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CHC@HOU: Wandy gives the Astros seven strong frames

When Wandy Rodriguez' turn comes around in the Astros rotation, one thing is nearly certain: the left-hander will go at least five innings.

In his last 41 starts, Rodriguez has pitched five or more innings, a streak that dates back to April 8, 2011. That mark is the third-longest streak in the Majors, trailing only CC Sabathia's 71-game mark and Justin Verlander's 64.

Rodriguez will take that streak into Chicago for Interleague Play when the Astros face the White Sox in Friday's series opener.

While the left-hander did go five innings in his last outing against the Reds, he struggled, surrendering seven earned runs on nine hits for the no-decision.

"I missed a lot with my location with my breaking ball and I couldn't throw it for a strike," Rodriguez said. "It's hard when you're a pitcher and you feel like you feel today."

Meanwhile, Gavin Floyd will be on the hill for the White Sox, hoping to get out of his most recent funk. In his last four starts, the right-hander is 1-2 with a 11.90 ERA after going 3-2 with a 1.99 ERA in his previous six.

Floyd took the no-decision against Seattle last Saturday, tossing five innings and giving up five runs on nine hits.

Floyd allowed four home runs in the first four innings of the game and surrendered at least five runs for the fourth straight start.

"I was up in the zone," Floyd said. "I got hurt when I was getting behind. Left the ball up a lot. I've got to get back to getting down in the zone and getting ahead."

Astros: No. 1 pick Correa signed
• Houston reached an agreement on a contract with Puerto Rican shortstop Carlos Correa on Thursday. He was taken by the club with the No. 1 overall pick in Monday's First-Year Player Draft.

The Astros held a news conference later in the day to make the signing official and Correa also took batting practice prior to the game against the Cardinals at Minute Maid Park.

"We are absolutely thrilled to have Carlos as a part of our organization," general manager Jeff Luhnow said. "This is a monumental day for us, for him and for the city of Houston."

• With Carlos Lee, who served as the designated hitter in all six of the Astros' AL road games last year, on the disabled list, Astros manager Brad Mills says he'll likely give J.D. Martinez some at-bats at DH.

"I think we'll probably go with J.D.," Mills said. "We'll see how it works out. I haven't really talked to the guys about it, but that's probably where we'll go."

White Sox: Konerko returns after wrist procedure
• After undergoing a procedure on Tuesday to flush a loose bone fragment in his left wrist into a less painful spot, Paul Konerko is hoping to have pain-free results the rest of the season. He'll undergo surgery in the offseason to completely remove the chip.

"It's never entered into the joint playing baseball," Konerko said on Thursday. "It's always away from the field, like something simple like grabbing something off a table or opening a door.

"I cross my fingers with it. It was my fault, more so, that I didn't get it out last offseason. I wanted to, but I figured it hasn't been in there for four-to-five months, so it's gone, it's not coming back, so we didn't do it. It happened again, so I don't think I'm going to get out of it this time."

Worth noting
• Floyd has never faced Houston, but is 5-4 with a 2.43 ERA in 14 career Interleague starts.

• This weekend's series in the third series the Astros have played in at U.S. Cellular Field since the 2005 World Series and the first since 2007.

• In six starts against the American League Central in his career, Rodriguez owns a 1-3 record with a 5.30 ERA.

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