It didn’t take long for the Astros’ efforts to build pitching depth this offseason to be derailed by a familiar problem: injuries.
Less than a month into the 2026 campaign, this is not the position the Astros wanted to find themselves in again. After missing the playoffs for the first time since 2018, they were highly motivated to ensure they weren’t watching from the comfort of their own home two years in a row.
Unfortunately, the early stretch of the season has not gone as planned. With a growing number of pitchers on the injured list, the outlook for Houston’s pitching staff is becoming one of the team’s biggest concerns.
Between Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, Nate Pearson, and Josh Hader, all dealing with injuries, Houston’s pitching depth is starting to thin out quickly.
The pitcher originally expected to help stabilize things was Tatsuya Imai, but his performance and availability have both become issues early on. After a few rough outings on the road, Imai was sent back to Houston from Seattle due to arm fatigue. Further testing revealed no indication of structural damage in the right-hander. He will now focus on rebuilding strength before returning to the mound.
Imai is in his first MLB season after seven years with the Seibu Lions in Japan, and the transition to life in the United States has proven to be challenging. Even with expectations of an adjustment period, he is still working to settle into his new environment.
One of the Houston Astros’ key offseason signings on a 3-year, $54 million deal, Imai has had a rocky start to his first season. He’s shown flashes of dominance, including six scoreless innings against the Athletics, but has also had two short, ineffective outings, including a one-third of an inning against Seattle.
While some of the challenges he’s cited include adjustments to MLB baseballs, mound differences, weather, and lifestyle changes, the overall story so far has been inconsistency and early struggles as both Imai and the Astros try to settle into the season.
Some of the reasoning sounds like excuses, and placing a player on the 15-day injured list with no clear signs of injury is certainly questionable, but he likely just needs time to settle in. It is doubtful that the mound in Seattle was too hard or that it was too chilly, and more likely that MLB is a major adjustment for the Japanese pitcher.