Astros: Niko Goodrum hits injured list in Sugar Land

Another piece to the Astros’ 40-man depth hit the shelf Saturday.

Triple-A Sugar Land placed Niko Goodrum on the 7-day injured list Saturday, following an early exit from Wednesday’s game. Goodrum came up short holding his leg running to first on a ground out, leaving Constellation Field with a trainer.

The Houston Astros optioned Goodrum on May 15, and in 58 trips to the plate with the Space Cowboys, the 30-year-old was slashing .310/.500/.524 and two home runs. The switch-hitter was piecing together a strong performance in the Pacific Coast League, improving his OPS to as high as 1.043 on the previous roadtrip.

Of the 40-man rostered infielders, J.J. Matijevic remains as the only healthy depth piece in case of injury in the Majors. Matijevic was activated from the 7-day Tuesday and has since continued to lead the Space Cowboys in OPS — .966.

Joe Perez remains on the injured list in Double-A, where he was placed May 4. But as the roster provides more infield options than it did early April, the chances of Perez returning to the Majors this season when healthy are slim to none.

Beyond the 40-man roster options, Taylor Jones, who is on the 60-day injured list, started his rehab assignment Friday, playing five innings at first base and going 1-for-3 at the plate with a home run. Jones did not play Saturday and neither did Jake Meyers, as the two have a 20-day window to rehab prior to an assignment.

Although the 40-man holds no vacancies, Jones offers a reliable bat if one of the current bench positions go down with an injury. But as Aledmys Diaz and Mauricio Dubon are without options, Jones may not see the Majors until rosters expand in September unless trades or injuries pave a path back to the Astros.

Lewis Brinson left Saturday’s contest with a trainer after one plate appearance, grounding out to the left side. Brinson started in left field and made a spectacular jumping catch a half inning prior, but no injury report was listed as of Sunday morning. Replacing Brinson in left field was Korey Lee, who made his first outfield appearance since 2019.