SEATTLE — Astros right-hander Luis Garcia will want Tommy John surgical procedure and can miss the rest of the common season, common supervisor Dana Brown introduced Friday. Garcia left Monday’s sport towards the Giants after solely eight pitches due to ache in his proper elbow.
The lack of Garcia is a large blow to an Astros rotation that already is skinny, with right-hander José Urquidy on the injured record (proper shoulder discomfort) and right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. working his manner again from a forearm harm he suffered on Feb. 14. The workforce will activate right-hander J.P. France, who is about to make his Major League debut on Saturday towards the Mariners.
Garcia had posted two consecutive scoreless outings earlier than injuring his elbow Sunday. He made six begins this yr, going 2-2 with a 4.00 ERA with 10 walks and 31 strikeouts.
“That’s a tremendous blow,” Astros supervisor Dusty Baker mentioned after the Astros’ 6-4 win over the Mariners at T-Mobile Park on Friday night time. “I was praying it was something different, something minor. … He’s a strong kid. He’s in good spirits. Hopefully, France and the other young guys can give us a lift.”
Of the 5 pitchers who made at the least 25 begins for the Astros final yr, solely lefty Framber Valdez and right-hander Cristian Javier are presently within the Houston rotation. Garcia and Urquidy are injured and Justin Verlander signed with the Mets. McCullers made eight begins on the finish of final season after rehabbing an harm all yr.
In addition to Valdez, Javier and France, the Astros’ different wholesome beginning pitchers are rookie Hunter Brown and Brandon Bielak, who will begin Sunday’s sequence finale in solely his ninth Major League begin and first since 2021.
The Astros don’t have a lot Major League-ready pitching depth within the Minor Leagues, both. Two starters at Triple-A Sugar Land who’re on the 40-man roster are coping with accidents. Right-hander Forrest Whitley has minor soreness in his decelerator muscle (under shoulder) and can take a day or two off, in accordance with a supply, and right-hander Shawn Dubin was positioned on the seven-day injured record Friday.
With that in thoughts, the Astros are virtually actually going to should make buying a beginning pitcher or two a precedence earlier than the Trade Deadline, and even earlier than. Still, Houston starters ranked sixth-best within the Major Leagues in ERA (3.43) getting into Friday.
Garcia has been a workhorse starter for the Astros the previous two years. He is 28-19 in 69 profession appearances (63 begins) with a 3.61 ERA, making his debut in 2020 when he was referred to as up from High-A. Last yr, he went 15-8 in 28 begins with a 3.72 ERA within the common season. He threw 5 scoreless innings in aid to shut out the Astros’ 1-0, 18-inning win over the Mariners to clinch the American League Division Series in Seattle.
In 2021, Garcia was 11-8 in 30 appearances (28 begins) with a 3.48 ERA, ending second within the AL Rookie of the Year voting. He threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings in Houston’s 5-0 clinching victory in Game 6 of the AL Championship Series.
Content Source: www.mlb.com