Houston Astros rotation suffers major injury blow

Houston's pitchers are dropping like flies. Garcia is the team's second starter to go down with an injury this week alone, joining Jose Urquidy, who earlier landed on the injured list with shoulder discomfort after being forced to leave his start this past Sunday.

For his part, Garcia exited Monday against the San Francisco Giants after throwing only eight pitches, an ominous sign for any hurler. After a breakout campaign in 2022 -- finishing 15-8 with a 3.72 ERA -- Garcia's 2023 season is over after only six starts and the Astros must find a way to replace even more production in the rotation. 

Along with Garcia and Urquidy, Lance McCullers remains out of action, rehabbing from an elbow strain. The veteran hurler is at least progressing and on target to make his season debut in the relatively near future. On Friday, McCullers said he was ahead of schedule before adding that he was moving at a "cautiously aggressive pace." 

Without several pitchers they were counting on for real innings, Houston has only a few proven entities left in Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier and Hunter Brown. Several other options to fill out the rotation on the 40-man roster are also out with injuries, including Shawn Dubin and Forrest Whitley. 

The Astros are in a tough spot and need what is left of their rotation to step up during a crucial time. It might be early, but the defending champs have lost four of their last six games entering play on Friday, a trend that might continue with their pitching staff currently ravaged by injuries.