Jose Altuve hit the IL just as Jeremy Peña came back, and the Astros are not as whole as it looks
Photo by Kenneth Richmond/Getty Images Houston placed Jose Altuve on the 10-day injured list with a Grade 2 left oblique strain on May 18, just as Jeremy Peña returned from the injured list. That sounds like one veteran out and one veteran back. In practice, it throws the Astros right back into the infield coverage problem they have been trying to survive for weeks.
Altuve was hurt on May 16 against Texas, and the move was made retroactive to May 17. Peña can help, especially if he is healthy enough to hold the leadoff spot, but this does not restore Houston’s original shape. It just changes where the holes are.
Altuve’s injury removes the one veteran bat that tied the patchwork together Altuve was slashing . 245/. 326/.
380 with four home runs in 42 games before the strain. That is not peak Altuve, but it is still the kind of contact and strike-zone stability that lets a lineup survive when the rest of the infield is moving around. Oblique injuries are awkward because even a quick return timeline can leave the hitter compromised.
Houston is not just losing games played. It is losing the easiest version of its batting-order continuity. Peña’s return helps, but it also changes the assignment Peña returned to the lineup and hit leadoff on May 18.