The Astros are losing right-hander Cristian Javier to Tommy John surgery, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic. He’ll undergo the procedure on Thursday and will likely be out at least into the second half of the 2025 season.
Javier landed on the 15-day injured list last week after reporting forearm discomfort during a bullpen session between starts. While the team initially expressed optimism he wouldn’t be out for too long, testing has evidently revealed damage to the UCL in his elbow. It’s the second tough blow in as many days for Houston; righty José Urquidy also could be headed for Tommy John after leaving a recent minor league rehab start with forearm discomfort of his own.
Losing Javier is an even more significant development. The 27-year-old has blossomed into a quality mid-rotation arm over the past few seasons. He had a breakout year in 2022, working to a 2.54 ERA while striking out almost a third of opposing hitters over 148 2/3 innings. The Astros signed him to a five-year, $64MM extension — a record guarantee for a pitcher with between three and four years of service — headed into the 2023 season.
Javier had a relative down year, allowing 4.56 earned runs per nine with a 23.1% strikeout rate that was only a little better than league average. He stayed healthy and logged 31 regular season starts and a trio of postseason outings. His efforts at a rebound in 2024 were unfortunately wrecked by injury. Javier lost a couple weeks between April and May with what the team called neck discomfort. He returned on May 11 and pitched three times before suffering the elbow injury. His season concludes with a 3.89 ERA over seven starts.
The Astros opened the season without Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia, each of whom are working back from elbow procedures they underwent in 2023. With Javier and potentially Urquidy joining them, Houston is down four MLB-caliber starters. That has predictably taken a significant toll on the rotation, which looks quite thin beyond Framber Valdez and Justin Verlander.
Ronel Blanco has stepped up with a 2.44 ERA over 10 starts after winning the fifth starter job in camp. He’s now an integral piece of the rotation, but he’s 30 years old and entered the year with seven major league starts under his belt. Hunter Brown and rookie Spencer Arrighetti occupy the last two rotation spots. While they each rebounded from terrible performances in April to turn in strong numbers in May, their season lines are still poor. Recent minor league signee Eric Lauer is essentially the only starter with notable MLB experience in the organization at Triple-A. J.P. France is on the minor league IL with a shoulder problem.
Houston’s rotation struggles have been perhaps the biggest factor in their underwhelming 27-34 start. General manager Dana Brown reiterated last night that he anticipated approaching the deadline as a buyer. Whether Brown knew for certain that Javier was headed for surgery isn’t clear, but he was surely aware it was a possibility at that time. The Astros may be one of upwards of a dozen teams that could try to add from a limited pool of starting pitching available this summer.
The Astros can move Javier to the 60-day injured list when they need to create a 40-man roster spot. They must reinstate him over the offseason before putting him back on the IL next spring. The righty is making $7MM this season and will earn a $10MM salary in 2025. He’s under contract for $21MM apiece between 2026-27.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Oof. As much as I want the Mariners to win the division for the first time in 23 years and do so at the expense of a team who has owned the division for almost a decade (Rangers playoff run from a WC spot aside), injuries are not the way I’d prefer to see it happen. Tough to lose Javier and Urquidy for the remainder of the season so closely together.
Would you rather have 2022 Javier go against the mariners or Spencer spaghetti
I’m still going with Spaghetti even though he owns us this season.
Should change the name of the site to MLBTommyjohnstories.com
Or they can just start doing a daily [fill in name] will NOT require TJS.
It’d be a shorter list.
Tough break. Seems like both Texas teams are have their whole rotation on the IL.
Kudos to Javier for accepting the extension. HOU going to pay him $50 the next 3 years.
The one Astros starter pitching well. Now it’s see you in ’26 for Javier
Hate this as a Phillies fan.
Welcome to the club!
Dang, another one bites the dust.
But praying for a full recovery!
Just when the Astros were starting to play well and looking forward to finally having their rotation back together they lose 2 arms for the rest of the year.
They’ll get Garcia back. And they never had urquidy
Yeah, but they sure were expecting and hoping for his return, which I consider a loss, as well. Mariners were priming to get Brash back when he went down for the year during his rehab. I still consider that a loss for us.
Bummer he was a pretty righteous dude especially in the postseason
Legitimately one of my favorites to watch in the game really bummed for him
It’d actually be easier to keep track of the pitchers who are not undergoing Timmy John surgery. Many of these guys would have been better off negotiating extensions with their current teams instead of playing for the life changing bag of “Scott Boras” money that never comes due to injury. I’m sure Javier is glad he mitigated this risk by signing a reasonable extension. Now, no matter how this shakes out, Javier(and his family)are set for life.
We know
Nooooooo all star team, with 6 all stars pitchers all on Tommy John DL at one time
Eliminate the IL. He’s going on the TJ.
How long before the Cheaters consider trading Bregman or Verlander?
How can the Yankees trade away players that don’t play in their organization?
Kidnap the players and the ransom is prospect capital
Fair point.
Imagine being such a feminine man that you can’t stop feeling so devastated about something several years later…that had zero to do with you.
Imagine being such a feminine man that you can’t stop being so bothered about other people’s words. Second time you’ve been a whiner about someone’s words today. I thought “sticks and stones” was still a thing. Guess not.
They’ve already considered it, among a bunch of things.
Living rent free in Yankees’s heads. BTW, your team was cheating too, but MLB protected them.
Framber Valdez will be next I’m just feeling it now
As case0h the overweight streamer would say “400 innings in 2 years? Yeah ur banned”
How did Nolan Ryan avoid having Tommy John? Mind-boggling
“Nolan Ryan avoid having Tommy John”….It’s been alleged that “Tommy John” was always afraid of Nolan Ryan and would’ve never confronted him for fear of being shaved with a 102 mph fastball. You think it’s just a coincidence that Clint Eastwood or Mike Tyson never had Tommy John surgery either?
He was a freak of nature.
Pretty sure he blew out his elbow on his last ever pitch and hung em up
This has nothing to do with Manfred. this has nothing to do with the pitch clock. This has nothing to do with the rule changes. This has nothing to do with pitchers throwing harder and faster. The fact that 75% of pitchers are going down with TJ today, it’s just a coincidence. You know like ohtani just happened to be robbed of $17 million without knowing. Just bad timing is all it is
Fun fact: The record year for MLB TJ surgeries is 35 in 2012.
It may have been 35 in 2012, but when you consider that they didn’t have the internal brace procedure then, that number would’ve been passed already.
Moreover, this is a record-setting pace for TJS despite now having several opt for the internal brace surgery. They’re in pace for roughly 57 TJ surgeries this year….
This year will easily top it.
I doubt Ohtani didn’t know.
Wanna bet?
“didn’t know”…So you’re suggesting that Ippei & Ohtani are such great friends that Ippei is willing to do 20+ years for him?..Even if you believe money changed hands I cannot believe anyone does 20 years for money. 20 yrs is probably over a quarter of your life and in America’s Federal system 20 yrs is actually 20 years, not the “good time”, good behavior sentences given at the state level. Nobody does 20+ yrs in lockup for friendship, love or money.
Being locked up for 20 years for friendship? No. Being locked up for 20 years because he was thrown under the bus as a scapegoat? Yes, and I’m suggesting exactly that.
“Under the bus as a scapegoat”..That really doesn’t make any sense. If Ippei was being “scapegoated” or “thrown under the bus” he could mitigate and lessen his sentence by squealing on the much bigger fish(Ohtani). Everyone knows prosecutors are ALWAYS in search of the biggest name or fish. To not name Ohtani(if he’s guilty)wouldn’t make sense, but I’m guessing credible, sensible and reasonable arguments like this don’t resonate with people like you.
Meanwhile, Trevor Bauer says “hello” from the Mexican League with his 6-0 record, 1.53 ERA, 0.979 WHIP, 11 walks and 70 K’s in 47 innings…
He probably says, “hola,” but perhaps not.
Trevor Bauer can’t come to the phone right now. He’s in the Men’s bathroom, because nobody told him that in Mexico you only drink bottled, purified or filtered water.
Welcome to muted, maroon land bobby, enjoy. Ahahaha!
Who exactly was talking to you?