Houston Astros star leaves game Monday with injury fears

The Houston Astros saw their star outfielder leave the game Monday after a foul ball in the third inning. Against Kyle Gibson and the St. Louis Cardinals, Kyle Tucker fouled a ball to the shin and found himself in immense pain.

Tucker stood at home plate with the coach, constantly grabbing his shin and grimacing.

When he tried to walk, it seemed like he could barely put weight on his right leg. He limped for a while, but eventually grabbed his helmet and bat to continue his appearance at the plate.

After fetching pine tar and heading to the batter’s box, Tucker was still limping and turned toward the dugout before getting pulled.

Obviously he couldn’t continue in such pain as he was replaced by Mauricio Dubon to take his place.

If the Astros lost Tucker for an extended period of time, it would be a major blow.

He leads the team in virtually every offensive category, is tied for second in baseball in home runs with 19 and fifth in bWAR with 3.5. One of their most consistent hitters since his debut, he is having a breakout season so far and is in the thick of the AL MVP race.

With no updates likely before the game, Houston will be holding its breath for the All-Star outfielder to get a clean bill of health.

The Astros were 26-34 heading into Monday’s action and will need Tucker and his 178 OPS+ to get back into both Wild Card and division contention.