Injury situation hangs over Astros’ offseason plans
Altuve, McCullers and Morton dealing with medical issues
A myriad of mysterious injuries within the Astros clubhouse are soon to become more clear.
Jose Altuve, who played “on one leg” for three games in the ALCS, said he will speak to trainers in the coming days to discuss the next course of action for his obviously serious right knee injury.
Asked specifically what his injury was, Altuve said (with a smile): “The trainers told me, but I have a short memory.”
In obvious agony any time he changed direction or moved laterally, Altuve was the Astros’ designated hitter for the final three games of the ALCS. He finished the series 5 for 20 and scored four runs.
“It’s difficult but like I said, I’m not a superhero, I’m not the only guy who has done this,” Altuve said. “There are guys who’ve played in worse situations than I.”
Manager A.J. Hinch, who before Thursday’s game likened a potential Altuve absence to “pulling your heart out of your chest and trying to live,” spoke in more revealing — and foreboding — terms.
“I wish you guys knew what he had to go through to play every day and get himself prepared and then contribute and do well,” he said.
Surgery for McCullers?
A tweet from freelance reporter Joe DeMayo, citing a source, stated Astros righthander Lance McCullers Jr. pitched through a torn ulnar collateral ligament during the postseason and would “likely require” Tommy John surgery in the offseason.
“I’ve definitely been pitching through some stuff and that’s all going to be figured out here in the next couple weeks,” McCullers said. “I was pitching through a lot of stuff, a lot of guys were playing through a lot of stuff. My only goal was to win the World Series, I had no other intention and no other goals. We’ll figure it out moving forward.”
Asked if surgery was on the table, McCullers repeated “we’ll figure it out moving forward.”
McCullers missed more than two months of the season after exiting a start against the Dodgers on Aug. 4 with what the team described as a muscle strain in his right forearm. Elbow injuries can often start in the forearm.
At the time of the injury, McCullers said team doctors surmised he incurred the injury while swinging a bat — not pitching.
Two minor setbacks delayed his rehab, making it impossible for the righthander to return as a starter. McCullers, instead, was in both the ALDS and ALCS bullpens. He threw three postseason innings and struck out four. Neither his velocity nor his command was out of the ordinary.
“The medical staff ’s focus and the team’s focus has been getting me to the point to be able to go out there and pitch and help our team hopefully win a World Series and that didn’t happen,” McCullers said.
“I wasn’t going to let my season end at the bottom of a mountain, I had to try to climb it back.”
Shoulder issue for Morton
Veteran starter Charlie Morton, who threw 15 innings in September and lasted just 2⅓ innings in his Game 4 start, said his shoulder joint is “fine” and he’d like to keep playing.
“It’s hard to look guys in the face and know you may not see them again,” said the 34-year-old pending free agent.
Morton just finished the last of a two-year deal, setting a new career-high in strikeouts and throwing his most innings since 2011.
“I’d love to keep playing, I’d love to be an Astro. I’d love to be part of this again. Ultimately, it’s not really up to me. It’s not solely up to me.”
Shoulder irritation sidelined him for most of September, though, and was a major factor in his abbreviated postseason start.
“I don’t know. I’m not sure yet,” Morton said when asked if he’d address his shoulder in the offseason. “Probably try to see how it feels here in the short term, see what needs to be done. The joint is fine, the joint is fine, so that’s a relief. I’m not really worried about that. But moving forward here in the next week we’ll try to figure something out and see if I need to see somebody.”