Astros' Jose Altuve Leaves with Apparent Injury vs. Brewers in 4th Game off IL

Jose Altuve may be facing another stint on the injured list.

Just four games after returning to the lineup after recovering from a fractured right thumb, Altuve left Tuesday's matchup against the Milwaukee Brewers with an apparent injury.

The injury appeared to occur while he was fielding a ground ball in the sixth inning.

The 33-year-old Altuve has generally been a consistent fixture in Houston's lineup, playing 146 games in 2021 and 141 games last year. Since 2012, he's played in 124 or more games each season outside of the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign (he played 48 games that year).

For most teams, losing a former MVP, eight-time All-Star, two-time champion and three-time batting champion would be an enormous blow. But the Astros went 25-19 without him and Mauricio Dubón was fantastic as his replacement at second base, hitting .307 with a homer, nine RBI and 29 runs.

Of course, that success didn't come as a surprise to Dubón himself.

"I can only control what I can control, but I'm always ready to play," he told reporters last week. "It's no surprise, the success I'm having. It's just a matter of having the opportunity."

Altuve was certainly grateful for Dubón's presence.

"We're really lucky to have him, especially the way he played, the kind of teammate he is in the clubhouse," he said. "He's a big part of this organization and he played second and he was really good. That's All-Star numbers. Hopefully, he'll continue to play and get a chance to go to Seattle [for the All-Star Game] this year."

Given Altuve's latest knock, it's possible Dubón will be called into significant action yet again.