The defending World Series champion Houston Astros appear to be finding their groove after a somewhat tough start to the 2023 season.
The team has won seven of their last 10 outings to get within 1.5 games of the Texas Rangers, who currently hold the top spot in the American League West division.
However, the Astros have been hit with plenty of adversity to start the season.
Their starting rotation in particular is dealing with some injuries.
Houston already lost Lance McCullers Jr. in spring training while Jose Urquidy also landed on the injured list.
To make matters worse, Luis Garcia exited his start against the San Francisco Giants on Monday.
According to Astros writer Brian McTaggart, Garcia was pulled with elbow discomfort.
Luis Garcia left tonight's game with right elbow discomfort, per @brianmctaggart. pic.twitter.com/2Wqhjsb9xU
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) May 2, 2023
The Astros are lucky to still have two solid starters active in Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier.
However, they have now lost three of their regular five starters as a result of injury.
The Astros are fortunate to have plenty of depth on the pitching front, but losing Garcia on top of Urquidy the day before is yet another huge blow for the team.
That’s especially true after they have seemingly found their stride in the 2023 season.
One has to wonder if Houston will regress while dealing with these injuries to key players.
While the trade deadline is still months away, the starting rotation could be an area where the Astros seek to add a few pieces while preparing for another run to the World Series.
On Monday, Houston beat the Giants by a final of 7-3 to improve to 16-13 on the season.
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