Playing rival Rangers in Florida, the Astros hope to keep winning for Houston in aftermath of Harvey

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla -- The Houston Astros know they have a job to do, even if the haunting images from the flood enveloping their home city have them feeling like they'd rather focus their efforts elsewhere.

The Astros played the intrastate rival Texas Rangers on Tuesday in the unlikely location of Tropicana Field, the venue selected for the series after Hurricane Harvey and its aftermath forced the switch. During an emotional pregame period, several Astros admitted to a feeling of helplessness as they watch their city's struggles from afar.

"We understand that there is a lot happening and we're a thousand miles away from it," outfielder George Springer said before the Astros' 12-2 loss to the Rangers. "To see it all on the news and the internet, it's tough to go out and play. But it's our job as a team to go out and play for the city."

The Astros have been emphatic over the past few days that baseball in general and their travel concerns in particular are secondary issues to the events in Houston. But they hope that just by doing their jobs, they can provide some temporary solace to their thousands of fans currently dealing with bigger issues.

"I think one thing with us playing today is it will be a little bit of a distraction," infielder Alex Bregman said. "We've been getting a lot of people on social media contacting us saying, 'You just need to keep winning.' It's a tough question. There is a lot of other stuff going on in Houston and we wish we could be back there helping. We were talking on the bus how we can see lots of other people helping and we wish we could be doing the same thing."

Astros manager A.J. Hinch grew emotional as he echoed those sentiments while discussing the poignant images he has seen coming out of the flood.

"It's just not a good feeling to know that we can't do anything about it," Hinch said, his voice cracking. "We want to hope and pray that things are going to get better. I've seen the pictures of some really close friends of mine in The Woodlands in a boat that they just bought go and try to rescue people out of trees at the Fazio Golf Course.

"That's personal for me because these are friends and they're out rescuing. They're not first responders, they're just grown men trying to do something really good for people. Those stories, those images, pictures of people carrying babies across flooded streets, to be honest with you, I wish I was one of those guys carrying a baby. I wish I could help somebody out."

Hinch said that about half the players have their families with them on the trip, most of whom were also with the team during its trip to Anaheim, California, over the weekend. While everyone's family appears to be safe, some remain stranded even as the rains continue to fall in south Texas. Some players will be dealing with flooded houses when they eventually return to Houston.

"I had a buddy run over to check on Will [Harris'] and I's houses earlier today," Bregman said. "Our houses are fine, but I know some of the guys on the team, their houses are flooded. I know [reliever Francisco] Liriano's house is completely flooded. It's tough and we're just hoping that it stops soon."

It hasn't been an easy few days for the ballclub. After finishing in Anaheim, the Astros flew to Arlington, Texas, to await word of where their next game would be played. Once the decision was made to move the Rangers series to Tampa-St. Petersburg, the Astros arrived in Florida on Monday night. All the while, the Astros maintain a constant watch on any news coming from home.

"Everybody has been locked in on it," Bregman said. "Some guys have families who are still back there and we've been trying to figure out what's going on with them. But we've been locked in on it nonstop."

Among lesser concerns, because the Astros had packed for a weekend trip, which happened to fall on Major League Baseball's inaugural players' weekend that featured alternative jerseys with nicknames on the back, they have limited options for attire for however long they play at Tropicana Field.

The silver lining in the constant stream of bad news from Houston has been the outpouring of support and assistance from within and without the south Texas region.

"To see some of the first responders and servicemen, the people of Houston helping each other out, I really think that kind of brightened up everybody," Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel said. "The willingness to help out and do whatever is necessary to help everybody. That's the best part about it. You've got everybody coming together in the fourth-biggest city in the country."

The Astros announced on Tuesday that they have partnered with MLB to donate all ticket, concessions and parking revenue from the three-game series to Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.