Astros may have already found the perfect Lance McCullers Jr. replacement

At this point, there is no point in the Houston Astros relying on Lance McCullers Jr. on the mound again. It is very clear that years of injuries and setbacks have taken far too much of a toll on McCullers Jr.'s body. With his latest injury, envisioning a path back where he actually contributes for the Astros feels like a pipe dream. Of course, McCullers Jr. being out means that the Astros need someone else to step up, and it looks like that may already be happening.

Few thought much of the Astros trading for Kai-Wei Teng back in late January. His time in the majors was scant, and the big league innings he did have under his belt did not exactly go well. However, we began to hear whispers that Houston wanted to explore converting Teng into a starter and decided to commit to doing so earlier this month.

After starting in his last three appearances, Houston has to be feeling pretty great about that decision to give Teng a shot.

Kai-Wei Teng is giving the Astros the boost in their rotation they sorely needed, especially after Lance McCullers Jr.'s latest injury

Teng did get a little bit of an audition for the rotation in late April, but Houston clearly saw enough from him to make the move more permanent on May 10. Teng struggled a little bit in that first start with three earned runs across three innings, with just a single strikeout to show for his troubles. However, the next two starts showed why the Astros seemed excited to give him the opportunity.

Combined, Teng has given up zero earned runs over 11 innings of work with 13 strikeouts. Between that and both Peter Lambert and Spencer Arrighetti contributing in meaningful ways, Houston's rotation woes at least appear to be stabilized. Once Hunter Brown returns, the starting staff could actually be a strength of the roster if trends hold and Brown is back in form.

Not all of the news with Teng has been positive, though. While he has struck out 13 batters over his last two starts and only given up four hits total, he has also walked seven batters. That walk rate without consequences is not sustainable, but we are still early on in the Teng rotation experiment, so some hiccups are to be expected. For now, there is at least a chance that the Astros' failed attempt to revitalize McCullers Jr.'s career may get offset by the diamond in the rough they unearthed.

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