Why were Luis Garcia and Jose Urquidy put on 15-day IL?

On Sunday, Houston Astros starting pitcher Jose Urquidy was placed on the 15-day IL with right shoulder discomfort. Then on Monday, Astros starting pitcher Luis Garcia injured his right elbow after only eight pitches. This right elbow discomfort landed him on the 15-day IL.

Urquidy will be shut down for 10 days, and his MRI showed inflammation near his shoulder. Also, he’s not getting the proper shoulder rotation because of the inflammation.

Before injuring his right shoulder, Urquidy threw three strikeouts in his last start for the Astros.

Garcia said to reporters after the game that he didn’t feel a pop, but his pain in the elbow grew the more he pitched. This was the first time he’s had this issue all season.

In Garcia’s last start before the right elbow injury, he threw seven strikeouts. This season he’s thrown over 85 pitches in all five of his starts.

The Astros’ injury list is starting to mount up after the Urquidy and Garcia injuries. The 16-14 team already had pitcher Lance McCullers Jr and position players Chas McCormick, Michael Brantley, and Jose Altuve out.

Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker told reporters that the World Baseball Classic had a lot to do with Luis Garcia and Jose Urquidy's injuries.

Furthermore, Astros star player Jose Altuve was injured after participating in the World Baseball Classic.

Baseball already plays the most games (162) out of the three major American sports (football, basketball, and baseball), and the Astros played extra games on the way to winning the 2022 World Series. So, the additional exhibition and playoff games could lead to injury.