Houston Astros fans react as Jose Altuve’s sore oblique not as bad as what he experienced earlier this season: "Potentially excellent news" 

Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was scratched from Tuesday's game due to a sore left oblique, but he has not yet been put on the injured list.

Astros general manager Dana Brown told reporters Wednesday that Altuve's ailing oblique is not as bad as a similar injury he suffered earlier this season. However, the superstar second baseman is likely still going to be out through next week's All-Star break.

"I don't think there's any rush to bring him back," Brown said.

Jose Altuve tweaked his left oblique while taking batting practice prior to the Astros' 4-1 defeat of the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday. Houston capped a two-game sweep of the visiting Rockies on Wednesday, winning 6-4 with Mauricio Dubon going 2-for-4 with one RBI while playing second in Altuve's absence.

The Astros sent Jose Altuve for an MRI while the team played on Wednesday. Brown said that the team will review the test results on Thursday before determining whether an IL stint is necessary for the 33-year-old superstar.

Since Altuve has not played since Monday, an IL trip could be made retroactive to Tuesday. That would make him eligible to return to the team's lineup for its first post-All-Star game on July 14 against the Los Angeles Angels.

Jose Altuve sat out the beginning of the season due to a fractured right thumb suffered while playing in the World Baseball Classic. He returned to the lineup on May 19, but sat out from June 3-6 due to a similar oblique injury.

This season, Altuve is batting .264 with six home runs and 18 RBIs.

Altuve has been the on-field leader of the Astros for much of his 13-year MLB career spent entirely with Houston. He won the 2017 American League Most Valuable Player award after leading the majors with a .346 batting average to go with 24 home runs and 81 RBIs in a season that saw the Astros win the organization's first World Series championship.

Jose Altuve an important cog for Houston Astros

Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros slides in to score.

Although he's batting 42 points lower than his career average of .306, Altuve remains an important cog for the Astros. He is signed to a seven-year, $163.5 million contract that runs through next season.

In 13 years with the Astros, Altuve is an eight-time All-Star and a six-time Silver Slugger with three AL batting titles and one Gold Glove.