The Houston Astros‘ pitching crisis got worse Sunday when starter Cody Bolton left the mound in the second inning of a game in Seattle against the Mariners with an apparent injury. Bolton now joins new free-agent acquisition Tatsuya Imai, 2025 Cy Young candidate Hunter Brown, and 7-year veteran Cristian Javier on the list of injured Astros starting pitchers.
In his previous start on Monday, Bolton took a 102 mph line drive off the back in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies. The Astros starter stayed in the game, but he said that he felt tightness Sunday in the same spot where he was struck by the line drive, according to Astros correspondent Chandler Rome of The Athletic.
Next for Bolton will be new imaging on the back injury, Rome reported.
The crisis has left manager Joe Espada scrambling, especially with Astros pitchers struggling on the mound as well as with the injury bug.
“We’re having a tough time as a unit throwing strikes,” Espada said Friday, after Javier landed on the 15-day injured list and Imai was sent back to Houston with “fatigue” in his pitching arm. “We’re working trying to make our adjustments, but it takes a toll on our staff.”
Bolton’s apparent injury was initially reported by MLB.com Astros beat writer Brian McTaggart.
“Unbelievable. Astros starting pitcher Cody Bolton is leaving this game in the second inning after a mound visit from a trainer. The Astros have already sent three starting pitchers home with injuries on this trip,” McTaggart wrote.
What the Astros pitching struggles mean for the team’s hitters is also quickly becoming clear.
Astros Pitching Has Let the Offense Down
Bolton came into the game with a respectable 3.71 ERA in one previous start and one relief appearance. But it was clear something was wrong as the 27-year-old right-hander seemed lost from the beginning of Sunday’s game. He hit the first batter he faced, Brendan Donovan, but after quickly retiring Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodríguez, Bolton gave up a walk and a hit, followed by a Randy Arozarena RBI single before getting out of the inning.
Bolton then came out in the second inning and walked the first three batters before leaving due to the back injury.
But Bolton’s struggles were typical of Astros pitchers in the early going of the 2026 MLB season. As USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale noted on Sunday, “The Houston Astros went 0-6 last week despite scoring six or more runs in four of the games. They gave up eight or more runs in five of the losses.”
Javier was carrying a 12.54 ERA in three starts before hitting the IL, and Imai, who came over from Japan’s Seibu Lions on a three-year, $54 million contract, had allowed seven earned runs in 8 2/3 innings so far for a 7.27 ERA across his first three starts.
Bolton Made Comeback From Near Tragedy
The severity of Bolton’s back injury has not yet been disclosed, but the injury is particularly heartbreaking after Bolton made an inspiring comeback from a near-fatal car accident just one year ago, as the Houston Chronicle reported.
On April 29, 2025, just 10 days after making what turned out to be his only appearance with the Cleveland Guardians and subsequently being optioned to Triple-A, Bolton’s car was rear-ended by a truck.
“Bolton, the 27-year-old right-hander, said he was driving with his wife and their dog in the car when he slowed due to cars slowing ahead of them, apparently due to something in the road,” the Chronicle reported. “Bolton said he was at a near stop when the truck struck the back of their car ‘going like 60 or 70 mph.'”
The accident injured his pitching arm, leaving Bolton fearing he would never pitch again. The Guardians released him in June, and the Astros gave Bolton a minor league contract a month later. At the end of March, the Astros called Bolton up to the major league roster.
Astros Cody Bolton Injury Update: What’s Next For Latest Injured Pitcher