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Gurriel set to play third base for the Astros as Bregman is possibly out for the year.
After the 8-4 win versus the Texas Rangers Wednesday night, Houston Astros fans were excited but worried. They were worried because their MVP candidate Jose Altuve and rising star Alex Bregman left the game with potentially serious injuries. Bregman has been hotter at the plate recently, but Altuve has been spectacular all year. Colin Moran got called up after the Fresno season ending a week ago.
Sounds like Alex Bregman's season is over. A.J. Hinch said his injury would've required an immediate 15-day DL stint if any other month.
— Jake Kaplan (@jakemkaplan) September 17, 2016
The writing was on the wall that the Astros could have lost one or both of the sluggers for the year. When the lineup was posted, Altuve was back in the lineup after leaving with an oblique injury Wednesday. He’s batted third for most of the season, so he returns there for tonight’s game versus the Mariners.
Not Good News for Bregman.
While it’s good news for Altuve, Wednesday night, I thought that Bregman’s injury looked more serious at the time. I had him on my roster in a fantasy baseball in the playoffs, and I held onto him until the news broke just a little while ago. If it were a keeper league, I would have kept him, but in a redraft league, sorry Bregman.
According to Jake Kaplan, Bregman will not join the Astros in Seattle this weekend and will not join them in Oakland either. Instead, he will remain in Houston. With sixteen games remaining, the Astros will not have enough time for him to rest and get back into game shape. However, the Astros may not be playing for the playoffs in a few days if they don’t win in Seattle.
The Astros will not risk a more serious injury to their budding superstar, so they left him in Houston. Since rosters have expanded, there is no longer a DL list for Jeff Luhnow to put him on. You have to think that Bregman is not with the team so that A.J. Hinch will not be tempted to use him while he is hurt.
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While it wasn’t said in Kaplan’s article, look for Bregman to cheer his teammates on when they return home. Should the Stros somehow make it to the playoffs, could Bregman be ready to come back at that point? Hamstring strains are tricky, so we will have to play it by ear. Unless it matters in October, he will not play.
Next Man Up.
While the news is disheartening, the Astros have Yulieski Gurriel to play third base now. Marwin Gonzalez, Tyler White, and Moran will all see some time at third base. Bregman is the future for the Astros, and he had a great start to his career after the slow start. His success has given fans something to look forward to next year.
Between two minor league levels and the MLB, Bregman has batted .288 with 28 homers and 93 RBI’s. That’s a pretty good season, let’s hope that is a preview for the 2017 season. In the last 30 games, Bregman was batting .307 with eight homers and 28 runs batted in.
Next: With Bregman's Injury, the Astros Recall Moran.
He wasn’t up long enough to get into the conversation for AL Rookie of the Year but processes game-changing talent. If Bregman does not play another game in 2016, he should be proud of how far he came this year.
***Stats from Baseball-Reference***