The Astros have reinstated outfielder Kyle Tucker from the 60-day injured list, per a team announcement. Infielder Zach DezenzoZach Dezenzo has been optioned to Triple-A in order to open an active roster spot. Left-hander Parker Mushinski has been designated for assignment to create room on the 40-man. Chandler Rome of The Athletic was among those to relay.
Tucker got out to a brilliant start this season, hitting 19 home runs in 60 games while walking more than he struck out. He slashed .266/.395/.584 for a wRC+ of 175 despite a subpar .245 batting average on balls in play. On June 3, that wRC+ was third in the majors behind Aaron Judge and Juan Soto despite some poor treatment from the baseball gods.
But it was on that June 3 date that Tucker began a strange saga. He fouled a ball of his shin and landed on the 10-day injured list. The club continued to described his injury as a “deep bruise of the bone” or a “shin contusion,” all while seeming to expect him to make a quick return. His absence turned to weeks and then months as fans continued to wonder how a simple bruise could lead to such an extended absence.
Just a few days ago, Rome reported that Tucker had suffered a fracture, despite continued denials from general manager Dana Brown. After that report came out, Brown and Tucker both admitted that the player had indeed suffered a fracture.
Although the reasons for that obfuscation aren’t clear, the larger point is that Tucker is now back. He didn’t go on a rehab assignment and is in the designated hitter slot Friday night, so perhaps the club is easing him back after a long layoff. Maybe he will experience some rust, but he will be a huge boon to the Astros if he can get anywhere near his pre-injury form.
Despite the lineup boost, he will give the club a bit less lineup flexibility if he stays in that DH slot. Yordan Alvarez has been the DH more than anyone else but he will perhaps have to play left field more regularly. It will also be harder to put Alex Bregman in there, as he has been battling a minor elbow issue of late. The club also likes to have Yainer Diaz as the DH sometimes when Victor Caratini is behind the plate, keeping Diaz’s bat in the lineup. Perhaps that will happen less often as a result as well.
The outfield group currently consists of Alvarez, Jake Meyers and Ben Gamel, with Chas McCormick and Jason Heyward also in the mix. Whenever Tucker is ready to take the field again, he will push into that group and take some of their playing time, but also free up the DH spot once again.
Mushinski, 28, could perhaps join a new club for the first time in his career. He was drafted by the Astros in 2017 and was added to their 40-man roster in 2022. He has served as a frequently optioned depth arm for them since then. He has tossed 33 major league innings over those three campaigns with a 5.45 earned run average. His 8.1% walk rate and 45.2% ground-ball rate are close to average, but he’s only struck out 17.4% of batters faced.
His minor league work has been more impressive. In that same three-year span, he has tossed 114 2/3 innings for Triple-A Sugar Land, putting up a 3.30 ERA despite that club playing in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He has a 26.7% strikeout rate and 10.7% walk rate in that sample.
The Astros will have to put Mushinski on waivers in the coming days. He can still be optioned for what remains of this year but will be out of options next season. If he does get claimed, he has less than two years of service time and can therefore be controlled for five seasons beyond this one. If he were to pass through waivers unclaimed, he wouldn’t have the right to elect free agency since he has never been previously outrighted and has less than three years of service time.
