PAIN IN THE NECK FOR DALLAS KEUCHEL, TEAM.
Speaking to reporters Saturday for the first time since he was placed on the 10-day disabled list Thursday, Astros lefthander Dallas Keuchel said he won’t throw for about a week to allow the inflammation in his neck to calm down.
Keuchel, 29, said the discomfort he experienced from the pinched nerve that cost him a start last month had dissipated before resurfacing between his June 2 start in Arlington and the outing from which he was scratched Wednesday in Kansas City.
He described it Saturday as “kind of a dull ache” that feels “a little bit more sharp” when he pitches.
The Astros haven’t disclosed a timetable for Keuchel’s return, though they figure to exercise extra caution given the issue resurfaced once. Considering the one start Keuchel missed last time didn’t get rid of the problem, it seems likely he will miss at least two or three starts in this latest DL stint.
Keuchel, whose 1.67 ERA leads the major leagues, underwent an MRI on Thursday upon his return to Houston that he said revealed only the inflammation.
He said looking back he probably should have missed an additional start last month before returning from the DL.
“As a pitcher, you feel a lot of things,” he said. “I don’t think it probably went fully away, but at the same time I felt a lot better than what I did after Miami.
“It’s just kind of one of those things where at this point right now we’re in a good position (as a team) and I’d rather miss a few starts right now than miss like I did last year (with a shoulder injury) the final month in September.”
Keuchel said he’s just getting over the virus that began the day after his last start, when he woke up and “just didn’t feel really good at all.” He said he experienced body aches, chills and a sore throat.
Illness was the original reason the Astros offered for why he was scratched Wednesday before the recurrence of the neck injury was revealed. Keuchel said he lost about 10 pounds while sick.
“Maybe I’ll put some weight back on while I’m waiting to pitch,” he said.
In the two starts he had made since his first DL stint, Keuchel allowed only one run and seven hits over 12 innings against Baltimore and Texas.
He said he didn’t recover as well as he usually does after his start in Arlington and notified the team Tuesday he wasn’t feeling right.
When he started warming up Wednesday, it “just wasn’t feeling good.”
“I didn’t want to push it and have to revisit it later (in the season), so I decided to shut it down and here we are,” he said. “It’s kind of a bad spot to put the bullpen in, but I didn’t really know how I was going to feel until I actually started to warm up.
“I put them in a bad position, but at the same time I want to do something now and not revisit something later in the season when we’re getting ready for the playoffs and hopefully playing into October.”
In the meantime, Keuchel said he’s relegated to cardio work.
He acknowledged he won’t be able to gauge his rehabilitation until he picks up a ball and throws.
“It’s probably about the same (as last time),” he said of the severity of his neck discomfort. “If I really had to push it I probably could, but it’s not something I want to just keep reaggravating every time I go out there every five days.
“So I’d rather nip it in the bud right now and make sure it’s fully gone and get back out there and enjoy being healthy.”
Odds and ends
The Astros are aligned to have Joe Musgrove, Lance McCullers Jr. and Brad Peacock start against the Texas Rangers on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively, at Minute Maid Park . ... At Lucky Strike on Sunday night, George Springer will host his third annual bowling event to benefit children from families in need who seek to attend Camp SAY, a two-week summer camp in North Carolina for young people who stutter. …
Jose Altuve’s 1,123 career hits leave him one shy of tying Enos Cabell for 10th place in the history of the Astros. … Carlos Beltran’s sixth-inning double Saturday afternoon in the 3-1 victory over the visiting Los Angeles Angels was the 550th of his career and his 1,057th career extrabase hit. Among switchhitters, only Baseball Hall of Famer Eddie Murray (1,099) has more extrabase hits.