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The Houston Astros’ Scott Feldman left game with right shoulder discomfort

By Eric Huysman

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The Houston Astros were going with a six-man rotation recently, just not the traditional type where the pitchers all pitch in order on extra rest. The Astros rotation has been really solid recently and has done a great job keeping the team in the ballgame. The six players who were in the rotation at the time of first pitch on Tuesday night were Dallas Keuchel, Scott Kazmir, Collin McHugh, Mike Fiers, Lance McCullers Jr, and Scott Feldman.

Feldman was coming off a very effective August, where he went 1-0/ 1.33 ERA/ 15 strikeouts in 27 innings pitched. His control was very good in August, as he walked only five batters all month. However, in last night’s game, he gave up that many walks in one game. He had a hard time finding the strike zone all night, which was the polar opposite of what he has done for all of August in one game.

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As Feldman was pitching in the third inning and after getting two outs in the inning, he threw a pitch that you could tell right away hurt. He had a look on his face that said, “Oh no!” He quickly motioned for manager A.J. Hinch and trainer to come out to the mound as he attempted to loosen his shoulder. He was quickly removed from the game and replaced by Vincent Velasquez, who stretched it out to save the bullpen a little.

It was reported on Twitter and the live broadcast that Feldman left with shoulder discomfort. I am not sure what the return date for Feldman in the rotation is, or how serious his injury is. We will know more later today when the Astros get the results of the MRI on his shoulder as Julia Morales reports.

Should Feldman have to miss any time, what effect will this have on the Astros rotation? The Astros could go back to a traditional five-man rotation, but the reason for the extra starter was to give the young guys a break by either skipping or pushing their start back.

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With the extra arms in the bullpen with the two September call-ups in Josh Fields and Joe Thatcher, the Astros could use Velasquez in the sixth man rotation. However, Velasquez’s strength seems to be in the bullpen as the power arm out of the bullpen. It’s too early to panic about Feldman’s injury, but it is something to keep your eye on.

The Astros could have been waiting for one of the pitchers to have a bad game or two to help decide who to take out of the rotation. Unfortunately, Feldman could be the victim despite the recent success if he is injured. As Astros fans, all we could have hoped for is that Feldman would eat some innings and keep the team in games. Feldman has done more than that, so I hope he doesn’t miss too much time.

Next: Astros ’ George Springer Does Minor League Rehab Assignment

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