn’t likely to be ready for opening day, neither is Pedro Baez, currently on the COVID-19 injured list. Cristian Javier is also a bit of a question mark, not having pitched in a game since March 2, writes MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. Zack Greinke, Lance McCullers Jr., and Jose Urquidy remain at the top of the rotation, but the final two spots may be up for grabs. If Javier and Odorizzi aren’t ready for opening day, Luis García and Bryan Abreu are back in camp and ready to audition.
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Houston Astros Notes Texas Rangers Trade Candidate Abraham Toro Aledmys Diaz Evan Grant Jake Odorizzi Jordan Lyles Luis Garcia Pedro Baez Robel Garcia

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Camp Battles: Astros’ 26th Man

By TC Zencka | March 1, 2020 at 12:31am CDT

The Astros final roster spot will be a two-man showdown between Myles Straw and Garrett Stubbs, per MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. Of course, this particular “camp battle” has as much to do with the pieces around the players as the players themselves. For that matter, it may come down to a conversation between Dusty Baker and new GM James Click. The two are likely still developing a cohesive philosophy when it comes to roster construction. That they have an extra roster spot in the 26th man this season ought to help smooth the waters. Still, there’s a decision to be made here, and as with many clubs, the decision may come down to just how many catchers they want to have on the roster. Let’s take a deeper dive into the candidates. 

  • One would think that Myles Straw is the frontrunner to make the opening day roster. Without him, the Astros don’t have a natural backup for George Springer in center. With Jake Marisnick now on the Mets, Straw is the likeliest candidate to fill that void as a pinch-runner and late-game defensive replacement. Josh Reddick would probably fill that role as a backup were Straw not to make the team, though it would be surprising if that were the case for the entire season. Even if Straw doesn’t make the cut, expect him to occupy a roster spot at times throughout the season.
  • Stubbs, 26, has spent the last two seasons in Triple-A, and he’s certainly ready enough to get some time as a backup in 2020. He has a good approach at the plate, will take his walks and doesn’t strike out (16.2% K-rate last season). He’s reliable enough defensively, but it’s hard to see where the Astros would benefit from rostering a third catcher. Martin Maldonado will be the primary starter, and he could be used as a defense replacement in games he doesn’t start. On the other hand, they may risk burning their bench by pinch-hitting for Maldonado in spots. Still, Dustin Garneau is on hand for those occasions. Garneau has some power potential, but Kyle Tucker or Josh Reddick will be the first lefty bat off the bench, while Aledmys Diaz will be the guy from the right side. One backup catcher ought to suffice.
  • The sleeper candidate here is Abraham Toro. He debuted last season with a .218/.303/.385 line over a mere 85 plate appearances. Toro offers a quality combination of speed/power and the ability to play either corner in the infield as well as second base in a pinch. He’s a switch-hitter, which provides some utility beyond the overlapping skillset he shares with Diaz or Yuli Gurriel, but he also has options available. The Astros, therefore, will feel no pressure to keep him on the major league roster. That said, Toro gained some popularity last season, a quality the Astros are short on these days. Having a young player that fans can root for unequivocally may get Toro an extra look.

We’re assuming here, of course, that the Astros will go with an eight-man bullpen. That’s hardly a foregone conclusion, though it’s the likeliest result in the case of most teams, and given that the Astros have some uncertainty at the back end of their rotation, they may enjoy having an extra arm to leverage until the number four and five starters establish some consistency.

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Houston Astros New York Mets Abraham Toro Aledmys Diaz Camp Battles Dustin Garneau Dusty Baker Garrett Stubbs George Springer Jake Marisnick James Click Josh Reddick Kyle Tucker Martin Maldonado Myles Straw Yuli Gurriel

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Latest On Astros Managerial, GM Vacancies

By TC Zencka | January 18, 2020 at 9:16pm CDT

There hasn’t been much scuttlebutt in terms of the Astros’ GM vacancy – but a number of names have been floated for their next manager. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale observes that the current known pool of candidates leans heavily toward veteran, respected leaders (Dusty Baker, Buck Showalter, John Gibbons), while MLB Network insider Jon Heyman succinctly recaps what makes this hiring situation so very unique. The front office executives left behind in Houston would likely lean towards a more contemporary approach, given their heavily analytical approach, but with spring training not that far off, owner Jim Crane made the decision to hire his next field manager personally. Bringing in a field manager before the next general manager is not the ideal process, writes The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan, but little about the Astros’ current situation is.

  • Cubs third base coach Will Venable is the exception to Nightengale’s observation. When asked today at the Cubs Convention if he’d be leaving, Venable said plainly, “No, I’m not.” This, per Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun Times (via Twitter) and many others in attendance – though Venable did walk back the absolute denial a little bit later in the day (covered in depth by The Athletic’s Sahadev Sharma here). Sitting bench coach Joe Espada has also been speculated about, though given the circumstances, an outside hire seems like the prohibitive favorite. For what it’s worth, MLBTR readers settled this issue just two days ago, electing Buck Showalter as the best choice with 34% of the vote.
  • Now a few days removed from the release of the Commissioner’s verdict on the sign-stealing scandal, most Houston Astros players have avoided public comment. Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman did speak to the media today, expressing empathy for A.J. Hinch and Jeff Luhnow, while denying any use of wearable tech, per MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. The Commissioner’s report found no evidence of wearable tech utilized by Astros players in 2019. Still, The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan writes, the organizational response (or lack thereof) from players on the whole misses an appropriate measure of contrition. As players participated in the Astros’ FanFest today, Kaplan describes a couple of scenes wherein the organization’s PR staff attempted to mollify any discussion of the scandal by pairing stars of the team under fire – Bregman and Altuve, namely – with youngsters like Kyle Tucker, Yordan Alvarez, and Abraham Toro, who were not yet with the club in 2017. 

 

 

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Houston Astros A.J. Hinch Abraham Toro Alex Bregman Buck Showalter Dusty Baker Joe Espada John Gibbons Jose Altuve Kyle Tucker Will Venable Yordan Alvarez

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Astros Notes: Correa, Mets, Toro, Barnes, Dodgers

By Mark Polishuk | December 12, 2019 at 6:27am CDT

Carlos Correa’s name came up in trade speculation on Tuesday, leading the shortstop to take time out of his honeymoon to call Jeff Luhnow, the Astros general manager told reporters (including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart).  Luhnow told the former Rookie Of The Year to not worry about the reports, and he further dismissed the idea of any major trades on Wednesday, telling media members that he would be “surprised if we moved any of our core players.”  Some type of creative salary management seems inevitable, however, if the Astros are to make roster upgrades while avoiding at least the top level ($248MM+) of luxury tax punishment level.  Houston already has a projected tax number of just over $231MM, as per Roster Resource, so even getting under the secondary punishment threshold of $228MM will take work.  Since this would mark Houston’s first time over the luxury tax barrier, they would at least face only a first-timer charge, though topping the $248MM mark would also come with a ten-slot drop in their 2021 draft order.

More from the American League champions…

  • The Mets were one team that at least checked in about Correa, SNY.tv’s Andy Martino tweets, though MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo described these conversations as “more fantasy baseball” than a truly serious discussion.  New York would make an intriguing suitor for Correa since the Mets have a former top-tier prospect of their own at shortstop in Amed Rosario, and it’s fair to wonder whether Rosario would have been a logical trade chip to head Houston’s way in any Correa deal.
  • Luhnow also told reporters (including Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle) that he had been receiving “a number of inquiries” about Abraham Toro.  MLB Pipeline ranks Toro as the Astros’ fifth-best prospect, after the 22-year-old hit .273/.365/.461 with 48 homers over 1544 career minor league PA.  This led to Toro making his Major League debut last season, a 25-game/89-PA stint highlighted by his ninth-inning, two-run homer that provided the only offense Justin Verlander needed in his September 1st no-hitter against the Blue Jays.  Toro has mostly played third base, though he has some experience at first and second base as well, making him even more attractive to interested teams.  This multi-position ability could position Toro as Yuli Gurriel’s heir apparent since Gurriel is a free agent after 2020, or the Astros’ payroll crunch could potentially get them to consider including Toro along with a hefty contract to clear some space on the books.
  • The Astros have asked the Dodgers about catcher Austin Barnes, Jorge Castillo of the L.A. Times reports (via Twitter), as Houston likes Barnes’ pitch-framing ability.  It wasn’t long ago that Barnes seemed to be in line to be the Dodgers’ catcher of the future, though after hitting only .204/.311/.316 over 480 plate appearances in 2018-19, Barnes has firmly fallen behind Will Smith on the depth chart.  Plus, Los Angeles has Keibert Ruiz on the way up as another blue chip catching prospect, making Barnes all the more potentially expendable.  StatCorner and Baseball Prospectus do indeed give Barnes high grades for his framing, with BP also grading his blocking ability as generally above average.  Barnes is signed for $1.1MM in 2020 and is arbitration-controlled through 2022, though he isn’t a youngster, as he turns 30 at the end of December.
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Houston Astros Los Angeles Dodgers New York Mets Notes Abraham Toro Austin Barnes Carlos Correa Jeff Luhnow

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Ryan Pressly To Undergo Knee Surgery, Miss 4-6 Weeks

By Mark Polishuk | August 22, 2019 at 12:12pm CDT

The Astros have placed right-hander Ryan Pressly on the 10-day injured list, amidst a series of roster moves.  (MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart was among those to report the news.)  Astros GM Jeff Luhnow told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle and other media that Pressly will miss four-to-six weeks after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery.

Infielder Jack Mayfield was optioned to Triple-A, while right-hander Joe Biagini was recalled from the minors and third baseman Abraham Toro’s contract has been selected for his Major League debut, as reported earlier today.

This is the second time that Pressly’s right knee has sent him to the IL this season, as he missed about two weeks in late July and early August due to soreness in the joint.  The problem first arose when Pressly was hit in the knee by a ball off the bat of Andrelton Simmons back on July 18, and Luhnow said today that Pressly felt some more soreness after his latest outing.  A previously-undiscovered “small issue” was found after a span of Pressly’s knee, and a surgical procedure seems to have been the decided course of action to fix the problem once and for all.

Luhnow is hopeful that Pressly will be able to return to action before the postseason begins, though the four-to-six timeline will make it a close call if Pressly’s recovery time is anything more than minimal.  It also creates uncertainty as to whether Houston will have arguably its best bullpen arm fully healthy and ready to go come time for the playoffs.

Pressly’s dominant work earned him the first All-Star appearance of his seven-year career, as the righty has a 2.50 ERA, 11.6 K/9, 50.8% grounder rate, and 5.91 K/BB rate over 50 1/3 relief innings this season.  Statcast credits him with the best curveball spin rate of any pitcher in baseball in 2019, and he is also in the 98th percentile of all pitchers in terms of fastball spin.  It’s possible Pressly’s numbers could be even more dominant if it wasn’t for some bad luck with the long ball, as he has a 23.1% home run rate.

Losing Pressly is a big blow to any relief corps, even one as deep and talented as the Astros’ bullpen.  Brad Peacock recently returned from the IL himself to add some extra depth, and Biagini will make a quick return after being optioned to Triple-A just last week.  Aaron Sanchez is currently on the injured list recovering from a pec injury, though once he returns, he is also likely to lineup as a reliever in the postseason since Houston won’t need a fifth starter.

It also wouldn’t be surprising to see the Astros scour the waiver wire for any late pickups, or perhaps try to swing a trade with another team for a pitcher on a minor league contract (players on MLB deals can’t be traded after the July 31 deadline, of course).  While Pressly’s loss isn’t likely to cost the Astros the AL West or anything, the team wants to have as many relief options as possible in preparation for what they hope is a long postseason run, especially if there’s any concern as to whether Pressly will make it back in time.

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Houston Astros Newsstand Transactions Abraham Toro Jack Mayfield Joe Biagini Ryan Pressly

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Astros To Promote Abraham Toro

By Mark Polishuk | August 22, 2019 at 9:49am CDT

The Astros are calling up third base prospect Abraham Toro, according to reporter Jacques Lanciault (Twitter link).  As noted by The Athletic’s Jake Kaplan (Twitter link), it isn’t yet known what corresponding moves will be made to create room for Toro on either the 25-man or 40-man rosters.

As Kaplan observes, the promotion is rather unexpected, as Toro has only 16 Triple-A games under his belt.  However, Toro has absolutely raked in that short amount of time (a 1.112 OPS over 79 plate appearances), and also hit .306/.393/.513 with 16 home runs over 435 Double-A plate appearances this season.

While this breakout at the plate didn’t land Toro a spot on any top-100 prospect lists, MLB Pipeline currently ranks him as the sixth-best prospect in Houston’s farm system.  As per the MLB.com scouting report, many scouts have long considered Toro to be one of the Astros’ best hitting prospects, an evaluation that has seemingly been proven correct by his big 2019 numbers and a strong performance in the 2018 Arizona Fall League.

The 22-year-old Toro was a fifth-round pick for the Astros in the 2016 draft.  The vast majority of his pro experience has come at third base, though with Alex Bregman at the hot corner in Houston, Toro has also played an increasing amount of first base and second base this season.  For his first taste of the big leagues, however, Toro could very well see most of his time at his natural position, as Bregman could slide over to shortstop while Carlos Correa is on the injured list.  Alternatively, Toro could also handle some first base if the Astros use Yuli Gurriel at third base.

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Houston Astros Transactions Abraham Toro

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