Astros Ace Races Against Time: Veteran RHP Battles to Return from Oblique Injury
The Houston Astros have been dealing with quite a wide variety of injuries this spring across their whole roster. Recently signed first baseman Christian Walker being one of the most notable players to go down so far, but also Lance McCullers, Jalen Beeks, Shawn Dubin, Pedro León, Taylor Trammell, and the topic of today’s article, Kaleb Ort.
Ort has had a very interesting career trajectory, as he started off with the New York Yankees, but would not be called up for his MLB debut until he was selected in the Rule 5 Draft by the Boston Red Sox in 2021. He would play in 47 games for the Red Sox, and was for the most part, brutal, posting a combined 6.27 ERA, 1.703 WHIP, 51 strikeouts to 25 walks, and gave up 10 home runs in 51.2 innings of work.
This poor level of play led to him being placed on outright waivers and was claimed multiple times by three different teams before being traded to the Baltimore Orioles, put on waivers again, and then claimed by the Astros to complete the cycle.
In 2024 he would perform exceptionally well, putting together a 2.55 ERA, 0.811 Whip, with 26 strikeouts to four walks, and seven home runs allowed in 24.2 innings. Despite the high home run number, they were predominantly solo-shots, so he got away with it nearly scot-free.
Now in 2025, he has missed the entirety of spring training with an oblique injury, which was only described as a tweak but the team is being cautious with him as they work towards Opening Day. Recently news has come out that is positive regarding his recovery, as Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported that Ort threw off the mound on March 11.
This is a huge step towards him coming back, and making his Grapefruit League debut in the near future. Throwing off the mound is one of the first components to any type of injury, but primarily those in the legs and abdomen as it gives the player a feel for activating those muscles again. Ort will then likely have to go through a few other steps, such as short bullpen sessions against teammates, before making his debut.
Regardless, the team finally showing some positive steps on the injury front is a great sign, as they are beginning to get healthy at the right time, and ramping up their activity levels as Opening Day grows ever closer.
