When anyone thinks about Jose Altuve and who he is, they may say postseason performer for his 23 career home runs in the playoffs, hit machine, one of the best second basemen of this generation, a champion, and humble.
After his recent set of events, Altuve has earned another name. That is Wolverine. Why? It’s because of his incredibly fast healing abilities from injuries. That was proved after his recent Grade 2 oblique strain, sustained on May 16. This was right after the Astros’ brutal stretch of injuries at the start of the year that almost drove their season off the rails.
Jose Altuve Demonstrated This Superhuman Trait in June
Right when the Astros started to get some wins on their belt, Altuve suddenly was taken out of a game mid-at-bat against the Texas Rangers in the eighth inning with strong discomfort. He couldn’t even swing his bat. This felt quite concerning when it happened, given Carlos Correa was already out for the season.
The Grade 2 oblique strain involves a slight tear of the muscle, and the usual recovery time is between four and six weeks. That’s not the shortest timespan on the injured list, and given how the season had started with injuries, this was not ideal.
Most believed that Altuve would be out for at least one month and likely wouldn’t return until late June. The good news for the Astros was that even without Altuve, the team started to get on a roll towards the end of the month and finished strong.
Jose Altuve Was Eager to Get Back
While the offense kept the pace up as Jeremy Peña and Jake Meyers returned, it was the starting pitching that came into its own. Even then, Altuve wasn’t going to sit and wait at all. He was already preparing and going through his extremely quick recovery from the injury. In just a week after the injury, Altuve was already doing baseball activities and started to swing the bat in the batting cages.
He never even had to go through a rehab assignment in the minor leagues and stayed with the big league team during his incredibly fast recovery. As another week passed, Altuve was remarkably just about getting to return. Getting the swing back up to 100 percent is key for any oblique injury. Even though this was a Grade 2, Altuve was swinging like normal in just two weeks.
Jose Altuve’s Speedy Recovery History
Even at 36 years old in his 16th major league season, Altuve’s recovery is beyond fast. It’s superhuman-like. This isn’t a new phenomenon. Altuve has generally been a fast healer throughout his career. He also suffered an oblique injury in 2023 and returned well before the initial timeline. It’s a great sign for the Astros. Altuve missed just two and a half weeks and made his return on June 5 against the Athletics.
What He’s Done Since
He got a hit in his first game back and then announced to everyone that he was completely back with a home run on June 6. Altuve then had back-to-back games with a homer, none more important than the one he hit on June 13th in Kansas City. Down 7-5 in the eighth inning, Altuve launched a clutch two-run bomb that tied the game. The Astros eventually won 8-7.
Altuve has rotated throughout the lineup, sometimes hitting leadoff or in the middle of the lineup around fifth. He also had a big game with two hits and a homer against Cleveland on June 19. While Altuve has 17 hits in 21 games, his numbers are low overall as of June 29, with a .654 OPS and .215 AVG. Either way, he’s still a very vital part of the lineup, and his veteran experience can always deliver in the biggest moments. Altuve is still the heart and soul of this team.
Main Photo Credits: Erik Williams-Imagn Images
