Shay

Whitcomb

Whitcomb homered in a spot start for Jeremy Peña on Wednesday, but heads back to Triple-A. It appears the Astros are set to activate someone else tomorrow.

It’s a scheduled day off for Peña. It’ll be Shay Whitcomb taking over at shortstop to face Angels lefty Reid Detmers on Wednesday night.

Whitcomb gets the call to replace an injured Nick Allen (hamstring) on Houston’s bench. The versatile 27-year-old has gone 2-for-17 with one round-tripper and four RBI in 14 games at the big-league level this season. He’s always been an intriguing talent, and has posted some huge power/speed combo numbers at the Triple-A level, but it’s never really come together at the highest level.

Whitcomb returns to the minors to make room for center fielder Jake Meyers to come off the injured list. The 27-year-old has gone 2-for-17 with one homer and four RBI in 14 games for the Astros this season.

With Carlos Correa (ankle) done for the season, Whitcomb will be elevated to the active roster and fill a role as a reserve infielder. The 27-year-old is hitting .269/.296/.538 four home runs and four steals in 13 Triple-A games.

Whitcomb draws the short straw with Houston needing to bring up César Salazar as an emergency catcher with Yainer Diaz dealing with an abdominal injury.

The Astros announced that Allen is available to play, so it appears that Houston just wants to add some more offense into the lineup for Saturday’s game. Carlos Correa will move to shortstop, and Shay Whitcomb will handle third base and hit ninth in Allen’s absence.

Whitcomb was mostly playing third base in Triple-A, but he has some outfield experience if the Astros want to him out there against lefties on occasion. The 27-year-old is a lifetime .262/.341/.493 hitter in 314 Triple-A games, but he’s come in at just .173/.235/.253 in 81 plate appearances in the majors.

Whitcomb’s latest stint with the Astros wound up lasting just a few days while Isaac Paredes was away from the club on bereavement leave. The 27-year-old has put up some big-time numbers at the Triple-A level, and offers a ton of defensive versatility, but he’s struggled to gain any sort of traction at the highest level.

Whitcomb was hitting .308/.333/.577 with two homers and two steals in six Triple-A games, though he had struck out 10 times already. Perhaps he’ll get a start against a lefty while Isaac Paredes is on the bereavement list.