No team wants to lose its closer in the middle of a playoff race, but the Houston Astros are in a particularly vulnerable position.

Josh Hader has been absolutely fantastic for the Astros this year, and he'd never spent time on the injured list in his entire nine-year career to this point, excluding a bout of COVID in 2021. But just as the playoff race was heating up, the lefty's shoulder started barking.

Hader went on the 15-day IL on Tuesday, but manager Joe Espada admitted Wednesday that the absence will take longer than those initial two weeks, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic.

"A punch to the gut," Espada called the loss, per Rome.

Espada told reporters on Wednesday that Hader was seeking a second opinion. Then, the skipper was asked if surgery was on the table.

"I'm not going

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