Cano credits health for offensive turnaround

HOUSTON — For Robinson Cano, the home runs have been coming since the start of the season and they haven’t slowed. The seven-time All-Star second baseman is at a career-best 35 and counting after two more homers in Monday’s 4-3 win over the Astros.

It’s not just the long balls. Cano’s line of .298/.350/.521 going into Tuesday’s game against the Astros is a healthy improvement from last year’s .287/.334/.446. And Cano says that is exactly why he’s been able to stay strong throughout this year.

He’s healthy. Not 100 percent, of course, as the grind of the 162-game season leads to the 33-year-old being wrapped in ice at various areas on his body after every game. But Cano has missed just one game this year — given a day to rest on Aug. 7 — and is a different player than the one who struggled down the stretch last season while dealing with a double hernia.

Asked what reaching a new high in homers meant to him this year, his first thought was the work he put in last winter after October surgery in Philadelphia to deal with the hernias.

“It means a lot because I had that surgery and didn’t have any rest [after last season],” he said. “You have to exercise …

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