The Orioles shook up their roster again this afternoon, shortly before first pitch at Daikin Park in Houston.

Catcher Sam Huff went from being on the taxi squad to having his contract selected from Triple-A Norfolk. Reliever Cam Sanders was optioned to Norfolk.

The 40-man roster was full, so the Orioles transferred reliever Ryan Helsley to the 60-day injured list.

Huff is 4-for-23 in nine games with the Orioles. They re-signed him to a minor league contract on July 3 after outrighting him June 30. He refused the assignment and became a free agent.

Samuel Basallo is behind the plate for the second consecutive day. Adley Rutschman served as designated hitter yesterday and is on the bench today.

Manager Craig Albernaz can explain the reasoning behind the move, and whether Rutschman is dealing with something physically, in his post-game media scrum.

Sanders was recalled on Friday after the Orioles traded for him earlier in the week. He became the fourth pitcher in club history to record a win and a save in his first two appearances with the team, joining Craig Kimbrel (2024), Mickey Weston (1989) and Doyle Alexander (1972).

Saves became an official statistic in 1969.

The move leaves the Orioles with a short bullpen and brings back a three-catcher arrangement.

*Baseball America’s Carlos Collazo reported that the Orioles signed seventh-round draft pick Ryan Piech, a right-hander from Xavier, for $277,500. The slot value for the 200th selection was $311,700.

*Samuel Basallo exited today’s game in the second inning with right shoulder discomfort. Huff is catching.

Basallo grimaced after a swing in the top of the second.

It’s unclear whether Rutschman is available today, and whether Huff is here because of concerns about him. The plot thickens.

*Albernaz told the media afterward, with his session airing on MASN, that the right shoulder soreness for Basallo was lingering. He also said Rutschman had “a little bit of left wrist discomfort” and wasn’t available today.

Kai-Wei Teng hit Dylan Beavers on the side of the right ankle with a curveball in the sixth inning. Beavers laid in the dirt grimacing, which brought Albernaz and assistant athletic trainer Ben Fraser out of the dugout, but he limped to first base, stayed in the game and doubled in the ninth.

The All-Star break didn’t cool the Orioles, who won their seventh game in a row, 5-2, over the Astros. This is their longest streak since Sept. 2-9, 2023.

Brandon Young allowed one run and struck out seven batters in seven innings to lower his ERA to 3.25. The Orioles are 13-3 in games that he’s started.

The Astros put runners on the corners with no outs in the second and didn’t score. Young struck out the next two batters and induced a grounder.

Another offensive breakdown by the Astros hurt them again, as it did for much of the series. The Orioles immediately took a 1-0 lead in the third on Jackson Holliday’s leadoff walk, a wild pitch and Gunnar Henderson’s single.

Beavers singled on a perfectly executed hit-and-run. Beavers was thrown out trying to steal after a challenge, but Pete Alonso walked, and a delayed double steal gave the Orioles a 2-0 lead.

Back-to-back doubles by Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez in the bottom of the third cut the lead to 2-1, but Hunter Brown loaded the bases in the fifth – walking Huff with two outs – and Leody Taveras delivered a two-run single.

Brown walked a career-high six and hit two batters in 4 2/3 innings.

Coby Mayo led off the sixth with an opposite-field home run against left-hander Bryan King. He began the day batting .280/.357/.707 with 10 of his 13 homers against southpaws.

Altuve led off the eighth by homering off Rico Garcia. All that did was create a save situation for Grant Wolfram.

Of course, Wolfram notched his first career save. He had nine in the minors.

The Orioles have won 10 of their last 13. They’re heading to Boston, which has won 13 in a row and 18 of 20.