Astros catcher Evan Gattis dealing with shoulder soreness

Astros catcher/designated hitter/bearded man Evan Gattis can’t throw out the cliche of “being in the best shape of his life” entering Spring Training. Gattis said on Wednesday he was dealing with a sore right shoulder and had an anti-inflammatory injection — reports Fox 26’s Mark Berman.

Gattis, 30, batted .251 (112x447) with 58 runs scored, 32 home runs, 72 RBIs, and 124 OPS+. He split his time at designated hitter (71 games) and catcher (55 games). Gattis had much more success at the plate while playing catcher, batting .295 (56x190) with 19 home runs and 41 RBIs.

An injury to his right shoulder would affect Gattis’ ability to be effective throwing out runners from behind the plate. On top of the fact, that new acquisition Brian McCann will take the majority of the starts at catcher.

Gattis hasn’t been to do throwing practice but has been able to take batting practice since pitchers and catchers reported: