Kyle Tucker Is Officially Back After Houston Astros Activate Him off IL

After a long wait, the Houston Astros finally have their superstar outfielder back in the mix.

Aug 16, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros right fielder Kyle Tucker (30) works out prior to the game against the Chicago White Sox at Minute Maid Park / Erik Williams-Imagn Images

The strange saga surrounding Kyle Tucker and the Houston Astros has finally come to an end.

After taking a foul ball of his shin during their game on June 3, he went from having a day-to-day designation, to being placed on the short-term injured list, to missing the All-Star Game, and then to being moved to the 60-day IL.

Everything surrounding this situation was odd.

And as it turns out, it wasn't a shin contusion he was dealing with like the Astros routinely stated, it was actually a fractured shin that prevented him from returning to the field quickly like initially was expected.

But, on Friday, Tucker is now officially back with Houston after they activated him off the injured list.

TODAY’S ROSTER MOVES:

- OF Kyle Tucker has been reinstated from the 60-day IL.

- IF Zach Dezenzo has been optioned to Triple A Sugar Land.

- LHP Parker Mushinski has been designated for assignment.

— Houston Astros (@astros) September 6, 2024

It goes without saying, this is huge news for the Astros.

Before going down with his injury, Tucker was firmly in the American League MVP conversation as he was on pace to put up the most prolific year of his career.

Through 60 games, he had 19 homers and 40 RBI, putting him well on his way to smashing his single-season high of 30 home runs and going over the 100 RBI mark for the third year in a row.

It's tough to expect Tucker to just jump into Major League Baseball after his prolonged absence and dominate like he had done early in the season, so getting him back at this point on the calendar gives him just under a month to ramp up before the playoffs.