Spring Training Hope Comes With a Familiar Astros Fear This is the week baseball fans have been waiting for. Pitchers and catchers are reporting to spring training, and with that, the long offseason finally gives way to possibility. For Astros fans, it’s the chance to put last season firmly in the rearview mirror and focus […]
Spring Training Hope Comes With a Familiar Astros Fear
This is the week baseball fans have been waiting for. Pitchers and catchers are reporting to spring training, and with that, the long offseason finally gives way to possibility. For Astros fans, it’s the chance to put last season firmly in the rearview mirror and focus on what still lies ahead during another year of the Golden Era of Houston baseball.
But as much as I want to lean fully into optimism, there’s already a familiar knot forming in my stomach.
The excitement of a fresh start is real. So is the hope that this team, one that played quality baseball for most of last season, can bounce back and reassert itself as a legitimate contender. Yet before workouts have even started, one lingering issue from the past has already resurfaced, and it’s the same one that has haunted this franchise for the last several years: injuries and how they’re handled.
On Monday, ESPN’s Buster Olney reported that All-Star closer Josh Hader has begun throwing lightly on flat ground, with the Astros expecting to learn more about his readiness for the season sometime midweek. On the surface, that may not sound alarming. But for those of us who have lived through the Astros’ recent medical misadventures, it was enough to make us cringe.
We’ve seen this movie before.
Over the past several seasons, the Astros have been plagued not just by injuries, but by what felt like repeated missteps, vague timelines, and frustrating outcomes tied to player health. Whether it was pitchers, position players, or cornerstone stars, too many situations ended with prolonged absences and more questions than answers. Last year, it cost the team dearly, contributing to an unthinkable finish: a strong regular season that still ended with Houston on the outside looking in at the postseason.
That’s why the organization’s decision to clean house and make wholesale changes to the medical staff this offseason felt like a necessary reset. For the first time in a while, there was real hope that the Astros were finally ready to turn the page on the constant cycle of setbacks, misdiagnoses, and lost time.
Which is why hearing even a mildly concerning update on Hader this early hits differently.
When you start stacking the names, Isaac Paredes, multiple pitchers including Christian Javier and Luis Garcia, Josh Hader, Jake Meyers, and even Kyle Tucker the year before, it’s hard not to feel exhausted and disgusted by the pattern. Astros fans have been conditioned to brace for the worst, not because we want to, but because history has taught us to.
Call it PTSD. Call it precedent. Whatever the label, it’s hard to shake.
To be clear, this may amount to nothing. Hader could ramp up without issue, be fully ready for Opening Day, and anchor the bullpen the way he’s supposed to. That’s the outcome everyone is hoping for, and I genuinely want to believe that the Astros are better positioned, both on and off the field, when it comes to player health moving forward.
But until we actually see a noticeable difference, skepticism is fair.
Spring training is supposed to be about clean slates and renewed belief. Starting the season with injury uncertainty, especially involving a key arm like Hader, doesn’t exactly inspire confidence. I’ll keep my fingers crossed and stay hopeful for positive news in the coming weeks.
Just don’t blame me if, for now, I’m already fearing the worst.
Category: General Sports
