ARLINGTON -- Kyle Tucker?certainly isn¡¯t to blame for the Astros¡¯ lack of offense in the first two games of the American League Championship Series. He¡¯s not the only member of Houston¡¯s offense who¡¯s struggled at the plate the past two games, but the spotlight shines brighter on star players, both in good times and bad.

Tucker, the Astros¡¯ Most Valuable Player in 2023 who figures to get some down-ballot AL MVP votes, is 2-for-22 in the postseason with seven strikeouts, including an 0-for-8 showing in the first two games of the ALCS against the Rangers. For that reason, Houston manager Dusty Baker said Tuesday he¡¯s considering moving the right fielder down the batting order for Wednesday¡¯s Game 3 -- a game Houston desperately needs to win. The Astros trail, 2-0, in the best-of-seven series.

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¡°It's not the first starter that's had a tough playoffs,¡± Baker said. ¡°Tuck is going to get going. We had a good conversation today. And for a temporary situation, I might move him down the order, try to take a little bit off of him. So we'll see. And there are a few guys we need to get going, or we all need to get going.¡±

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Tucker hit fifth in the lineup in Game 1 of the ALCS and was moved up to third in Game 2, just ahead of Yordan Alvarez. Tucker went 0-for-4 in each game. In the regular season, Tucker made 56 starts in both the third and fifth spots in the order and 43 starts in the cleanup spot, but he hasn¡¯t hit lower than fifth this year.

¡°Whatever we can do possibly to try and win games is fine,¡± Tucker said. ¡°We have talks throughout the year and stuff like that and other stuff in general, but I¡¯m just trying to focus on going out there and making good plays on defense and trying to move runners over and get guys in. We¡¯ll see how tomorrow goes, and hopefully, we¡¯ll put some runs on the board, and pitching and defense play a big part in it, too.¡±

So in which spot will Tucker bat in Game 3, with Max Scherzer making the start for the Rangers? Baker mentioned Michael Brantley (20-for-54, including postseason) has had more success against Scherzer than Tucker (1-for-6), which means Tucker could be dropped as low as sixth, behind Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Alvarez, Jos¨¦ Abreu and Brantley.

¡°I wrestle at night and don't sleep sometimes trying to figure out different lineups,¡± Baker said. ¡°That's all I do.¡±

Astros hitting coach Troy Snitker said Tucker is probably trying to do a bit too much on offense in the postseason after hitting .284 with 29 homers, 37 doubles, five triples and an AL-best 112 RBIs in the regular season. Tucker was one of the most dynamic hitters in the AL this year.

¡°You don¡¯t keep guys like that down very long,¡± Snitker said. ¡°He¡¯s had a rough few games to start, but we expect him to make some adjustments, get it right and come back out there the rest of this series and be as good a hitter as he¡¯s been the whole time.¡±

Tucker had the hardest-hit ball in Game 2 that wasn¡¯t a home run when he lined out to first base in the first inning. The exit velocity was 106.4 mph. Tucker has yet to outwardly show any frustration, but it¡¯s there.

¡°It¡¯s tough, especially since I haven¡¯t really done much and we lost the first two games,¡± Tucker said. ¡°Obviously, it¡¯s never just one thing that sways the game one way or another. If you can contribute, whether it¡¯s moving guys over or driving guys in, that could be ¡­ the difference in the game. It¡¯s an out, but as long as it contributes to getting a run in is huge, especially in the playoffs. Any way I can do that or get a hit or something, anything matters at this point in the year.¡±

Tucker posted a 1.096 OPS in Astros wins in the regular season and a .609 OPS in losses, so his impact on the lineup is massive.?

¡°He¡¯s a great hitter and he¡¯s going through a tough stretch, but we¡¯ve still got a couple of games left, and if he can produce, it will be huge,¡± outfielder Chas McCormick said. ¡°It¡¯s not just him, though. It¡¯s me, as well. It¡¯s a couple of other guys. I think we¡¯re in good shape. I¡¯ve seen these guys hit really well, so I think we can do the same these next couple days.¡±