HOUSTON -- Having put three starting pitchers, their starting center fielder and starting shortstop on the injured list during a 1-9 road trip -- and with several other players rehabbing in Houston -- the Astros’ return to Daikin Park on Tuesday for the first time in 13 days was a chance for the club to assess where some of their players stand.
“They’re all in good spirits,” Astros manager Joe Espada said.
Houston currently has 12 players on the IL, five of whom landed there during the road trip: ace right-hander Hunter Brown (grade 2 shoulder strain), right-hander Cristian Javier (grade 2 shoulder strain), center fielder Jake Meyers (grade 2 right oblique strain), shortstop Jeremy Peña (grade 1 hamstring strain) and starting pitcher Tatsuya Imai (right arm fatigue).
Then there’s closer Josh Hader (left biceps tendinitis) and left-handed reliever Bennett Sousa (left oblique strain), both of whom began the year on the IL and are working their way back to the roster. Sousa is on a Minor League rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi and was scheduled to pitch Tuesday.
Brown, Hader and Imai met with the media Tuesday afternoon and provided updates:
Brown
After making two starts to begin the season, Brown was placed on the 15-day injured list April 5 -- two days after he felt something in his shoulder while playing catch. Brown was shut down from throwing for two weeks and has been doing everything to stay in shape in Houston except throwing a baseball.
“I’m frustrated,” Brown said. “It’s not something you want to do. You want to be out there grinding with the guys, but all in all I’m really thankful for all the prayers and thoughts that came from my teammates, my family, my friends. Realistically, I got some good news. It’s strictly muscular, which, when you’re dealing with the shoulder, it’s best-case scenario. I feel good about that, but super bummed out to not be out on the field with the guys.”
This is the first time Brown has been injured in his career and he has no time frame on when he might return to the rotation. Once he starts throwing again, he will have to progress to bullpens, facing hitters and finally a few Minor League rehab starts.
“This is kind of unchartered waters for me,” Brown said. “The doctor leadership and stuff that has been with me throughout the process so far has been good. Just listening to what they have to say, listen to what direction they steer me in and see where it takes me.”
Hader
Hader, who missed the final two months of last season with a left shoulder capsule strain, was diagnosed with biceps tendinitis at the start of February and has been slowly working his way back since. He took a big step forward Tuesday when he faced hitters in live batting practice at Daikin Park.
Hader threw 20 pitches to teammates Taylor Trammell and Brice Matthews and was sitting at 91-93 mph with his fastball. He said Tuesday’s session was akin to his first live BP outing of the spring, which puts him perhaps about a month away from returning, without any setbacks.
“I’m feeling good, feeling strong,” Hader said. “I got through it throwing relatively hard and commanded the baseball in the zone, commanded the slider, getting good whiffs on it. Ideally, that’s what you want.”
Imai
The 27-year-old righty flew back to Houston on Saturday after complaining of arm fatigue during Friday’s loss in Seattle, in which he recorded just one out and struggled to throw strikes. Espada said Tuesday all tests and imaging on Imai’s shoulder and arm showed no structural damage, so the club will focus on him building up his arm strength.
Imai said through an interpreter Tuesday he’s had trouble adjusting to the “American lifestyle,” both on the field and off. In the spring, he said that he was still trying to get used to the different baseballs used in the Major Leagues, and after his short outing Friday he said the mound was hard and he wasn’t used to the weather.
"The travel is different from Japan, and also the timing when players eat,” Imai said. “In Japan, the players, when they get back to the hotel, they eat their dinner. But here, the players eat at the stadium, so that’s one of the things that [I] have to adjust.”
Imai’s time away from the mound should give him more time to tweak his routine and find a pattern that better suits his schedule.