Astros' Lance McCullers: No longer throwing off mound
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Astros manager Dusty Baker said Monday that McCullers (forearm) is no longer throwing off a mound, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports. "We have to take it slow with Lance until we know that he's 100 percent. That's where it is right now," Baker said.
McCullers started throwing bullpen sessions in early May, but he wasn't looking overly sharp and was apparently still not feeling totally healthy. The right-hander had been aiming to return from the 15-day injured list around the All-Star break, but his timetable is very much up in the air now.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Aiming for return around mid-July
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General manager Dana Brown said Sunday that McCullers (forearm) isn't expected to return from the injured list until "somewhere closer to the All-Star break, or after," Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
The 29-year-old played catch on flat ground Sunday instead of throwing a bullpen session as previously expected, and it appears the Astros don't expect him back from the injured list until sometime in July. Dusty Baker said earlier in the day the change of plans didn't indicate a setback for McCullers, but the lengthy return timeline certainly appears to represent a halt in his progress.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Throws from flat ground Sunday
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Astros manager Dusty Baker told reporters before Sunday's game against the Athletics that McCullers (forearm) played catch on flat ground instead of throwing a bullpen, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
Baker told reporters that even with the change of plans, this should not be considered a setback for McCullers, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports. The right-hander is still in Houston to work out, but he could join the team at some point during their upcoming road trip. McCullers has missed all of 2023 with his forearm strain, and he has a chance to return to the Houston rotation in the early portion of June.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Set for another bullpen session
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McCullers (forearm) is expected to throw a bullpen session before Sunday's contest against the Athletics, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.
McCullers has slowly been working his way back from the forearm injury he suffered in February, and Sunday's session could be his last before launching a rehab assignment. Once healthy, the 29-year-old will be a welcomed addition to Houston's rotation as Luis Garcia (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Friday.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Nearing live batting practice
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McCullers (forearm) threw another bullpen session Tuesday and could be cleared for live batting practice this weekend, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.
McCullers threw 37 pitches in Tuesday's session, touching 92 mph with his fastball and 88-89 mph with his cutter, per Rome. It's the first time during his bullpen ramp-ups that he's incorporated the cutter. McCullers appears to be feeling well but would seem to still have a little work to do from a velocity standpoint. If he does face hitters this weekend, a rehab assignment would seemingly be right around the corner.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Continues bullpen work
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McCullers (forearm) threw another bullpen session Saturday, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.
McCullers has been out all season while working back from a strained forearm. He's thrown multiple bullpen sessions but is not yet at full strength. His velocity sat 89-91 mph in Saturday's session, down significantly from his average of 93.3 mph last year. He's also still only throwing four-seamers, changeups and sinkers, with cutters expected to follow Tuesday and his breaking pitches sometime after that.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Throws another bullpen Tuesday
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McCullers (forearm) threw 25 pitches in a bullpen session Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
McCullers reportedly reached 91.6 mph with his fastball during the bullpen session. The next step will be for the right-hander to mix in some breaking balls in his next session, which will likely take place before Saturday's game against the White Sox in Chicago. McCullers will then need to rebuild his arm strength and likely go on a lengthy rehab assignment, but the latest positive developments give him a chance to join the rotation in the early part of June.
McCullers (forearm) threw a bullpen session in Seattle on Saturday, reportedly hitting 90 mph twice, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
McCullers has been out since February, as he's been nursing an injured right forearm, so Saturday's session is certainly encouraging. The 29-year-old will continue to slowly ramp up his activity over the next few weeks, including an inevitable rehab assignment, which will likely be multiple starts. That said, once healthy, McCullers will help fill the void left in the Astros' rotation by Luis Garcia's season-ending elbow injury.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Throws from front of mound
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McCullers (forearm) threw 20-to-30 pitches from the front of the bullpen mound at Tropicana Field on Tuesday, Brian Murphy of MLB.com reports.
Assuming he bounces back from the workout with no issues, McCullers might be ready for a normal bullpen session the next time he's scheduled to throw. The veteran right-hander has been brought along slowly since his nagging forearm issue flared up on him again back in mid-February. He'll need multiple rehab starts before rejoining the Houston rotation, so McCullers is still several weeks away from being activated from the 15-day injured list.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Nearing mound work
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McCullers (forearm) threw long toss Sunday and could begin throwing off a mound before the end of April, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
The right-hander has been throwing mostly fastballs but is also close to integrating his offspeed pitches. McCullers doesn't have a clear timetable to be activated from the injured list, but his return to mound work will be a significant step in his rehab progress.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Ahead of schedule
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McCullers (forearm) said Tuesday that he's been throwing at 90 mph on back-to-back days at "high intensity" and considers himself ahead of schedule, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
A timetable for McCullers' return has never really been established, so it remains unclear when he might be available to make his season debut. Nevertheless, the news is encouraging and it would appear he should progress to mound work soon. McCullers missed all of spring training with a strained forearm injury, one that's plagued him intermittently dating back to the 2021 postseason.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Heads to 15-day IL
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McCullers (forearm) was placed on the 15-day injured list Thursday, retroactive to March 27.
Astros GM Dana Brown said earlier this week he wasn't sure if McCullers would begin the season on the 60-day IL, but the club is apparently content to put him on the 15-day IL for now. The right-hander is dealing with a low-grade forearm strain and isn't expected to be ready for game action until May, at the earliest.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Could begin year on 60-day IL
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Astros general manager Dana Brown said Tuesday that he was unsure if McCullers (forearm) would begin the year on the 60-day injured list, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
The Astros are going to have to make some roster moves in order to get both Cesar Salazar and Corey Julks on the Opening Day roster, as both are not currently on the 40-man at this point. McCullers is dealing with a low-grade strain and isn't expected to be ready until May at the earliest, and if the club believes it will be closer to June, it could put the right-hander on the 60-day IL to open space. Managers shouldn't expect to see McCullers making starts for Houston in the month of April.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Says he has low-grade strain
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McCullers revealed Tuesday that he's dealing with a "strain of the forearm muscle, very low grade," Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
McCullers added that doctors "were hesitant to even call it a strain." While a bit comforting that the right-hander's strain is minor, it's nonetheless worrisome that he's dealing with it again this spring after it bothered him for much of last season and during the playoffs in 2021. McCullers will play catch again at low intensity Wednesday as he's being ramped back up slowly. It seems a safe bet that he'll miss at least the first month or so of the season.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Throws again Monday
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McCullers (forearm) threw in the batting cage Monday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
Manager Dusty Baker said Monday that McCullers was once again throwing, his second throwing session in three days as he works back from the muscle strain he suffered in his right forearm last month. The right-hander is expected to miss the first couple weeks of the season, but is he keeps progressing, it's reasonable to expect him to return to the mound by the end of April. McCullers has struggled with the injury bug over the past couple seasons, only appearing in eight games in 2022 after nursing a forearm injury he sustained in the 2021 playoffs.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Starts up throwing program
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McCullers (forearm) resumed playing catch Saturday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
McCullers threw off flat ground approximately 30 times in what marked his first throwing activity since a Feb. 14 bullpen session in which he experienced arm soreness. He was later diagnosed with a small muscle strain in his right forearm, and after being shut down from throwing for the past three weeks, he won't be on track to open the season with the Astros. The fact that McCullers is now playing catch again can be viewed as a positive sign, however, and if he continues to avoid setbacks in what will likely be a month-long buildup program, he could be ready to slot back into the Houston rotation at some point in the second half of April.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Still not throwing
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McCullers (forearm) has yet to resume throwing, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
It's been three weeks since McCullers suffered a right forearm strain while throwing a bullpen session. The Astros quickly ruled the right-hander out for Opening Day after the injury, so it's not terribly surprising that he hasn't been cleared to resume throwing yet. Given McCullers' history of arm issues -- which includes a similar injury that he had last season -- the Astros will exercise the utmost caution here.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Not playing catch yet
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Astros manager Dusty Baker told reporters Sunday that McCullers (forearm) hasn't resumed playing catch yet, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
McCullers has been diagnosed with a small muscle strain in his right forearm and has already been ruled out for Opening Day. The right-hander is hopeful he can reach 150 innings in the 2023 campaign, but he's a very risky option for fantasy purposes as there's no clear timetable for a return.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Won't be ready for Opening Day
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McCullers (forearm) said Wednesday that he won't be ready to pitch at the start of the regular season after he underwent an MRI on Tuesday that revealed a "small muscle strain," Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Fortunately for McCullers, his MRI showed no structural damage to his forearm/elbow, but he'll still be shut down for at least the next couple of weeks on account of the muscle strain. The right-hander still believes that he'll be able to reach 150 innings this season, but his delayed start in making his 2023 debut means that he'll likely need to avoid any further setbacks with the elbow in addition to any other injury concerns in the months to come. With the depature of Justin Verlander this offseason via free agency, the depth of the Astros' rotation will be tested early in the campaign, though Houston has plenty of talented young arms to turn to in McCullers' stead. Hunter Brown is the most likely candidate to replace McCullers in the starting rotation early in the campaign, having produced a 0.89 ERA and 1.08 WHIP with 22 punchouts over 20.1 innings in seven appearances (including two starts) in his first major-league action last season. A clearer timeline for McCullers' season debut should come once he resumes throwing and starts facing hitters again, something that could happen late in spring training.
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Astros' Lance McCullers: Temporarily shut down
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McCullers (forearm) has been temporarily shut down from throwing, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Arm troubles limited McCullers to just eight starts last season, and while he doesn't seem to have a specific diagnosis beyond being "a little sore" at the moment, the fact that he's been shut down isn't encouraging. There's still plenty of time for this to turn out to be nothing more than a minor blip in McCullers' preparation for Opening Day, but he doesn't have the health track record to support a particularly optimistic outlook.
