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Jun 12, 2010 - 3:30 AM By SANTOSH VENKATARAMAN STATS Senior Writer

Houston (25-36) at New York (37-23), 1:05 p.m. EDT

While the New York Yankees worry about the health of Alex Rodriguez, they are having less concerns about Javier Vazquez's work on the mound.

Rodriguez will likely miss his second straight game Saturday as Vazquez tries for a third straight win when the Yankees and Houston Astros continue a three-game interleague series.

An MRI on Friday revealed tendinitis in Rodriguez's right hip flexor. The injury is in a different area than the one he had that required hip surgery last year.

"That's good news to me," manager Joe Girardi said.

Rodriguez departed New York's 4-3 loss at Baltimore on Thursday night after one inning, hampered by groin tightness for the second time in a couple days.

"To me, it's my groin. It's all pretty connected there," Rodriguez said. "But I feel pretty good and again, the most important part, the MRI came out negative and we feel good about that."

Girardi said Rodriguez was available to pinch-hit Friday. The superstar's status is officially day to day, although it appears he will rest through the weekend with an off day upcoming Monday.

"I wouldn't count on him in there tomorrow," Girardi said Friday.

Vazquez (5-5, 5.63 ERA), meanwhile, doesn't seem to be a concern anymore since he has pitched well recently to quiet his critics.

The Yankees acquired Vazquez from Atlanta over the winter for a second stint with New York to strengthen the rotation. After Vazquez went 1-3 with a 9.78 ERA in his first five outings, the Yankees (38-23) skipped his turn so he could fix his problems.

The right-hander has fared well since returning, going 3-2 with a 2.76 ERA in five starts. He turned in a second straight solid seven-inning outing Sunday, allowing two runs and one hit with a season-high nine strikeouts in a 4-3 victory at Toronto.

"This is the guy that we thought we were getting," Girardi said.

Vazquez's teams have lost nine of his 13 starts against Houston (25-37). He's 3-5 with a 4.41 ERA in those outings.

The Yankees used a solid option to fill in for Rodriguez at cleanup in major league batting leader Robinson Cano, who went 1 for 4 in a 4-3 victory Friday. Cano is hitting .373 for the year, and .490 during a 12-game home hitting streak.

Andy Pettitte earned his 200th victory with the Yankees with 7 1-3 strong innings in the opener. Pettitte was making his first start against the team he pitched for from 2004-06.

One of Pettitte's former teammates, Wandy Rodriguez (3-8, 4.95), will look to end his road woes Saturday.

Rodriguez is 5.49 ERA in seven road starts this year, and 0-3 with a 6.35 ERA in his last three outings away from home. He allowed three runs over seven innings in a 5-1 loss at Colorado on Monday.

The left-hander is facing New York for the second time. He allowed five runs over five innings in an 8-4 home loss June 14, 2008.

The Astros' loss Friday was only their third in 11 games. Jason Michaels served as designated hitter in the opener at the AL park, but manager Brad Mills has indicated Carlos Lee will do so Saturday.