The Houston Astros have released starting pitcher Livan Hernandez from his minor league contract, according to Zachary Levine of the Houston Chronicle.

Astros have released Livan Hernandez.

—
Zachary Levine (@zacharylevine) March 30, 2012

Hernandez was 1-2 with a 5.63 ERA in five starts this spring for Houston. The 37-year-old pitcher has pitched for Washington, San Francisco, Florida, Arizona, Minnesota, Colorado and the New York Mets, winning 174 games with a 4.39 career ERA.

Houston Astros center fielder, Jordan Schafer, is headed to Atlanta today to be examined by a hand specialist after being injured on March 18, according to MLB.com.

Schafer was originally diagnosed with a hand sprain, but the injury was reevaluated and determined that it is closer related to nerve issues.

“My sense is that by the weekend he’ll be back hitting and hopefully be in games by the end of the weekend,” Luhnow said. “We have to be cautious and if he feels any discomfort at all we’re going to take it easy on him. The goal is to have him ready to go on Opening Day.”

The Astros acquired Schafer last season as part of the Micheal Bourn deal. He hit .391 in his short stint with Houston.

Brett Myers will serve as the Houston Astros’ closer, according to the team’s social media manager Alyson Footer.

Jeff Luhnow first approached Mills with the idea for Myers to close. Mills thought about it and agreed. Then they brought it to Myers.

—
Alyson Footer (@alysonfooter) February 28, 2012

Myers, 30, has served a starting pitcher for the majority of his career. Out of 307 total appearances, 249 of those, including 33 of 34 last season, were starts.

In 2006, Myers served as the Philadelphia Phillies everyday closer, posting 21 saves and a 4.33 ERA. Last season for the Astros, Meyers posted a 7-14 record with a 4.46 ERA. Just one year earlier, he posted a 14-8 record with a 3.14 ERA.

The right-hander’s absence in the team’s rotation will require the Astros to find a way to fill the average 219.2 innings pitched Myers has produced over the past two seasons.

The Houston Astros have avoided arbitration with Jed Lowrie, agreeing to terms with the infielder on a one-year, $1.15 million contract, according to the Associated Press.

Lowrie had asked for $1.5 million in arbitration, with the Astros counter-offering $900,000. They were slated for a Friday hearing, but they met in the middle tonight rather than head to court.

Lowrie, 27, was acquired from the Boston Red Sox on Dec. 14 along with starting pitcher Kyle Weiland in exchange for reliever Mark Melancon. He hit .252 with six homers and 36 RBIs in 88 games for the Red Sox last season.

While Lowrie played all over Boston’s infield last season, including a prolonged stint at third base in place of the injured Kevin Youkilis, he is expected to settle into the everyday shortstop job for the Astros in 2012.

Breaking news — or, more aptly, breaking non-news. If you were worried that the Houston Astros might be changing their name in the near future, worry no longer. Owner Jim Crane has assured the team’s fan base that a name change isn’t happening.

“You asked for change and we added several fan friendly initiatives last week, and we hope you like them,” Crane said today in a taped video message to season-ticket holders. “We will continue to listen, and to look for additional ways to improve on and off the field.

“One thing that we are not going to change is the name. We received strong feedback and consensus among season-ticket holders and many fans, and we will not change the name Astros. The Houston Astros are here to stay.”

The Astros are in a major transition phase, as a move to the American League West is planned for 2013. But no matter what happens, they’ll still be the Astros for the foreseeable future.

Roy Oswalt is nearing an agreement with the St. Louis Cardinals for 2012, but it’s not a done deal just yet, according to MLB Network’s Jim Duquette.

Source - Roy Oswalt and the #Cardinals are close to a deal. #RedSox and #Astros are also still in the mix.

—
Jim Duquette (@Jim_Duquette) January 28, 2012

The Cardinals are believed to have made an offer to the free-agent hurler worth around $5 million; the Red Sox and Astros have made similar offers.

The Cards already have five starting pitchers under contract, so it’s unclear exactly how Oswalt fits into the defending champions’ plans for next season. The Red Sox have an open spot in their rotation, as John Lackey will miss the 2012 season due to Tommy John surgery. The Astros, the team that drafted Oswalt in 1996 and brought him to the big leagues, have not been major players in the sweepstakes for the 34-year-old hurler until now.

Oswalt turns 35 in August. He posted a 3.69 ERA in 139 innings for the Phillies last year, but the Phillies declined to bring him back after he missed a significant part of the season with back injuries.

ESPN.com baseball writer Keith Law interviewed for a position with the Houston Astros front-office, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.

Law reportedly interviewed for several positions within the Astros organization, including the job of scouting director.

Earlier today, Law tweeted this:

My day just got a lot more interesting.

—
  (@keithlaw) December 29, 2011

Law is best known for his minor league coverage for ESPN. Prior to becoming a writer he served as a special assistant with the Toronto Blue Jays for four and a half years.

The Boston Red Sox have traded infielder Jed Lowrie and prospect Kyle Weiland to the Houston Astros in return for closer Mark Melancon, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reports.

Source: Lowrie, Weiland from #RedSox to #Astros for Melancon. #MLB

—
Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 14, 2011

The move was made by the Red Sox to sure up their bullpen after losing veteran closer Jonathan Papelbon to the Philadelphia Phillies in free agency. Last season in 71 appearances Melancon recorded 20 saves while posting a 2.78 ERA.

Lowrie, 27, served as a utility infielder for the Red Sox in 2011. In 88 games he hit .252.303/.382 with six home runs and 36 RBI. Weiland, 25, posted an 8-10 record with a 3.58 ERA in 24 starts for the Red Sox Triple-A affiliate in Pawtucket.

Jim Crane took over as the new owner of the Houston Astros last Tuesday, and immediately promised to address necessary staff changes after Thanksgiving.  He apparently decided to include Black Friday and the following weekend in his schedule, but not much else: according to a report tweeted by Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, Crane’s changes will begin on Monday.

“Astros expected to announce major changes Monday,” Rosenthal wrote, “including dismissal of GM Ed Wade.”

Wade took over as Astros general manager in 2007 and was responsible for a number of largely unsuccessful player moves, perhaps most notably trading for Miguel Tejada just before the infielder was named in the Mitchell Report as a potential steroid user.

In a follow-up report, Rosenthal indicates that Astros president of baseball operations Tal Smith will also be leaving the team on Monday.

The Houston Astros’ long-rumored move from the NL Central to the AL West has been confirmed by outgoing team owner Drayton McLane, according to a tweet from USA Today beat writer Bob Nightengale:

The Astros sale is on the agenda tomorrow and McLane confirms they are moving to AL West.

Nightengale was reporting from the general manager meetings in Milwaukee.

The move is expected to take effect in the 2013 season, and will likely be accompanied by the addition of another wildcard team from each league in the playoffs.

It appears that when the Houston Astros officially come under new ownership, likely at next week’s MLB owners’ meeting, they will join a new league as well.  According to an Associated Press report quoted on the Houston Chronicle’s Ultimate Astros blog:

Astros owner Drayton McLane, buyer Jim Crane and Major League Baseball have reached an agreement on shifting the franchise to the American League, the Associated Press reported on Friday.

The move, if it happens, would reportedly take effect in 2013; spokespeople for all parties involved either declined comment or pled ignorance on the subject.

The move would balance out the two leagues and shrink the largest division in Major League Baseball, which would all likely pave the way for a move to two wildcard teams from each league.

The last team to change leagues was the Milwaukee Brewers, who made the opposite move (from American to National League) in 1998.