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Carlos Correa injury more worrisome than it seems for Houston Astros

By Josh Sippie

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The last person that the Houston Astros want anything to happen to is Carlos Correa, but that is precisely the person that something has happened to. The 20 year old phenom is pegged to be one of the greatest short stops we have ever seen and you can see it already any time he plays.

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In just 68 games this year, Carlos Correa leads all MLB shortstops in OBP and sits only one behind Troy Tulowitzki in the American League in home runs, but he has 47 less games than the former Rockies man, making his home runs per at bat much more impressive than any other shortstop in the league.

The injury is described merely as a tight hamstring, but this is the same thing that Jose Altuve suffered from early in the year and it kept him out a week. The last thing the Astros need is to be without their 3-hole hitter for a week when the playoff hunt is heating up.

But at the same time, they have to err on the side of caution because the last, last thing the Astros need is for Carlos Correa to be out for an extended period of time, particularly through the playoffs. He may only be 20 years old but he is way ahead of his time and quickly becoming the best and most consistent hitters in an erratic, yet powerful Houston Astros’ lineup.

And have I mentioned his power? He hits one home run every 17 at-bats, that is tied for tops on the Houston Astros with Luis Valbuena.

The Houston Astros need Carlos Correa but they need him more for the long term than they do for one year. The team is built well enough to withstand the injury, with Jed Lowrie capable of filling in. However, Lowrie has paled in comparison to the 20 year old short stop and the Houston Astros are going to find life without him rather bothersome, kind of like a paper cut. Not enough to upset the balance of things, but enough to be annoying.

In the end, the Houston Astros will probably aim to keep him out longer than necessary so as to error on the side of caution and it would be hard to debate that.

The Houston Astros sit 3.0 games up interstate rival Texas Rangers with 30 games left so there is plenty of time for the inconsistency of their lineup to come back and bite them, but with Jose Altuve flipping the switch ‘on’ and Evan Gattis hitting a power groove as well, they should be able to cope, if only just.

Next: Chris Carter experiment must end

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