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Houston Astros: It’s time to be concerned about Lance McCullers, Jr.

By Armani Gracia

HOUSTON, TX - JUNE 30: Lance McCullers Jr.
HOUSTON, TX - JUNE 30: Lance McCullers Jr. /
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The Houston Astros have sent top-end stud Lance McCullers, Jr. to the DL for the second time this season.

Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported shortly after the disappointing trade season from the Houston Astros that Lance McCullers Jr. has been sent to the DL because of issues with his back.

I’m pretty sure every Houston Astros fan reflected to themselves silently, wondering if things could get worse when the news broke. And just when one thinks our rotation is healthy and ready to go, our No. 2 pitcher goes down.

But Lance has looked quite off for the entire month of July, he has an 0-2 record with a 9.64 ERA, a far cry from his June 3.32 ERA mark.

And let me tell you this — I do think we have to start worrying about Lance a little bit and here’s why.

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First, he’s already had a back injury once this season and now has it again. This is where not trading for another big name starter at the deadline hurts the Houston Astros. Of course, the Astros traded for Francisco Liriano, but even if he is moved to the starting rotation to take McCullers’ place, he probably wouldn’t have the same impact that a healthy McCullers would have.

I mean, we’ve seen what Lance can do when he’s full strength, he has the  stuff to be one of the most dominant pitchers in all of baseball.  In addition, his fastball command has been horrible as of late. But I’d imagine pitching motion does feel weird when something in your body is hurting and in Lance’s case, it’s his back.

He’s young, but I do fear that these injuries now could hurt him down the road in his career. Remember, Lance was also hurt last year for the majority of the season with a hurt shoulder and elbow. Going into the future, I think we should be very cautious of how much we use our future ace.

After his rehab in Triple-A Fresno and Double-A Corpus we should cut his innings down to save him for the postseason. I mean, as of right now, we have a double-digit lead over everyone in our division.  One should pose the question if Lance McCullers health really worth risking in the regular season when you are blowing everyone out of the water.  And you know what? The obvious answer is NO.

I think everyone can agree on what I’m about to say. If the Astros want to reach the World Series, McCullers has to stay healthy. Do you think Mike Fiers and Brad Peacock will stay as hot as they are right now? Probably not, but I would rather have McCullers pitch in a “win or go home” situation in the postseason rather than have Peacock or Fiers on the mound.

Next: Astros Vs. Rangers: A renewed sense of ultimate pride

Look, it’s no where near time to panic. But it’s something that could turn into something really bad down the road.

Go Astros.

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