Astros Crawfish Boil: July 10, 2023

Welcome to the Monday Boil!

Although we think of the All-Star break as the midpoint to the regular season, it’s closer to the 9/16th point. Thing is, that just doesn’t have the same ring to it. The Astros head to the break as winners in 50 of their first 91 through the season, setting a pace to finish with an 89-73 record. If the season were to end today, Houston would begin their title defense on the road against the Baltimore Orioles in the Wildcard series, while the Blue Jays would start in Cleveland. The Yankees would be watching from their couch.

Houston Astros News

4 moves the Astros need to make immediately after the All-Star break (climbingtalshill.com)

Astros bring Humble’s Brice Matthews home with No. 28 overall pick (theathletic.com)

Astros draft RHP Tredwell No. 61 | 07/10/2023 | Houston Astros (mlb.com)

Seattle’s Gilbert shuts down Astros 3-1 | Sports | baytownsun.com (baytownsun.com)

Astros get B+ for Matthews pick 28 | Highlights and Live Video from Bleacher Report (bleacherreport.com)

Houston Astros: A look back at the first half of the season (houstonchronicle.com)

AL West News

Mariners select four players on Day 1 of MLB Draft (king5.com)

Will Seattle Mariners’ Julio Rodríguez win the MLB Home Run Derby for his home crowd? | Flippin Bats (foxsports.com)

Seattle Mariners ‘aggressive,’ target ‘big upside’ to open MLB Draft (sports.mynorthwest.com)

Oakland A’s opt for athleticism, high baseball IQ on MLB Draft’s Day 1 (theathletic.com)

A’s draft OF Lasko No. 41 | 07/10/2023 | Oakland Athletics (mlb.com)

Glow of Baseball’s All-Star Game Can’t Obscure Athletics’ Departure (nytimes.com)

10 things to know about Wyatt Langford, Texas Rangers’ top draft pick (dallasnews.com)

Joey Meneses homers for third consecutive day, leads Nationals past AL West-leading Rangers, 7-2 (kxan.com)

MLB Trade Rumors: White Sox’s Lance Lynn Drawing ‘Strong Interest’ From Rangers (bleacherreport.com)

Nolan Schanuel drafted No. 11 by Angels in 2023 MLB Draft (mlb.com)

Angels News: Halos Pitcher Hopeful All Star Break Will Help Get Halos Back on Track (si.com)

Dodgers Set New Single-Game Attendance Record For 2023 During Freeway Series Finale (dodgerblue.com)

MLB News

2023 MLB Draft tracker: Results, analysis of every first-round pick, full list of 70 selections on Sunday (cbssports.com)

Famous family ties for 2023 MLB Draft picks (mlb.com)

MLB Draft 2023: Six biggest takeaways from Day 1 (foxsports.com)

Arjun Nimmala 2023 MLB Draft journey and influence (mlb.com)

2023 MLB Draft Day 2 overview and schedule (mlb.com)

Houston Astros Birthdays

Lefty reliever Will Smith (34) joined Houston for the stretch run in their charge to the 2022 World Series Championship. He struck out 24 in 22 innings, with a 2.66 FIP and a 1.227 WHIP. He did not appear for the Astros through their 13 postseason contests.