Tue 7/31/12 6:04 PM

Astros manager Brad Mills confirmed Tuesday that Wilton Lopez is his new primary ninth-inning man. Houston tried out Francisco Cordero in the role but that went extremely poorly. Lopez should do much better, though it's unlikely the Astros will hold many late-game leads down the stretch. That big-league roster has been torn to shreds by GM Jeff Luhnow's rebuilding project.