Astros’ Isaac Paredes Not Expected to Return ‘For A While’
The Houston Astros have been dealt yet another injury blow, this time involving star third baseman Isaac Paredes.
The 26-year-old infielder, who was placed on the 10-day IL on Sunday, is expected to be sidelined long-term after injuring his right hamstring during Saturday’s 7-6 loss to the Seattle Mariners in 11 innings. An official diagnosis has yet to be revealed, but the team is describing it as a significant injury.
Paredes headed back to Houston to undergo an MRI while the rest of the team is in Arizona for a three-game series against the Diamondbacks, which will conclude on Wednesday.
“We are waiting on some results, but it’s definitely something that’s going to keep him out for a while,” manager Joe Espada told reporters Tuesday, including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart.
The incident occurred in the top half of the third inning on Saturday as Paredes pulled up awkwardly while running to first base after lining a hard-hit single off the left-field wall. He initially tried to stay in the game, but was ultimately removed for a pinch-runner and walked off the field in visible pain.
The two-time All-Star only missed a small handful of games due to a left hamstring strain in June. This time around, however, he admitted the discomfort feels much worse than before.
“I just feel like it pulled as I started running and I couldn’t run anymore,” Paredes said.
Houston’s injury report was already the longest in the sport prior to Paredes’ arrival earlier this week. He joins a talented group that features Jeremy Peña, Yordan Alvarez and Jake Meyers, amongst several others, on the position-player side.
Pitching-wise, the Astros are currently without Lance McCullers Jr. (who also landed on the IL on Sunday), Spencer Arrighetti, Ronel Blanco, Luis Garcia, JP France and Cristian Javier.
Paredes had taken over the leadoff spot in Peña’s absence, providing a spark atop the order with his team-leading 19 home runs, 50 RBIs, .259/.359/.470 and 134 wRC+ (100 league average) through 94 games.
Now, with both unavailable, Houston will likely continue to call upon rookie Cam Smith – acquired as the centrepiece in the return from last off-season’s Kyle Tucker-to-Chicago blockbuster – as its primary leadoff hitter.
At third base, Mauricio Dubón is expected to handle primary duties at the hot corner while veteran Zack Short fills in at shortstop. Fellow rookie Shay Whitcomb, recalled from Triple-A over the weekend, will also fill in as needed after making his first major-league start (third overall game) at that position on Sunday.
Despite all these injuries, the Astros still control the AL West, holding a five-game lead entering Wednesday’s series finale against the D-backs. But, with the July 31st trade deadline just over a week away, it presents the perfect opportunity to address their many vacancies.
There doesn’t appear to be much high-level talent available, which makes replacing someone like Paredes incredibly challenging. Having said that, Houston will likely be among the many teams aggressively pursuing slugger Eugenio Suárez if Arizona ultimately sells.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: Delaywaves. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported license.