Astros starter Jake Odorizzi was carted off the field during tonight’s game against the Red Sox. The right-hander broke to cover first base after that Enrique Hernandez hitting a groundball to the right side of the infield. He stumbled off the hill and fell to the ground in pain; He was eventually carted off the field.
The team has yet to provide a major update and only note that he left the game due to a left lower leg ailment. Club officials want to announce more details after the game. Given the nature of the injury, it would be a real surprise if the veteran didn’t need a stint on the injury list. Whether he faces a particularly notable absence will be known after he undergoes further testing.
Odorizzi has made seven starts and pitched 31 2/3 innings this season. He has a solid 3.13 ERA, but that comes with below-average strikeout, walk, and groundball marks. Odorizzi capitalized on his opponent’s meager .258 batting average on balls in play while allowing just one home run against 128 batters.
The Astros have deployed a six-man rotation, with Justin Verlander, Christian Javier, Jose Urquidy, Luis Garcia and Framber Valdez joins Odorizzi in the starting XI. That group was among the most effective in the game, and pitching coach Josh Miller told reporters ahead of today’s contest that they planned to stay with the six-man team (link via Houston Chronicle’s Chandler Rome). Odorizzi’s absence would obviously affect the make-up of that group, leaving it up to the Astros to decide whether to return to a five-man rotation or request reinforcements as is Brandon Bielak or Peter Solomon by Triple-A Sugar Land.
A longer absence from Odorizzi could be very expensive for him personally. He signed an incentive deal with the club at the end of the 2020-21 off-season. Odorizzi is playing with a base salary of $5 million this season; He would trigger a $500,000 incentive for reaching 100 innings pitched, with additional bonuses of $1M+ for every 10 innings thereafter up to 160 frames. His deal also includes a $6.5 million player option for next season, which comes with a $3.25 million buyout; Both the option price and the buyout number would escalate if Odorizzi makes at least 20 starts this year.