Trey

Cabbage

Cabbage has been shipped back to the minors to free up an active roster spot for newly-acquired veteran outfielder Ben Gamel. The 27-year-old offers some over-the-fence pop and speed, but he’s still striking out at stratospheric rates.

The Astros sent Cabbage down to Sugar Land in part because of his inflated 36 percent strike rate in the big leagues, but they decided that was better than the 47 percent rate that Pedro León posted in seven games so Cabbage will get another shot. He figures to serve as a bench bat and depth across the outfield and at first base.

You can add León to the list of young players who put up intriguing numbers in Triple-A who weren’t quite able to transition that to the big leagues. The 26-year-old Cuban outfielder batted .297 with 19 homers and 23 steals this season across 93 games for Triple-A Sugar Land but was just 2-for-20 in seven games with the Astros while striking out 10 times and walking just once. He still has a good shot at an MLB future, but it will likely have to wait until 2025. Trey Cabbage was called up in a corresponding move.

Cabbage continues to strike out at a stratospheric rate in the majors, fanning in nearly 36 percent of his 87 plate appearances this season. The 27-year-old offers some over-the-fence pop and stolen base upside, but the abysmal plate skills have prevented him from carving out even a semi-regular role at the highest level.

Cabbage is getting the nod over Joey Loperfido, Chas McCormick and Mauricio Dubón tonight. He’s hitting .234/.263/.377 in 80 plate appearances for the Astros. His 27/2 K/BB ratio is a near match for his 26/2 K/BB ratio in 56 plate appearances for the Angels last year. There is real power here, but the lack of pitch recognition doesn’t allow him to show it often.

The Astros have faced right-handed pitchers in each of the last three games, and Loperfido has been on the bench for each one, which is not a good sign for his playing time going forward. Trey Cabbage is starting in right field for the second straight day and perhaps surpassing Loperfido on the depth chart.

Cabbage, trying to distinguish himself in the Astros’ right field jumble sans Kyle Tucker, was excellent Sunday. He had four hard-hit balls and two of them were hit harder than 111 MPH. His 11th inning double finally broke this game open and there’s an ample opportunity for Cabbage to claim some playing time while Tucker’s status remains murky.

Meyers has been the regular center fielder for the Astros for a while now, but the 27-year-old is starting to cool down at the plate. Over the last 20 games, Meyers is hitting .227/.284/.293 with one home run, four steals, and a 25 percent strikeout rate. Meyers plays good defense in center field, which helps his case to keep starting, but if he doesn’t pick it up with the bat, more off days could be in his future. Interestingly, Chas McCormick is also not in the starting lineup as the Astros have opted to play Trey Cabbage in right field and Mauricio Dubon in center.

Tucker will miss a third straight game while dealing with the shin contusion that he picked up Monday. The outfielder is considered day-to-day with a good chance to return to the lineup against the Halos before the end of the weekend. Trey Cabbage is starting in Tucker’s place.

Cabbage provides Houston with a little more of an offensive threat off the bench than Grae Kessinger and also represents extra outfield insurance with Kyle Tucker dealing with a shin contusion. The 27-year-old has omnipresent contact issues, but he certainly can do some damage when he connects.