HOUSTON – No team in the American League has lost more cumulative days on the injured list by their roster than the Astros, which comes as no surprise. Astros players missed a combined 2,198 days on the injured list through Monday, which was second in the Major Leagues to only the Dodgers (2,368). The injuries began in Spring Training and haven't stopped in the final two weeks of the regular season, with slugger Yordan Alvarez suffering a significant ankle sprain while stepping on home plate Monday. His availability for the remainder of the regular season and playoffs is in jeopardy. Alvarez missed 100 games earlier this year while he recovered from a broken hand, and his return to the sidelines at a critical point in the season is a cruel exclamation point of how this season has gone for the Astros in terms of health. Despite significant injuries to so many key players, including Alvarez, starting pitchers Ronel Blanco, Hayden Wesneski and Spencer Arrighetti, shortstop Jeremy Peña, center fielder Jake Meyers, third baseman Isaac Paredes and closer Josh Hader, the Astros led the American League West for more than half the season and are in position to make the playoffs for the ninth year in a row. That's why second-year manager Joe Espada will be in serious consideration for American League Manager of the Year and should win it if the Astros repeat as division champions. With apologies to John Schneider in Toronto and A.J. Hinch in Detroit, Espada's ability to patch together lineups and pitching rotations with a revolving door between the active roster and IL and relying on unproven players has set him apart. |
"I feel like that's why Joe Espada is such a great manager," said Peña, who missed more than a month with a fractured rib. "With all the adversity we faced all year, he finds ways to keep this team motivated. He finds ways to give confidence in every single player that we are a great team. You want to go play for a manager like that." Blanco, Wesneski and Arrighetti combined to make 21 starts, forcing the Astros to give starts to Brandon Walter, Ryan Gusto and Jason Alexander, who was claimed off waivers and became a key starter. Plus, Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia returned from injury, only to get reinjured and miss the rest of regular season. Twenty-two different Astros pitchers have earned a win this season, which is a club record, topping the previous record of 21 different pitchers with a win in 2021. The team has used 15 different starters in 2025, which is the second most in club history. They used 17 in 1965. Three of Houston's four 2025 All-Stars – Peña, Paredes and Hader -- missed time with significant injuries. Peña was out 27 games in July with a rib fracture, Paredes has been out since July 19 with a hamstring strain and Hader since Aug. 11 with a shoulder capsule strain. |
"When I think about putting a lineup together and you kind of layer in the injuries and all that, I think that's what impressed me the most is the ability of knowing when to play guys, knowing when to ride a wave and let a guy be hot, regardless of maybe what the matchups say or something like that," first baseman Christian Walker said. "And then when to give a day because I would imagine that you run guys out there day after day and somebody comes up injured and the narrative is going to be, 'Could he have given more off-days? Could we do this? Could we do that?' And it's the nature of what we do and as players we want to be on the field every single day. From my perspective, he's done a great job of managing volume and knowing when to give guys a day, knowing when to throw a DH day. It's been great." |
Peña said Espada's attentiveness to his players and calm demeanor through rough patches in the schedule and the steady wave of bad news about injuries has helped the Astros keep moving forward when there were plenty of reasons for them to fold. "He knows how you're feeling, he knows how you're playing, he knows his players," Peña said. "He knows how to approach you, he knows how to talk to you. He knows he can't talk to every single player the same way, and that's what makes him a great manager." |
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MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
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Zach Cole is the second player in club history to have two three-RBI games within his first four career games. Who was the first? A. Ken Caminiti B. Carlos Correa C. Greg Gross D. Tyler White |
Wednesday marks the 10th anniversary of the death of long time Astros announcer Milo Hamilton, who passed away at 88 years old. Hamilton, known for his "Holy Toledo!" catchphrase, called Astros games for 28 seasons, ending in 2012. Hamilton's career spanned 67 years, including more than 50 in the Major Leagues, beginning in 1953 with the St. Louis Browns. He later worked for the Cardinals (1954), Cubs (1955–57, 1980–84), White Sox (1961–65), Braves (1966–74) and Pirates (1975–79). He famously called Hank Aaron's record-breaking 715th home run in 1974 and he served as play-by-play announcer for the 1979 World Series champion Pirates. "For me, Milo was part poet and part P.T. Barnum," said former Astros player and manager Phil Garner, who was dubbed "Scrap Iron" by Hamilton. "He was a great ringmaster and he loved painting the prose of baseball. He had a special talent. I have wonderful memories of Milo off the field as well from our hunting trips. He was an absolute treasure." |
D. White, who did it in 2016. |
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