Lance McCullers Jr.

Michael Brantley Going For Second Opinion On Injured Shoulder

By Anthony Franco | August 10, 2022 at 11:12pm CDT

The Astros have been without Michael Brantley for six weeks, and there’s no clear timetable for his potential return. Acting manager Joe Espada told reporters this afternoon that the veteran outfielder was currently away from the team as he sought a second opinion on his injured right shoulder (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle). Espada declined to elaborate when asked whether that meant surgery was on the table.

Houston hasn’t revealed many specifics about Brantley’s injury — the Astros tend to play things close to the vest when providing health updates generally — but the announcement of a second opinion certainly seems alarming. It comes just days after general manager James Click acknowledged that “with every passing day, you have to kind of take an honest look” at whether the five-time All-Star will be able to make it back at all in 2022. At the very least, it doesn’t seem he’ll be back imminently.

Owners of an 11-game cushion in the AL West, the Astros can certainly afford to play things cautiously with their injured players. They’d obviously love to top the Yankees for home field advantage in the American League playoff field, but Houston’s a virtual lock to hold onto one of the top two seeds in the Junior Circuit to earn a first-round bye. Still, it’d be ideal to get Brantley some at-bats late in the regular campaign to get back to game speed before the playoffs. Whether the 35-year-old will be able to make it back at any point, regular season or postseason, appears murky.

Losing Brantley for the postseason, if it comes to that, would be a tough blow to the Houston lineup. He’s remained one of the game’s preeminent “professional hitters,” carrying a .288/.370/.416 line across 277 plate appearances. Brantley only has five home runs, but he’s picked up 14 doubles and walked more often than he’s struck out (11.2% against 10.8%, respectively). He’s in the waning months of the two-year, $32MM contract he signed to return to Houston over the 2020-21 offseason.

Since Brantley went down, the club has relied on Chas McCormick and Aledmys Díaz as its primary left field options. Both players are having nice seasons, but Díaz is the top depth infielder while McCormick would be in the best position to take center field playing time if the team were to move away from the struggling Jake Meyers. They’ve rotated Yordan Alvarez into left field on occasion, but keeping him primarily at designated hitter could be the best way to ensure he’s holding up physically to have his bat in the lineup on a daily basis. Rome tweeted yesterday that newly-acquired Trey Mancini was taking some pregame reps in left field as well. Mancini started 13 games in the corner outfield with the Orioles this season but spent the bulk of his time at either first base or designated hitter. He’s not logged substantial outfield playing time since 2019.

While the club awaits further word on Brantley, they are set to receive one notable reinforcement over the next few days. Lance McCullers Jr. will be reinstated from the 60-day injured list to start Saturday against the A’s, Espada announced (via Mark Berman of Fox 26). It’ll be the righty’s season debut, his first appearance since he suffered a flexor strain in his forearm during last year’s postseason. Houston will need to create a vacancy on the 40-man roster, although that can be achieved by transferring Brantley to the 60-day injured list (a procedural move since the outfielder certainly won’t be ready for an MLB return within the next two weeks).

McCullers has made four rehab starts over the past couple weeks. He topped out at five innings and 86 pitches with Triple-A Sugar Land on Sunday. It’s unlikely the Astros will throw him right back into a typical starter’s workload out of the gate, but he should have plenty of time to build into that role before the postseason gets underway.

It’s another addition to a rotation that already boasts the majors second-best ERA (3.18). McCullers was arguably the team’s top pitcher in 2021, tossing 162 1/3 innings of 3.16 ERA ball with a quality 27% strikeout rate and an excellent 56.4% ground-ball percentage. If he recaptures that kind of form after nearly a year of rehab, he’ll add another high-octane arm to a playoff rotation that’s sure to feature Justin Verlander and Framber Valdez and could also include any of Luis Garcia, Cristian Javier or José Urquidy.

Lance McCullers Jr. To Begin Rehab Assignment

By Anthony Franco | July 19, 2022 at 9:47pm CDT

Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. is set to begin a minor league rehab assignment on Friday, reports Mark Berman of Fox 26 (Twitter link). He’s scheduled to throw two innings for Double-A Corpus Christi.

Pitchers can spend up to 30 days on rehab assignments, so the start of his work suggests an early-mid August timetable for his return to the big leagues if all goes as expected. McCullers has yet to pitch this year as he’s rehabbed from the flexor tendon forearm strain that cut short his 2021 postseason. While the club initially expressed hope he’d be ready for Opening Day, McCullers’ offseason rehab didn’t progress as quickly as expected. He returned to mound work by late May and has spent the past six weeks gradually building back towards game readiness.

Getting McCullers back in mid-August should afford him time to round into shape for the postseason. The Astros lead the Mariners by nine games in the AL West, and they’re even further clear of the Twins for the league’s #2 seed (and associated first-round bye). They’re a virtual playoff lock, and a healthy McCullers will only add to the team’s embarrassment of riches on the mound. The right-hander was arguably the team’s best pitcher last year, tossing 162 1/3 innings of 3.16 ERA ball while punching out 27% of opponents.

Most teams would struggle to overcome the loss of an arm of that caliber, but the Astros have sported one of baseball’s top rotations. Houston’s starting staff trails only the Yankees in ERA (3.15) and the Padres in innings pitched (522 2/3). They’re seventh in strikeout rate (23.9%) and 11th in walk percentage (7%). Aside from McCullers, Houston’s rotation has stayed mostly healthy. Jake Odorizzi missed around six weeks with a heel injury, but each of Justin Verlander, Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier, Luis Garcia and José Urquidy has avoided the injured list. That sextet has combined to make all of the team’s starts, and Urquidy is the only member of the group with an ERA north of 3.76.

If everyone remains healthy, the Astros could consider kicking any of Odorizzi, Javier or Urquidy into relief. Houston’s bullpen has been similarly excellent, leading baseball with a 2.66 ERA. Their strong division lead should allow manager Dusty Baker to keep an eye on the innings totals for McCullers and Verlander (who missed all of last season recovering from Tommy John surgery) to ensure they hit the postseason at peak form.

Texas Notes: No-Hitter, Pena, McCullers, Duran, Hearn, Garver

By Mark Polishuk | June 25, 2022 at 7:59pm CDT

Cristian Javier, Hector Neris, and Ryan Pressly combined for the 14th no-hitter in Astros history, as Houston earned a 3-0 win over the Yankees today in the Bronx. Javier handled much of the work over seven innings, with Neris and Pressly each contributing an inning of hitless pitching to stifle the lineup of the league-leading Yankees. It was the first time in over 19 years that New York had been no-hit, also at hands of the Astros — six Houston pitchers blanked the Yankees on June 11, 2003.

More from both the Astros and Rangers, as we run down baseball news from the Lone Star State….

Jeremy Pena is likely to return to Houston’s lineup on Sunday, as the rookie shortstop took batting practice today. Left thumb discomfort sent Pena to the 10-day injured list on June 15, though an MRI didn’t reveal any damage. It thankfully looks like only a minor injury for Pena, and he’ll now get to resume his outstanding rookie season. Making his MLB debut earlier this year, Pena has hit .277/.333/.471 with nine homers over his first 211 plate appearances, though his hot bat had been cooling off in the two weeks prior to his IL stint.
Lance McCullers Jr. was the pitcher throwing to Pena, with McCullers tossing around 20 pitches during the overall BP session. McCullers told MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart and other reporters that his repertoire included changeups, sinkers, and a slider, and he was throwing as hard as 93mph. Since suffering a flexor tendon strain during last year’s postseason and then a rehab setback in January, McCullers has been slowly working his way back, and is still likely a month or so away from a minor league rehab assignment.
After today’s 3-2 win over the Nationals, the Rangers optioned left-hander Taylor Hearn and infielder Ezequiel Duran to Triple-A. Corresponding moves will be made prior to tomorrow’s game. Hearn was the bulk pitcher in today’s bullpen game, allowing only two walks over four scoreless innings, though it was a rare quality outing an otherwise rough season for the southpaw. Even with today’s game on his ledger, Hearn still has a 5.86 ERA over 63 innings, starting 13 of his 14 games. Texas called Duran up to the majors for his MLB debut earlier this month, and the top-100 prospect hit .258/.281/.435 with two home runs over 64 PA. Duran had been seeing most of the playing time at third base, but with Josh Smith now back from the IL, Duran will continue his development with an everyday role at Triple-A rather than part-time duty in the Show.
Mitch Garver went 0-for-2 with a walk against the Nats today, dropping the veteran’s slash line to .201/.288/.383 for the season, over 170 PA. Garver has been trying to play through a damaged flexor tendon in his throwing forearm, but he told reporters (including Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News) that he would make a decision by the All-Star break whether or not to undergo season-ending surgery. With a 7-8 month recovery time required for the surgery, Garver would miss little to none of Spring Training by getting the procedure relatively soon. It is possible Garver could instead try to rehab the forearm problem without surgery, but Grant writes “that route is more uncertain” in terms of a recovery timeline or what it might mean for Garver’s 2023 season. Since suffering the flexor injury, Garver hasn’t been able to play catcher, so the Rangers have been limiting him to DH or pinch-hitting duty.

Astros Notes: Altuve, Tucker, Odorizzi, McCullers

By Mark Polishuk | May 30, 2022 at 7:17pm CDT

While hitting a single in the seventh inning of today’s game, Jose Altuve collided with A’s first baseman Christian Bethancourt, knocking down players to the ground. Altuve remained on the field and then played second base in the bottom half of the inning, but he was replaced prior to the bottom of the eighth and underwent concussion protocol. Manager Dusty Baker told reporters (including The Houston Chronicle’s Danielle Lerner) that Altuve “didn’t look too good in the eyes” in the aftermath, and is planning two lineups for Tuesday’s game based on Altuve’s availability.

The star second baseman hit his 10th homer of the season in the 5-1 victory over Oakland, elevating Altuve’s fantastic slash line to .286/.349/.556 through 146 plate appearances. Even despite Altuve’s importance to the Astros lineup, it is possible Baker could opt to give him an off-day tomorrow just as a precaution even if he clears concussion protocol. Mauricio Dubon and Aledmys Diaz are on hand to fill in at the keystone, though naturally the Astros would be in trouble if Altuve had any lingering concussion symptoms that forced him to miss an extended amount of time.

Astros Notes: Tucker, McCullers, Pena

By Steve Adams | May 24, 2022 at 8:39am CDT

Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker has quickly rebounded after a rocky couple weeks to begin the year, hitting .310/.402/.530 over the past month after getting out to a brutal .087/.192/.217 start through his first 13 games. That production only serves as a reminder that the 25-year-old is viewed as a building block in Houston. That fact is also backed up by the team’s apparent efforts to sign Tucker to a long-term extension. Mark Feinsand and Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported recently that the ’Stros approached Tucker’s camp about an extension this year but talks proved unsuccessful and are not active at this time (Twitter link).

Tucker confirmed the report when speaking with Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. Tucker tells Rome that he’s open to continued negotiations, whether they take place during the current season or in future offseasons. The former No. 5 overall draft pick noted that he’s controlled through the 2025 season regardless, leaving plenty of time for a deal to come together, though he did voice a preference to “get it out of the way if something does happen, just to not prolong [talks] over a long period of time.” Tucker looked overmatched as a 21-year-old rookie in 2018 but has batted .278/.345/.526 in 1036 plate appearances from 2019-22. He’ll be arbitration-eligible for the first time this winter.

More out of Houston…

Lance McCullers Jr. hit a milestone in his rehab from a flexor tendon strain in his right forearm, telling reporters that he threw off a mound for the first time yesterday (Twitter link, with video, via FOX 26’s Mark Berman). McCullers prepped for the mound session by throwing from 90 feet on flat ground and then tossed “about ten” pitches off the mound. The righty still didn’t offer a concrete timetable for his return, replying that his next step is to “just continue to build” as restores arm strength and works toward a minor league rehab assignment. McCullers, 28, pitched to a 3.16 ERA with a 27% strikeout rate and 11.1% walk rate in 162 1/3 innings last season in what would’ve been his final year of club control prior to reaching free agency. However, he inked a five-year, $85MM extension to remain in Houston last spring, and the 2022 season is the first year of that new pact. He’s eligible to come off the 60-day injured list in early June, but considering the fact that he hasn’t pitched yet this season and is only just getting on a mound, he won’t be activated when first eligible.
General manager James Click spoke with Alex Speier of the Boston Globe about his team’s decision to move on from Carlos Correa and entrust the shortstop job to rookie and top prospect Jeremy Pena — a decision he knew might not be universally accepted, given Correa’s popularity in Houston. “[The fans] loved Correa and they wanted to keep him,” said Click. “But we have tried to make it clear to our fans here that our priority is winning. We would love to win and keep everybody together. But sometimes you have to make a difficult decision to move on in order to try to keep that championship window open as long as you possibly can.” Pena has softened the blow by outproducing his predecessor for the time being and slashing .287/.343/.504 with seven homers and quality defense at short.

Astros Transfer Lance McCullers Jr. To 60-Day Injured List

By Anthony Franco | April 18, 2022 at 3:57pm CDT

The Astros transferred starter Lance McCullers Jr. from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list this evening, tweets Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. The move opens a spot on the 40-man roster for slugging outfielder Yordan Álvarez, who has been reinstated from the COVID-19 IL. Infielder Joe Perez was optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land to clear an active roster spot for Álvarez.

The move rules McCullers out for 60 days from the date of his original IL placement, April 4. He’ll be eligible to return to the big leagues during the first week of June, but he could begin a minor league rehab assignment before then if he’s healthy enough to do so. In either event, it’s clear the team didn’t anticipate McCullers being ready to contribute in the majors any time soon.

He continues to work his way back from a flexor tendon strain in his forearm, which he suffered during last year’s postseason. While it was initially believed he’d be ready for Opening Day — if not perhaps able to pitch through the injury during the 2021 World Series — McCullers admitted over the winter that he’d not healed as quickly as expected. The 28-year-old partially attributed his lack of progress to the lockout, which kept players on the 40-man roster from communicating with team medical personnel between the start of December and the second week of March.

McCullers fortunately had at least progressed to playing catch by last week, but it’s clear he’ll need some time to build up arm strength. He’ll require a throwing program before he’s able to embark on a rehab assignment, and he’ll surely need a couple starts to log some innings in the minors before returning to the big league rotation. There’s little question Houston will be cautious with their prized right-hander, who finished seventh in AL Cy Young balloting last season and is in the first season of a five-year, $85MM contract.

Houston has opened the season with a starting five of Framber Valdez, Jake Odorizzi, José Urquidy, Justin Verlander and Luis Garcia. Even without McCullers, that’s one of the league’s stronger quintets. Cristian Javier is working in relief but appears to be the top depth option. He’s coming off a promising 2021 and has tossed 4 2/3 scoreless innings with eight strikeouts so far this year.

Álvarez, meanwhile, is now in position to return to the lineup for the first time in a week. He has missed the past five games battling what manager Dusty Baker had called a stomach bug. Baker suggested last week he might ease Álvarez back into action, but he’ll reclaim his spot as a middle-of-the-order presence in Houston fairly shortly.

Astros Select Ronel Blanco, Designate Tyler Ivey For Assignment

By Steve Adams and Tim Dierkes | April 7, 2022 at 12:14pm CDT

The Astros set their Opening Day roster Thursday, announcing that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Ronel Blanco and designated righty Tyler Ivey for assignment in order to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Houston also placed Lance McCullers Jr. (forearm strain), Jake Meyers (recovering from shoulder surgery) and Taylor Jones (lower back injury) on the 10-day injured list.

Once he appears in a game, Blanco will make his MLB debut at the age of 28. He spent all of last year at Triple-A, punching out 31.7% of hitters while walking 8.9% with a 40.4% groundball rate. According to Chandler Rome of Baseball America, Blanco would have been a “virtual lock” to be selected in the Rule 5 draft, had that event not been canceled. Rome notes that Blanco, who was signed out of the Dominican Republic six years ago for $5,000, surprisingly beat out several pitchers with MLB experience to make the Astros’ opening day bullpen. Houston’s 10-man crew also includes Ryan Pressly, Ryne Stanek, Hector Neris, Phil Maton, Blake Taylor, Pedro Baez, Rafael Montero, Bryan Abreu, and Cristian Javier.

Ivey, 26 next month, made his MLB debut with the Astros last May in a spot start against the Rangers. A few weeks afterward, his season ended due to a nerve issue in his elbow. At that time, Ivey admitted in an illuminating story by Rome for the Houston Chronicle that he’d been pitching through pain since 2019, concealing it from the team to maintain his shot at reaching the Majors. The injury turned out to be thoracic outlet syndrome, which the righty dealt with via rehab rather than surgery.

The Astros had optioned Ivey to Triple-A on March 24th. Baseball America assigned Ivey a 50 grade as a prospect, explaining that he’s “a potential middle-to-back-of-the-rotation starter candidate if he can stay healthy.” Having ranked as the Astros’ seventh-best prospect, it seems likely Ivey will be claimed off waivers by another organization.

Lance McCullers Jr. To Miss Start Of 2022 Season

By Sean Bavazzano | March 15, 2022 at 7:59pm CDT

Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. is set to start the 2022 season on the IL, he told reporters (including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart). The right-handed pitcher continues to rehab the flexor tendon in his pitching arm that was injured during last year’s playoffs. Surgery does not appear to be in the cards at this time, and McCullers stressed he’s not dealing with a UCL issue (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle).

While it’s still uncertain when McCullers will be able to return atop Houston’s rotation— currently he’s not even cleared to throw— Astros brass and fans should be encouraged by the news that their pitcher has not been recommended to head down the surgical route. The 28-year-old was already known to be behind in his recovery, with MLB’s lockout disrupting that recovery process, but there was still some ambiguity about the status of the player’s health.

Fortunately, several doctors have confirmed that the 2018 Tommy John recipient has not re-injured his UCL and instead have advised non-surgical PRP injections and stem cell therapy to treat the ailing tendon. This course of action is certainly preferable to a season-derailing surgery, though it still serves as an inauspicious beginning to the $85MM extension agreed upon by player and team early last year. Even with continued rehab progress and no further setbacks, McTaggart writes that McCullers figures to be out of commission “well into April,” owing to a need to build up the starter’s pitch count.

Houston will be hard-pressed to fill the shoes of their #2 pitcher behind veteran ace Justin Verlander, as the righty posted a stout 3.16 ERA and 27.1 K% across 162 plus innings last year. Difficult as that production may be to replace however, the Astros have a stable of arms who showed ample promise in the big leagues last year. Assuming good health, each of José Urquidy, Framber Valdez, Luis Garcia, Cristian Javier and veteran Jake Odorizzi should do an adequate job holding down the fort until the homegrown McCullers is ready to take the hill again.

Should Houston’s top decision-makers go the way of other teams in recent days and add to their rotation depth, they will likely have the means to do so. Thanks to the new CBA, the Astros have more than $33MM to spend before hitting the first luxury tax threshold in the eyes of RosterResource, and none of the remaining pitchers on the free agent market figure to be too cost prohibitive. It remains to be seen if a deal with more Major League pitching is even on Houston’s radar, particularly if rumblings of a Carlos Correa reunion add another large salary to the books, but the Astros appear capable of weathering McCullers’ absence regardless of how the next few weeks unfold.

Astros To Promote Lance McCullers Jr.

By Jeff Todd | May 15, 2015 at 4:45pm CDT

Not long after bumping him up to Triple-A, the Astros have decided to advance pitching prospect Lance McCullers Jr. to the majors, the club announced. His first start will come on Monday against the Athletics.

McCullers, 21, is the son of seven-season big leaguer Lance McCullers Sr. He was taken in the sandwich round of the 2012 draft out of high school. Using some of the savings they achieved after taking Carlos Correa first overall — a somewhat controversial decision which has turned out nicely — the ’Stros locked up McCullers with an above-slot, $2.5MM bonus.

The young righty fell off of top-100 prospect lists after last season — he had reached #50 on Baseball America’s list and was 52nd per MLB.com — when he struggled to a 5.47 ERA over 97 frames in his first action at the High-A level. The issue then, as it has been more generally, is control, as McCullers put up 10.7 K/9 but permitted 5.2 free passes per nine.

That led Baseball America to drop him to 11th on the Houston prospect list heading into the year. But BA did note that McCullers still have very high quality stuff, including a big fastball, outstanding breaking ball, and improving changeup.

As the big league call-up would indicate, things have come together this year. Houston saw enough to start him off at the Double-A level despite his youth and his tough year, and he rewarded that confidence with 29 innings of top-notch pitching. McCullers has permitted just two earned runs in that stretch, striking out 43 and walking only 11 hitters.

If he can stick at the big league level all year, McCullers would stand a good chance of qualifying for Super Two status. Of course, that is far from a given. It seems reasonably likely that Houston’s purpose here is twofold: first, and most importantly, to get a look and see whether McCullers can contribute at the big league level this year; and second, for their team and others to gauge his future value in weighing him as a trade piece.

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