Division bulge what doctor ordered to prevent panic

A.J. Hinch isn’t hanging his head, crying “woe is me” or making excuses.

Pitchers are dropping like flies, the Astros are the team everyone wants to beat, and the season isn’t getting any easier.

So what? The Astros aren’t panicking, and they shouldn’t.

Starter Lance McCullers found himself on the disabled list Monday with lower back soreness. He joins fellow starting pitchers Dallas Keuchel, Collin McHugh and Charlie Morton on the DL, further depleting the Astros’ rotation as they face the Rangers and Red Sox this week.

Their situation is far from ideal, but despite Monday night’s 6-1 loss to Texas — their fifth in seven games — the Astros still have the majors’ best record (44-21) and an 11½ -game cushion atop the American League West, which certainly helps.

The hits the Astros’

pitching rotation has taken are worrisome. It’s bad having so many starters out, and it’s worse when you’re left wondering if these injuries are temporary or will linger.

Hinch said he hoped McCullers will be out for only 10 days. The back pain is something he’s had before, and it hasn’t caused him to miss significant time.

Keuchel is on his second stint on the 10-day DL with inflammation in his neck. Morton has a right at strain, and McHugh continues to struggle with elbow issues.

‘It is what it is’

“It is what it is,” Hinch said.

Exactly. There’s no magical way to heal the wounded, so the Astros are stuck in this situation. And they’ll have to work their way out of it.

“These things are going to happen in the course of a season,” shorstop Carlos Correa said. “It’s unfortunate, but we have to deal with it.”

McCullers reported his back injury during Sunday’s game. When he was placed on the DL, his teammates didn’t flinch. With the rival Rangers in town, there was no time to dwell on it.

This week will be interesting. It started with Joe Musgrove, fresh off the DL, starting on Monday night and lasting an out shy of five innings. Brad Peacock will pitch Tuesday night on three days’ rest, and Frances Martes, who struggled when he made his major league debut out of the bullpen Friday night, will make his first big league start Wednesday.

Opportunity for some

Catcher Brian McCann said he has faith in the team’s pitchers from top to bottom.

“They just need to execute their pitches,” he said. “I see this as an opportunity for young guys to go out and step up.”

It’s also an opportunity for the Astros to claw through some adversity.

For the last couple of months, this team has caused a lot of people to start planning for the World Series. As good as they’ve been, it might help them to overcome some challenges before October arrives.

“Adversity is a good thing,” McCann said. “It makes you tougher.”

One immediate question: With what is now a patchwork rotation, can the Astros make up for it with other parts of their game?

“We are used to playing behind those guys, and it’s fun to play behind them,” second baseman Jose Altuve said. “Without them, we have to do all the things we can and be better until they get back.”

Freaking out, panicking, throwing their hands in the air in frustration would do the Astros no good. It’s a long season, and unfortunately, it comes with injuries. No team is immune. The best teams adjust, respond on move on.

That’s what the Astros must do.

Patience required

“The reality is we have a really good team, and we’re going to have to absorb this or else,” Hinch said. “There is no more pressure or anxiety. It is what it is. We are tough enough to deal with it. We will have to be patient for the foreseeable future.

“We have to find ways to win. If we have to outhit them, let’s outhit them. If we have to outrun them, let’s outrun them. If we have to go to our bullpen a little earlier, we will do that, but the goal doesn’t change every day because a couple of guys are banged up and we don’t have a full team.”

With 95 games left in the season, no division lead is ironclad. But save for McHugh, the rotation might be back intact by the end of the month or shortly thereafter.

The sky isn’t falling on Texas Avenue.