It's been a struggle for the Houston Astros to say healthy — and win games in the 2023 MLB regular season. With an assortment of bodies on their injury list, the Astros have managed to post just a 17-17 record through their first 34 games of the year. While many other clubs would see that as a nice indicator of success, that kind of record at thie point of the season is simply not on par with the standard Houston has set the past several years.
According to Talkin' Baseball, the Astros, who lost the final two games of their just-finished three-leg series against the Seattle Mariners on the road, “haven’t been .500 or worse this late in a full season since 2016, which was also the last year they weren’t in the ALCS.”
Offensively, the Astros are missing the likes of second baseman Jose Altuve, outfielder Chas McCormick, and designated hitter Michael Brantley. Altuve has yet to play a game this season after suffering an upper-body injury during the World Baseball Classic.
The Astros are also without the services at the moment of pitchers Lance McCullers Jr., Luis Garcia, and Jose Urquidy.
Despite a banged-up pitching staff, the Astros are still fourth in the majors with a starters ERA of 3.36 and fifth with a starters FIP of 3.78, thanks to Hunter Brown, Framber Valdez, and Cristian Javier holding the fort on the mound.
The Astros slipped to fourth in the American League West after the Mariners series and are now 3.5 games behind the division-leading Texas Rangers.
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