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Altuve nearly hit .500 during outstanding July

Troy Taormina / USA TODAY Sports

Jose Altuve is probably sad to see July go - although the way he's hitting, August won't be slowing him down any time soon.

The diminutive second baseman closed out his incredible month with a 2-for-4 night in the Houston Astros' 14-7 win over the Tampa Bay Rays Monday that ensured his work over the past 31 days won't be forgotten for some time. Altuve hit .485 over the month of July - a mark that left him tied for the fifth-highest average over a single calendar month (minimum 75 at-bats) in baseball's expansion era (since 1961), according to ESPN Stats & Info.

Per ESPN's David Schoenfield, Altuve narrowly missed out on becoming just the third player since 1961 to hit .500 for a month. Only two men - Todd Helton in May 2000, and Ivan Rodriguez in June 2004 - have surpassed the .500 mark during a single calendar month since the sport first expanded from 16 teams.

The 27-year-old Altuve also posted a .525 on-base percentage in July, and struck out just nine times.

Related: In the Statcast era, Jose Altuve is succeeding the old-school way

Altuve now leads all American League hitters in a variety of categories this season, including batting average (.368), hits (148), doubles (33), and on-base percentage (.430). He's on pace to record his fourth straight 200-hit campaign and third batting title in four years.

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