What happened to Jose Urquidy? Astros pitcher exits start against Phillies in sixth inning after errant pitch

Houston Astros pitcher Jose Urquidy walked off the mound gingerly with a sore shoulder in the sixth inning of Sunday night's 4-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Facing Nick Castellanos, the Astros' starter failed to continue his start to the game where he threw 5.1 innings, surrendered three hits and two earned runs, had one walk and struck out three.

"José Urquidy is leaving the game with a trainer. Martín Maldonado called them out after a changeup sailed way outside" - @Chandler_Rome

The righty, who turns 29 on Monday has seen his importance grow for the Astros after the departure of Cy Young winner Justin Verlander in free agency and Lance McCullers Jr.'s injury in Spring Training. Hunter Brown's emergence has come as a welcome boost to the defending champions' pitching, but losing the experienced Urquidy as a starter would be a serious test of Houston's starting depth.

When is Jose Urquidy expected to return from injury?

Houston Astros cannot afford to lose yet another starter due to injury. (Jose Urquidy #65 pitching for Houston Astros against Philadelphia Phillies at Minute Maid Park, April 30) (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images)

Houston Astros players regrouped after the loss of their pivotal starter and pulled out the win on the back of Alex Bregman's clutch performance. However, there is still cause for concern for the club regarding Urquidy's injury. After the game, the pitcher shared a positive update with fans about his injury status.

“I felt a little bit of pain in the back of my shoulder. The last pitch, I was trying to throw a sinker there and I felt something a little bit weak in my shoulder and I decided to stop.” - Jose Urquidy

“Everything is good now, so let’s see tomorrow how I wake up” - Jose Uqruidy

Astros reporter Mark Berman shared a further update about his injury

If test results come back clean, the Astros may not have to place Urquidy on the IL at all since the team has an off-day on Thursday. However, if the team does err on the side of caution, Urquidy might find himself on the 15-day IL.