Jose Altuve to Injury List, Latest Updates on Astros Star After Leaving Game vs. Rangers

The Houston Astros decided Sunday to place second baseman Jose Altuve on the injured list with a Grade 2 left oblique strain, according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.

Per Chandler Rome of The Athletic, Altuve suffered the injury during a groundout in the eighth inning of Saturday's 4-1 win over the Texas Rangers.

Altuve was lifted from the game immediately, and he underwent an MRI prior to the Astros' 8-0 loss to the Rangers on Sunday.

Playing his 16th MLB season, all of which have been spent with the Astros, the 36-year-old Altuve has largely struggled during the early part of the campaign.

Through 42 games, Altuve is slashing .245/.326/.380 with four home runs, 12 RBI, 27 runs scored and one stolen base.

It is unfamiliar territory for Altuve, who is among the most accomplished second basemen in MLB history with nine All-Star selections, seven Silver Slugger awards, three batting titles, two World Series titles, one Gold Glove Award and one American League MVP Award to his credit.

Altuve boasts a career slash line of .302/.360/.464, and he hit 20 or more home runs in four of the five previous seasons entering 2026.

While Altuve's .265 batting average last season was the worst of his career with the exception of the COVID-shortened campaign in 2020, he still managed to produce with 26 homers and 77 RBI.

Altuve is far off that pace this season, and now he is set to miss some time for an Astros team that already has a laundry list of injuries.

Key players currently on the IL for Houston include shortstops Jeremy Peña and Carlos Correa, outfielder Jake Meyers, catcher Yainer Díaz, starting pitchers Hunter Brown, Ronel Blanco and Cristian Javier, and closer Josh Hader, among others.

Peña and Meyers are expected to be activated Monday, according to Rome, and the offensive reinforcements could not possibly come soon enough.

At 19-29, the Astros are fourth in the AL West, and they trail the division-leading Athletics by 5.5 games.

With so many injuries, particularly on the infield, Houston has had to lean heavily on some unexpected names, such as Brice Matthews, Braden Shewmake and Nick Allen.

Even with Peña returning, that will continue with Altuve landing on the IL, and that figures to place even more pressure on the likes of Yordan Alvarez, Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes to carry the offense.