Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, who missed his first opening day with a broken right thumb, is scheduled to be placed in a smaller cast Friday, USA Today Sports Major League Baseball columnist Bob Nightengale wrote in a pair of Thursday tweets.
He is now expected to return in early June. According to Nightengale, if Altuve is able to return on June 1, he will miss 55 games.
Altuve was expected to miss 8-10 weeks after he suffered a hand injury during a 9-7 win by team United States in the World Baseball Classic. He suffered the injury in the fifth inning when his right hand was hit by a 96 mph fastball from Colorado Rockies pitcher Daniel Bard.
“If Jose Altuve is a fast healer, the hope is that he could return in May,” wrote Nightengale.
The Astros evaluated Jose Altuve for an injury, who walked into the Astros clubhouse with his thumb bandaged on March 19.
Altuve, an eight-time All-Star and one-time MVP for the Astros, has played in 12 years for Houston since he first played in a 3-2 win over the Washington Nationals in 2011. He earned All-Star and Silver Slugger selections after a 2022 season that saw him garner 158 hits, 103 runs and 28 home runs in 141 games played. He had the fifth-most votes in the AL's MVP Voting, according to Baseball Reference.
Altuve went over just how long he wanted to play in Houston last week.
“I'm 32, and I want to play to 40,” Altuve told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. “I love what I'm doing right now. I love my game. I enjoy my game…When I go out there and put my uniform on, I really enjoy playing with these guys. Hopefully…I can stay here for the rest of my career. Everybody knows it's not up to me. But it's something I would love to do.”
Follow Us
Subscribe