Nelson

Velázquez

Velázquez’ home run was his fifth of the season. He hit a two-run shot off Anthony Kay in the fourth inning. Velázquez should continue to see most of his at-bats come against left-handed pitching. He’s hitting .193 with a .664 OPS and 15 RBI in limited at-bats this year.

The first move of the Jim Crane era is in the books. Velázquez winds up back with the Astros on a new deal after being designated for assignment last week. He went 0-for-4 during a brief three-game stint after being claimed off waivers from the Cardinals earlier this month.

Velázquez rejected the assignment and became a free agent. He went 0-for-4 in three games for the Astros after previously hitting .216/.289/.432 in 83 plate appearances for the Cardinals this season.

The 27-year-old outfielder lasts just 10 days on the Astros’ roster, going 0-for-4 in five plate appearances over three games that he appeared in. It seems likely that
Velázquez will once again attract interest on waivers from teams looking for right-handed thump off of the bench. Raynel Delgado was recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land in a corresponding move on Thursday.

The Astros need a right-handed power bat, and Velázquez is that. The 27-year-old hit just .216/.289/.432 with four homers and 12 RBI in 83 plate appearances over 34 games for the Cardinals this season. However, he could add some thump off the bench if the Astros choose to use him in that role.

Velázquez cedes his spot on St. Louis’ roster to recent waiver wire acquisition Everson Pereira prior to Saturday’s game against the Rockies. The 27-year-old outfielder hit just .216/.289/.432 with four homers and 12 RBI in 83 plate appearances over 34 games for the Cardinals this season.

Walker has hit a bit of a rough patch at the plate since his iconic performance during the All-Star Home Run Derby last month, hitting .240 (18-for-75) with zero homers in 18 games since the Midsummer Classic. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. There should be additional clarity on his status following the contest. It’ll be Nelson Velázquez taking over in right field at Yankee Stadium in his place.

Velázquez socked a two-run homer off an otherwise-effective Robert Gasser to make it a 3-2 game in the sixth. The Brewers would score the next seven to turn it into a rout. Velázquez has homered four times in just 52 at-bats with the Cardinals, and he’s now the proud owner of an OPS of .908. One thing is for certain, Velázquez is certainly capable of tearing up left-handed pitching.

Although Velázquez was the star of the game, the Cardinals still had Alec Burleson hit for him in the eighth. Burleson wound up striking out against Ian Hamilton. Starting almost exclusively against lefties, Velázquez is 12-for-38 with three homers since being brought up on May 29. It doesn’t seem destined to lead to an expanded role, but the Cardinals will keep rotating out Burleson, Lars Nootbaar or Nathan Church to make room for him against southpaws.

With left-hander Noah Cameron toeing the slab for the Royals, Nootbaar will get a breather. Fellow left-handed hitters Jimmy Crooks and Nathan Church are also out of the Cardinals’ lineup on Thursday. Nelson Velazquez will start in Nootbaar’s place in left field and will bat cleanup for the Cardinals on Thursday night in Kansas City.