Houston Astros star second baseman Jose Altuve had surgery Wednesday on his broken right thumb, an injury that occurred when he was hit by a pitch on Saturday while playing for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic quarterfinals against the United States.
Astros general manager Dana Brown told reporters Wednesday that Altuve will not be able to “resume baseball activity” for two months, which means his 2023 season debut with the Astros will likely come sometime well after that date.
The Astros announced that the 32-year-old Altuve had the procedure done in Houston and will stay there to begin his rehabilitation, with only one week left in spring training. The Astros will fly there on Sunday following their final Grapefruit League game in Florida, before playing a pair of exhibitions against their Triple-A team, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, in Texas.
Altuve, an eight-time All-Star and the 2017 American League MVP, batted .300 with 103 runs, 28 homers and 18 steals for the World Series champion Astros last season. Mauricio Dubón and David Hensley are the leading candidates to fill in for Altuve at second base until his return.
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Altuve hit by pitch, exits
Venezuela’s Jose Altuve was drilled by a pitch and came out of the game vs. the USA in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.
Altuve is not the only MLB star who was hurt in World Baseball Classic play. Mets closer Edwin Díaz will miss the 2023 season because of a torn patellar tendon in his right knee as the freak result of an on-field celebration after he closed out a WBC win for Puerto Rico. Altuve’s Astros teammate Kyle Tucker is also currently day-to-day after hitting a foul ball off his ankle while batting for Team USA in that same Saturday game against Venezuela.
The United States beat Venezuela 9-7 in that game and eventually advanced to the championship round before losing to Japan 3-2 on Tuesday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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