It’s really good to have Jose Altuve back. The 2017 AL MVP has been a fixture of the Astros’ lineup for years, and the month of games he was out, the team’s lineup just didn’t look quite right. Obviously, Jose alone wasn’t responsible for the team turning into a 20-run-a-game juggernaut, but those types of games do show why he was so missed.
Of course even before his injury, something still seemed a little off about Houston’s lineup this year, and some of that was Altuve’s struggles. Given that we know that he would need to eventually go on the Injured List, it makes more sense now, but on April 13th, the three-time batting champion reached the highest point for his batting average on the young season (outside of a 2-4 performance on Opening Day, or course) at .