Houston Astros manager Joe Espada announced on Tuesday that infielder Carlos Correa will not return this season. Correa experienced left ankle soreness while rehabbing at the team’s West Palm Beach facility, ending hopes for a late-season comeback and shifting his focus to 2027.
The Houston Astros will be without Carlos Correa for the remainder of the 2026 Major League Baseball season. Astros manager Joe Espada delivered the news to reporters on Tuesday afternoon, halting a high-stakes rehab effort that had brought the infielder to the verge of a minor league assignment.
Ankle Soreness Halts Spring Training Rehab in Florida
Correa had spent roughly 10 days working out at the team’s facility in West Palm Beach, Florida, with the expectation of beginning a minor league rehab assignment with Triple-A Sugar Land as early as this week. However, the increased volume of baseball activity—ranging from fielding ground balls and sprinting near full effort to facing live batting practice—proved too much for his surgically repaired left ankle.
The buildup the last couple of days has really been tough. … It’s kind of created some soreness and stuff like that.
Joe Espada, Houston Astros Manager
Espada noted that the daily grind of baseball workouts created persistent inflammation in the joint, making it difficult for Correa to get going in the mornings. While Espada avoided calling the flare-up a technical setback in terms of structural re-injury, the shrinking calendar before the September 27 regular-season finale forced the organization’s hand. Chandler Rome of The Athletic reported that Correa planned to return to the team’s spring training facility in Florida this week to meet with doctors and potentially receive clearance for a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sugar Land.
Surgery Recovery Timeline and the Road to 2027
Correa underwent surgery on his left ankle on May 11 that was expected to keep him out six to eight months. He was slashing .279/.369/.418 with three homers and 16 RBIs in 32 games before injuring himself while swinging in the batting cages. He slashed .290/.355/.430 with six homers and 21 RBIs in 51 games for the Astros in 2025 after the Trade Deadline move back to Houston. He was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 MLB Draft out of Puerto Rico and blossomed into a star and franchise icon in Houston, leading the Astros to six trips to the playoffs, including three American League pennants.
Despite the long odds, the possibility of him making a late-season return eventually became real. According to Associated Press coverage, Correa was scheduled to return to Houston on Wednesday to visit doctors and monitor his progress, with the ultimate objective now firmly fixed on a healthy start to spring training in 2027. At the time of his surgery, Correa said he expected to be healthy and full strength for the start of spring training in 2027.
The most important thing for him now is to focus on next season.
Joe Espada, Houston Astros Manager
Playoff Push and Lineup Configuration for the Astros
The decision leaves the Astros to navigate the stretch run without an offensive reinforcement. Houston entered Tuesday night’s game against the Royals one game ahead of the Texas Rangers in first place in the AL West and, according to FanGraphs, had 79.5 percent odds to make the playoffs.
Had Correa managed to return, reports from MLB.com and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic indicated the team considered deploying him at second base—a position he has never played in the majors—to accommodate Jeremy Peña at shortstop and Isaac Paredes at third base, with Peña and Paredes figuring among the players most productive alongside Yordan Álvarez. With that scenario off the table, Houston must rely on its existing infield mix and continue its playoff push without him.
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