Astros worst fears confirmed with latest injury update

The Houston Astros aren't having a good time in 2024. A franchise that got used to winning over the last handful of years is all of the sudden ... not.

The Astros are 27-34 as it stands. Hope of winning the AL West for the seventh time in eight years is waning. Missing the playoffs for the first time in that long is looking probable.

Injuries haven't helped shake Houston out of the haze. And they won't be able to rely on at least one arm coming back healthy. Cristian Javier is done for the year.

Astros pitchers Christian Javier needs Tommy John surgery

The news comes via Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Javier is scheduled to undergo Tommy John surgery on Thursday, shelving him for the remainder of the 2024 season and, likely, the beginning of the 2025 season at least.

Javier wasn't pitching at the 2022 form that earned him a lucrative extension but he had a bright start to the season allowing just four earned runs in four starts. Then he landed on IL in April because of a neck problem. He came back in May and produced mixed results. There was his first game back, which was a disastrous 1.1 innings with seven runs allowed. He rallied five days later throwing six hitless innings against the A's. His May 21 start made it clear something was wrong. He went four innings with eight hits and four runs allowed with velocity dipping.

The Astros were mum about the extent of Javier's injury, which was termed "right forearm discomfort." It turned out he was getting a consultation. The results of that consultation have him heading for the operating room.

Houston was already dealing with the absence of Lance McCullers and Luis Garcia. Both of them have had a lengthy absence because of surgery last year. In the best case, they'll be back on the mound for the Astros this summer. Then again, Houston's luck hasn't been all that reliable lately.