HOUSTON -- The Astros are as healthy as they’ve been since the start of the season, which sounds strange considering they still have 10 players on the injured list.
However, the return of Hunter Brown from the IL provided a jolt to an Astros team that believes it can return to the postseason this year in an American League West division where only one team, the Seattle Mariners, is over .500.
Brown missed 2 1/2 months with a shoulder strain, and is one of a handful of key players that were out for an extended period of time with injuries, including their top position player from last year and their best reliever.
Here are three key Astros to watch now that they’re healthy:
1. Hunter Brown
Games missed: 68
Brown, who had a third-place finish in the American League Cy Young Award voting last season, made two starts before going on the injured list with a shoulder strain.
Brown returned to the rotation Tuesday and allowed one run in 5 2/3 innings. He threw 53 of 92 pitches for strikes, relying mostly on his four-seam fastball (43 pitches), curveball (20) and sinker (15). He hit 97.5 mph with his fastball and looked like vintage Brown. That’s terrific news for the Astros.
With Brown and Spencer Arrighetti anchoring the rotation, the Astros will have to hope another starter -- or preferably two -- can raise his game. Mike Burrows has a 5.86 ERA and will be moved to the bullpen this weekend, Tatsuya Imai takes a 6.43 ERA into Friday’s start and Kai-Wei Teng has a 10.22 ERA in his last three starts.
2. Jeremy Peña
Games missed: 32
Peña was the team’s Most Valuable Player in 2025 when he made his first All-Star team and slashed .304/.363/.477 with 17 homers, 62 RBIs and 20 steals in 125 games, mostly as Houston’s leadoff hitter. His goal was to play 162 games this year, but he suffered a fracture to the tip of his right ring finger in an exhibition game in early March between the Dominican Republic and the Tigers, keeping him out of the World Baseball Classic.
Peña landed on the IL on April 11 with a hamstring strain and missed more than a month, which was a devastating blow to the Houston lineup. Since returning to the lineup May 18, he’s slashed .288/.359/.442 with four homers and 15 RBIs in 28 games. He homered and drove in two runs in Wednesday’s 4-2 win over the Tigers. The Astros are 16-12 in the 28 games he’s played since his return.
3. Josh Hader
Games missed: 61
When Hader made his 2026 season debut June 3, it was the first time he had pitched in a Major League game in 10 months. He missed the first two months of the 2025 season with biceps tendinitis and the final two months with a left shoulder capsule strain. He reported to Spring Training a few weeks behind schedule.
Hader’s return allowed Astros manager Joe Espada to better line up his relief pitching. Hader, who saved 28 games for the Astros in 2025 and made his sixth All-Star team, has posted a 1.29 ERA and 0.43 WHIP with four saves in seven games since his return to action.
The Astros will refrain from pitching him multiple innings at least for the time being, but Wednesday’s outing -- in which he allowed his first homer of the season to Detroit’s Kevin McGonigle in the ninth inning -- marked the first time he pitched on back-to-back days this year. If the Astros wish to climb back into the playoff race, Hader’s role will become increasingly important.