Astros Disaster: Springer Hurt
Astros disaster: George Springer injured, putting cornerstone visions at risk
George Springer played arguably his best game as a Houston Astro. And then it all fell apart.
Springer injured himself trying to scramble back to first base on a Jered Weaver pick off in the ninth inning in Anaheim. The cornerstone young player the Astros are planning to build didn't just not make it back to the base. He awkwardly lunged and twisted himself around to the extent that he got hurt.
It sure didn't look good for a quick recovery. Springer appeared to be in obvious pain in the dugout.
Springer hobbled to the dugout and then had to be helped down the steps by teammates and trainers. As the game ended a batter later (in a 2-1 Wednesday night Astros loss), the Houston players stayed in the dugout surrounding Springer, who was getting worked on by trainers. Everyone wanted to see if the face of the franchise would be OK.
It sure didn't look good for a quick recovery. Springer appeared to be in obvious pain in the dugout.
When Astros manager Bo Porter met with the media after the game he called Springer's injury "a right quad" or "hip flexor."
"His leg kind of gave out on him," Porter said in remarks broadcast live by CSN Houston. "He obviously was in some pain."
The kind of pain that makes walking difficult. He needed to be helped from the dugout to the clubhouse as well. Springer is the one player, the real hope for the future already at the Major League level, that the Astros can least afford to lose to injury.
Springer getting hurt on the same night he made a great catch in the outfield that robbed the Angels of a run and hit a deep bomb for his fourth home run since being called up only adds to the club's pain. Astros starter Collin McHugh called Springer "a crazy athlete" in an interview with CSN.
That athletic ability couldn't save Springer on the fateful ninth inning lunge.
The early word is that Springer won't immediately get an MRI and will instead see how the leg responds to ice and treatment. Considering how much the Astros have invested in Springer, it will be interesting to see if that first plan is overruled.
"We'll see how he feels (Thursday)," Porter says.
The Astros future only depends on it. An extended injury stint for Springer wouldn't only possibly slow the already 24-year-old player's development. It would remove a big part of any good feeling fans have for this current Astros team from the picture.
