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Houston Astros pitcher Cristian Javier is rehabbing from an elbow injury. Javier says he's on the mend after having Tommy John surgery and hopes to return after the 2025 All-Star break, per KPRC in Houston.
Javier is counted on by the Astros to give the team a heavy load of innings. An injury however really slowed him down in 2024, and he was needing surgery by early June. He's not returned to action since. Tommy John surgery can routinely force a hurler to sit for 12-18 months, as it is quite significant.
Javier finished the 2024 campaign with a 3-1 mark, and an ERA of 3.19. The Astros did the best they could without Javier in the later part of the season, and finished the year with a 88-73 record.
Houston needs the pitcher to get back to form, because they have invested a lot in him. Javier and the Astros agreed to a five-year extension worth $64 million in the spring of 2023, per MLB.com. He is set to earn $10 million in 2025, $21 million in 2026, and then $21 million in 2027.
The Astros need Cristian Javier in the rotation
Houston was able to hold on and win the AL West without Javier, but don't want to go through that again. The Astros hurler is a key part of the team's rotation. He was on the staff when the Astros won the 2022 World Series, and pitched a combined no-hitter in one of the games that series.
The Astros haven't been to the World Series since, but the team is still a force to be reckoned with in the AL. Houston made the 2024 postseason, but lost to the Detroit Tigers in a Wild Card series. Astros fans probably wonder how far they could have gone with a healthy Javier.
The hurler started the 2024 campaign with four solid starts for the Astros. He got it going with a 1.54 ERA and a 3.66 FIP in 23 1/3 innings of work through four games, per MLB Trade Rumors. Then, he got hurt and went to the injured list. Things seemed to go downhill from there for the pitcher.
“We're always in the market for pitching because of reasons like this,” Astros general manager Dana Brown said after Javier's injury, per ESPN. “I've been in baseball for 34 years and I know how long and how tough the season is. It's a grind of 162 and so we're always in the market of claiming pitchers… and we're always trying to add to the depth. And so it's business as usual, we don't wait until things fall apart before we find answers.”
The Astros pitcher has a career ERA of 3.59. He's appeared in 116 games, and posted 33 victories. He's pitched for the team since the 2020 season, and also has two career saves.
Spring training games for Houston start in February, but Javier clearly won't be ready. Astros fans are very anxious to get the hurler back on the mound.
