ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Houston Astros placed right fielder Kyle Tucker on the 10-day injured list Friday, four days after he fouled a pitch off his shin and sustained a contusion.
The team will summon outfield prospect Joey Loperfido to take Tucker’s place on the active roster, two sources told The Athletic on Friday night following Houston’s 7-1 win against the Angels.
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Tucker has not played since exiting Monday’s game in the third inning. He needed crutches to move around the clubhouse following Friday night’s win and still appeared to be in a considerable amount of discomfort.
“He’s just not progressing as quickly as we thought and we just need an extra guy on the bench to help us out,” Espada said after Friday’s game. “We don’t want to rush him. We want to make sure that when he gets back he’s fully healthy.”
Tucker’s stint on the injured list is retroactive to Tuesday, meaning he would be eligible to return in time for the Astros’ series opener against the Detroit Tigers on June 14 at Minute Maid Park.
Before the game, Espada said Tucker felt “much better,” but intimated his progress may have plateaued.
“He is better, but the progress has been slower than what we expected,” Espada said. “It is truly day to day, we hope. That’s how he feels, that it’s still day to day.”
The Astros announced Tucker’s IL placement about an hour later. The team played Friday’s game a man short on its bench: a predicament that could not continue during this six-game California road trip.
A shoo-in for the American League All-Star team and an early candidate for AL MVP, Tucker leads the Astros with a .589 slugging percentage and a .395 on-base percentage. Entering Friday, Tucker’s 19 home runs trailed only the New York Yankees’ Aaron Judge for the major-league lead. Tucker’s .979 OPS stood behind only Judge, Juan Soto and Marcell Ozuna.
In Tucker’s absence, Houston could turn right field into a timeshare between Loperfido, Trey Cabbage, Chas McCormick and Mauricio Dubón, though the team values Dubón more for his versatility as a utilityman rather than an everyday player.
Both Cabbage and Loperfido hit left-handed and could form a natural platoon with the right-handed McCormick. However, McCormick’s pronounced struggles this season may force Espada to be more creative with his lineup construction. The allure of seeing what Loperfido could do with an everyday role may also factor into playing time.
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(Photo: Logan Riely / Getty Images)