McCullers has injection for nerve issue
Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. underwent a mild antiinflammatory injection to alleviate nerve irritation in his neck, a person familiar with the procedure told the Houston Chronicle on Tuesday.
Manager Dusty Baker said on Tuesday that McCullers underwent a “procedure,” but was unsure of its exact nature. According to Baker, the procedure alleviated “95 to 98 percent” of McCullers’ discomfort, which the skipper termed a “positive sign.”
Baker did not offer a longterm prognosis for McCullers’ potential return. He is eligible to come off the injured list on Sept. 16.
McCullers did not record an out in his last start on Friday and was placed on the injured list Sunday with what the team described as “neck nerve irritation.” Both Baker and McCullers said the righthander was experiencing a “dead arm phase.” McCullers underwent Tommy John surgery in 2018 and missed the 2019 season.
“It’s part of the process coming back from TJ,” McCullers said Friday. “It’s not anything to do with the actual (surgical) site. I’m not hurting or anything like that. I’m just dealing with a weird period that started a few days ago.”
Baker said on Monday that McCullers’ nerve irritation trickled down to his right arm, contributing to some of his problems during Friday’s start. McCullers threw just five of his 18 pitches for strikes and was lifted after facing just five hitters.
Cintron to return on next homestand
Though his 20-game suspension ended on Sept. 3, Astros hitting coach Alex Cintrón has not rejoined the club because of a medical procedure, manager Dusty Baker said on Tuesday.
Baker said Cintrón is scheduled to resume his duties during the team’s next homestand but did not specify which date. He did not elaborate on the nature of Cintrón’s medical procedure.
Cintrón received a 20-game ban after waving A’s outfielder and former Astros farmhand Ramón Laureano toward the Houston dugout during an argument on Aug. 9. Laureano charged Cintrón and a wild melee ensued.
Laureano claimed Cintrón insulted his mother. Cintrón denied that accusation in a statement but apologized for his role in instigating the fight. Laureano received a six-game suspension that was reduced to four on appeal.
“There are some guys here that really leaned on Cintrón and miss Cintrón quite a bit,” Baker said. “We wish him well and we’ll be glad to see him.”
Leading prospects join Corpus site
The Astros added two of their top prospects to their 60-man player pool.
Catcher Korey Lee and shortstop Jeremy Peña have reported to the team’s alternate training site in Corpus Christi and are working out with the rest of Houston’s reserve players for the 2020 season.
Both Baseball America and MLBPipeline consider the two players top-10 organizational prospects. Both are now eligible to be called up to the major league team, but given the club’s full 40-man roster and the short time remaining in the season, it’s extremely unlikely. With no minor league season, the team just wants some of its best prospects to receive instruction from organizational coaches.
Houston selected Lee with their first-round pick in the 2019 draft in hopes of developing depth at catcher. Lee played for three seasons at Cal, where he was a teammate of Astros manager Dusty Baker’s son, Darren.
Lee received 224 at-bats last season at short-season Tri-City, where he slashed .268/.359/.371. He caught only 10 of 30 base stealers in 240 innings behind the plate. Both Baseball America and MLBPipeline rank him as Houston’s No. 7 overall prospect.
Peña is the son of former major leaguer Geronimo Peña, was picked in the third round of the 2018 draft. He had a breakout 2019 season between Class
A Quad Cities and Class A Advanced Fayetteville, hitting .303 and accruing an .825 OPS in 409 at-bats.
Peña was a non-roster invitee to major league spring training in February and was still in camp when the sport shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic. Baseball America ranks Peña the team’s third-best prospect while MLBPipeline pegs him No. 6.