When Could Cristian Javier Return from Injury to Astros Starting Rotation?

The Houston Astros still have quite a few injured starting pitchers, but Cristian Javier may be ready to remove himself from the list.

Javier made his latest rehab start with Triple-A Sugar Land on Tuesday. The next day, Astros manager Joe Espada told reporters, including The Athletic on X (formerly Twitter) that Javier was positioned to make his next start in the Majors.

That would naturally depend upon Javier’s recovery from the game.

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When Cristian Javier Could Start for Astros

Houston Astros starting pitcher Cristian Javier throws while wearing a white jersey and dark blue hat — May 16, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Cristian Javier (53) delivers a pitch during the fourth inning against the Oakland Athletics at Minute Maid Park. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Most Major League teams, including the Astros, prefer starters to pitch every fifth day. Based on Javier’s start with Sugar Land, that would be Sunday in their finale against the New York Yankees.

Given Javier’s injury — he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2024 — the Astros might want to give him an extra day of rest before handing him the ball.

Hunter Brown was set to start against the Yankees on Friday. The Astros have set up left-handed ace Framber Valdez to start Saturday’s game. Sunday’s finale is to be determined.

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That could be Javier’s slot, but it likely won’t be. The Athletic’s Chandler Rome, who reported Espada’s comment, also reported that Javier was more likely to start for the Astros during their upcoming homestand, which starts on Monday against Boston.

Slotting Javier there, or at any point during the three-game series, would give the Astros a chance to give their top two starters an extra day of rest. For instance, Brown and Valdez could both get pushed back to the Baltimore series that starts on Aug. 15 As of now, only Valdez will likely get that luxury.

It would also give Javier a week of rest before his first MLB start of the season.

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Javier’s Injury Issues

He had season-ending Tommy John surgery last June and is 14 months into the recovery. Typically, a pitcher can return from the surgery in anywhere from 12-18 months.

Before that, the 28-year-old had avoided injuries at the Major League level since his debut in 2020. He made 12 starts in the 60-game COVID season of 2020. After that, he made at least 30 starts in each of the next three seasons as part of the Astros’ rotation.

He is 33-18 with a 3.59 ERA for his career. He was a part of the Astros’ 2022 World Series championship team.

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