HOUSTON (SportsRadio 610)- Jose Altuve said he felt good enough to finish his at bat in the fifth inning on Wednesday night after summoning manager Joe Espada and trainer Jeremiah Randall from the Astros dugout, so when he squared around to bunt with two strikes on the next pitch, Espada grew concerned.
"He felt something between those 10-15 seconds when he got back in the batter's box, raised his hands," Espada said Thursday. "He's like 'No, you know what, I'm going to be cautious here, I'm going to bunt here with two strikes.'
"I didn't want to see that."
Altuve was removed from the game right after due to right side discomfort. He was not in the Astros lineup for Thursday's series finale against the Oakland A's, but he arrived at Minute Maid Park feeling better than expected.
"He's doing better," Espada said. "I thought he was going to come in and be more sore, especially after the way he looked yesterday, but he's day-to-day."
Altuve was throwing a medicine ball against the wall in the trainer's room on Thursday morning, so Espada is hopeful he won't have to miss a lot of time.
The Astros did add an infielder to their active roster by recalling Grae Kessinger from Sugar Land. Chas McCormick was placed on the injured list after suffering a fracture to his right hand on Tuesday night.
