Astros' latest injury makes Kyle Tucker trade return look more questionable

Eric Cole

Houston Astros v Milwaukee Brewers / John Fisher/GettyImages

The Houston Astros have been able to survive this season as long as they have because of their pitching staff. While the offense has come and gone over the course of the first 36 games of the 2025 season, the pitching staff has been a top 5 unit in baseball the entire way. One arm that hasn't exactly helped the cause, though, is Hayden Wesneski.

The Astros felt very strongly that Wesneski could really help their rotation after he was included in the Kyle Tucker trade return even though many treated him as a throw-in. However, Wesneski's production hasn't exactly matched that excitement as his 4.50 ERA and 4.79 FIP, while serviceable as a #5 type, has been arguably the least impressive performance amongst the Astros' starters.

Unfortunately, the Astros now will have to figure out another solution for their rotation as it was revealed on Friday that Wesneski was being placed on the injured list. Logan VanWey was recalled from Triple-A to take his place on the roster.

Hayden Wesneski heads to the IL, Logan VanWey returns as Kyle Tucker trade continues to age questionably

The good news here is that VanWey gets another shot at the big leagues. VanWey was really good in his first stint in the big leagues with a 1.35 ERA in six appearances, but a lack of strikeouts and having minor league options forced him back to the minors.

As for Wesneski, there is cause for concern here. Going on the IL with any kind of arm trouble is problematic and the lack of more information can be a prelude to a more serious issue. Of note, the Astros already tried to give Wesneski extra rest between starts at the end of April and that clearly did little good to alleviate the problem.

Just like that, the Tucker trade return just took another hit. Isaac Paredes has been a bit of a rollercoaster ride so far this season at the plate, though his on-base skills have been helpful. Cam Smith is clearly a freak athlete, but he is also still raw and is currently striking out at an alarming clip and now Wesneski is banged up. Most fans would still take that return for one year of almost any player, but the picture is a lot less rosy these days.

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Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.