Astros: Is Kyle Tucker returning after Jake Marisnick’s injury?

The Houston Astros know what it’s like to deal with injuries recently.

Carlos Correa made his return to the Astros lineup last night, but the injury bug hit again last night. While everyone was still astonished after Jake Marisnick made a great diving catch in the fifth inning, he hit a double in the seventh inning of a 2-2 game. The crowd was celebrating the double, but Dee Gordon was motioning to the Astros dugout. Marisnick was hurt.

Via Alyson Footer after the game, Marisnick had told Gordon that he “might have done something to his groin.” Gordon explained that he immediately signaled for help. When AJ Hinch and the trainer ran out there, it didn’t take too much convincing for Marisnick to leave the game. No matter what sport you play, you take groin injuries pretty seriously. After the game via Danny Mata, Marisnick said that he felt a little grab after running out of the batter’s box.

He didn’t seem too worried about it, but the Astros may play it safe with their elite defender. In the post-game press conference, Hinch said that he was not very optimistic about that injury, via Chandler Rome. With that in mind, the mild groin discomfort that was reported during the game could be something more. They need him on a potential playoff roster so that they may put him on the DL.

At least they don’t have to send him to Houston, he’s already here.

If you are a die-hard Astros fan, you will get that reference. The question is, who would replace Marisnick on the roster and outfield? They are already without George Springer and Marwin Gonzalez is covering primarily second base for Jose Altuve. Derek Fisher and Tony Kemp are already up, so who is the next man up in Triple-A.

Via Talking Stros on Twitter, I alluded that Kyle Tucker has been hot recently and could get the call. Stop rolling your eyes. This does mean something, even if it’s in Triple-A. When Tucker was called up the first time, he was struggling a little. In the seven games before his first promotion, Tucker batted .176 with one homer and four RBI in 28 at-bats via Baseball-Reference. But still, he only struck out five times in those seven games.

The best time to promote a prospect is when they are hot.

After his demotion, Tucker went to Triple-A determined to get back to the big leagues. Not including last night’s 0-2 performance before he was pulled, Tucker batted .406 with three homers while driving in eight runs. In those seven games, Tucker also scored ten runs on 13 hits, via Baseball-Reference. He was a triple short of a cycle in Tuesday’s blowout win. In other words, his confidence is up with success in Triple-A.

Then Paul Braverman tweeted that Tucker was removed from the Fresno Grizzlies lineup and catcher Garrett Stubbs was moved to the outfield. With that move, it would seem that Tucker is headed for Houston. While many people aren’t too impressed with his .156 MLB batting average so far, it’s too soon to give up on him. We have seen some prospects flop over the years, but Tucker shouldn’t be one.

Marisnick has been the brunt of many critics this season, but he has heated up since his recall. In his past eight games with the Astros, he is batting .409 with two homers and four runs batted in via Baseball-Reference. With Springer on the DL, he has played every game in center field. We have seen how valuable he can be.

If Tucker is coming up, I think he will take off this time around. Some players take longer to get going, like Alex Bregman, but then they typically figure things out. With the Astros luck recently, Marisnick will hit the DL. Hopefully, Tucker can do what Kemp and Tyler White are doing, producing at the big league level. We will see if/when this becomes official.