Dallas Keuchel had a different catcher before throwing his first pitch for the Houston Astros on Tuesday night.

Everything worked out just fine with Tim Federowicz behind the plate with the former AL Cy Young Award winner throwing some of his best breaking pitches all season.

Keuchel struck out seven and allowed only two runs over seven scoreless innings Authentic Dak Prescott Jersey , winning for only the second time in his last nine starts, as the Astros beat the Texas Rangers 5-3.

”Some of the shape it was taking early was really good. (Shin-Soo) Choo leading off the game, anytime you get him to swing and miss at a breaking pitch, it’s acting pretty good, and then (Nomar) Mazara struck out looking with a slider away,” Keuchel said. ”Both of those balls had good action and I knew from the then on if I could establish the fastball in to the lefties, it would be a good day.”

Josh Reddick and Tony Kemp homered for the Astros, who are 11-4 this season against their instate division rival, with seven consecutive road wins in the series. Houston is a majors-best 31-14 on the road this season.

Keuchel (5-8) struck out the first four batters he faced, and six of the first seven.

After catcher Brian McCann went on the disabled list and had arthroscopic surgery on his right knee earlier Tuesday, manager A.J. Hinch said Max Stassi would do the bulk of the catching. But Stassi got hit by a pitch batting in the first, and left the game with a bruised right (throwing) wrist before even taking the field on defense.

”I think we avoided a fracture Youth Justin Tucker Jersey , very good for us,” manager A.J. Hinch said. ”Got him pretty good in the wrist. Got a welt there, couldn’t flex his hand, hand so mobility.”

X-rays were negative and Stassi is considered day to day.

Keuchel had only thrown a few bullpens with Federowicz in spring training, and a live BP session, before the catcher was called back from Triple-A Fresno earlier Tuesday.

”The way he handled the game not expecting to play, that was really impressive,” Keuchel said.

Choo later walked twice and had two singles to extend his career-best on-base streak to 43 games, the longest in the majors since Atlanta’s Freddie Freeman’s 46-gamer two years ago. Choo is three games shy of Julio Franco’s team record of 46 in a row set 25 years ago.

The Astros used three relievers to get through the eighth. Texas already had a run in before Hector Rondon took over against pinch-hitter Joey Gallo, who worked a 12-pitch at-bat into a two-out walk to load the bases before Robinson Chirinos struck out. Rondon then worked the ninth for his sixth save in eight chances.

Houston went ahead to stay in the first when Yuli Gurriel and Reddick had RBI doubles off Austin Bibens-Dirkx (1-2), who still managed to get through six innings. He struck out four, walked two and hit two batters.

”To get through six in that situation was huge for us Womens Roquan Smith Jersey ,” manager Jeff Banister said. ”Early on it didn’t look that it was going to be the case, a situation where really didn’t have a whole lot of sink on the fastball. … For us to still have an opportunity there through those innings, it was big-time by him.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Astros: SS Carlos Correa, out since June 26 with lower back soreness, has been working out daily in Houston. Hinch said it was uncertain if Correa will be ready to play Friday when eligible to come off the DL. He hadn’t gone through any baseball activities yet.

Rangers: RHP Tony Barnette left the game after a 2-1 pitch to Marwin Gonzalez in the eighth. The Rangers said he had a right shoulder strain and would be evaluated further Wednesday. … 1B Ronald Guzman had two hits and scored twice after being activated from the seven-day concussion DL.

SHORT HOPS

The Astros have homered in 23 consecutive road games, a club record and four from matching the MLB record set by Oakland earlier this season. … Before Bibens-Dirkx plunked Stassi in the first inning, Rangers pitchers had gone 22 games without hitting a batter – the longest span for the team since 1998.

DOUBLE DOUBLED UP

Astros leadoff hitter George Springer was in a 3-for-46 slide before a single in the sixth. But he was also doubled off twice on hard lineouts.

UP NEXT

Gerrit Cole (9-2) will pitch on regular rest for the Astros after they made a slight tweak in their rotation. Lance McCullers Jr., who was scheduled to start, was instead pushed back to Friday. Rangers lefty Mike Minor (6-4) took a perfect game into the seventh inning of his last start, a win last Wednesday over the San Diego Padres.

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OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) Robert Griffin III rolled to his right and threw a tight spiral down the middle of the field to a receiver that was being closely covered by a pair of defenders.

Several plays later, he dropped back and launched a 50-yard pass to a receiver running down the far sideline.

Griffin is quietly making a comeback as a backup quarterback for the Baltimore Ravens.

Though starter Joe Flacco and rookie Lamar Jackson have received most of the attention at training camp Womens Le'Veon Bell Jersey , Griffin hopes to make some noise at the annual Hall of Fame game against the Chicago Bears on Thursday night. It will be his first taste of NFL action since 2016.

”I’m very excited,” Griffin said. ”I don’t think I can put into words how fun this whole process has been, being here in Baltimore and just having the opportunity to grow with this team. I just want to go out there and show they can trust me and hopefully lead us to a win.”

Griffin won the Heisman Trophy as a junior at Baylor and was the second overall pick in the 2012 draft by the Washington Redskins. He was the NFL’s rookie of the year before his career was derailed by injuries.

Griffin missed the 2015 season after sustaining a concussion during the preseason. After being released by Washington, he signed with the Browns in 2016. He started the regular-season opener, but sustained a shoulder injury. Griffin was able to play the final four weeks and was the starting quarterback the last time the Browns won a game, beating San Diego on Dec. 24, 2016.

He did not play football last year, but stayed in shape by training at the University of Central Florida. Griffin said he also spent hours watching film, studying the defense of various NFL teams.

”He has street credibility immediately,” Ravens quarterbacks coach James Urban said. ”He loves football and had the taste of not being around it for awhile, so he’s hungry and enjoying every moment. We talk all of the time: control what you can control and when the opportunity comes, you take advantage of it.”

Griffin Womens Mitchell Trubisky Jersey , 28, worked out with the Ravens a few months prior to the NFL Draft. He performed well enough to earn a one-year deal reportedly worth $1 million with a $100,000 signing bonus. So far, Ravens coach John Harbaugh is confident the team made the correct decision.

”I think it’s been great having Robert here. He’s a very talented pro,” Harbaugh said. ”He’s a top pick in the draft, so he has talent. He’s healthy for the first time in quite a few years.”

Griffin is fully aware that any role with the team will be serving as a backup to Flacco. The biggest question now is whether the Ravens will carry three quarterbacks into the regular season.

”It will be a tough decision,” Harbaugh said. ”Any time you keep an one player at one position as extra, it’s one less player at another position you decide to lose. I’m not even thinking about that right now. We’ll let that happen when the time comes.”

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