Christian Vázquez has served as an uplifting presence for the Astros, who aren’t having their best start to the season.
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In the midst of an eight-game losing streak on the road, the Houston Astros’ group text lit up.
“You see a group message to the team [from Christian Vázquez], like, ‘Hey, keep grinding boys. It’s going to turn,'” Astros’ pitcher Lance McCullers told Chron. “‘We’re a great team. Don’t forget that. We’re going through a tough time. Doesn’t mean anything other than that. It’s early, and everything’s amplified when it’s early.’ He’s like, ‘You know, we’re gonna turn this thing around. Let’s get back home. Let’s win some series.’ He’s just always uplifting people—he’s a great teammate.”
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Vázquez, a last-minute addition to the team on a minor-league deal during Spring Training, is on his second stint with the Astros. He started his career with the Boston Red Sox, even playing against the Astros in the 2018 and 2021 American League Championship Series before being traded to the team in August 2022.
“I know that period of time when he got traded—it was a little bit of a shock to him,” McCullers said. “Just because the Red Sox were still kind of in it, obviously. You never really know what you’re gonna get in a situation like that. But he’s been the same amazing guy since day one.”
Much of Vázquez’s first season in Houston was overshadowed by Martín Maldonado, who was the team’s starting catcher and vocal leader. However Vázquez did play a pivotal role in that year’s title run, catching the combined no-hitter against the Phillies in Game 4 of the 2022 World Series.
Now he’s back as the veteran catcher, even as backup to a young Yainer Diaz, and it’s his turn to lead the clubhouse. His method are old school, but they’re appreciated. He’s gotten his teammates hooked on UV lamps in the clubhouse to improve mood and bought a celebratory blue and orange Astros-themed cowboy hat for anyone who hits a home run.
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“Just one of those guys who, at this point in his career, is that veteran catcher that front offices around baseball wouldn’t necessarily put a lot of emphasis on, but someone so critical and so crucial for clubhouses—development of young guys, development for young catchers,” McCullers told Chron. “He’s just someone who should always be in a clubhouse as long as he wants to. He reminds me of Maldonado or Brian McCann toward the end of his career.”
Carlos Correa met Vázquez when he signed with the Minnesota Twins in 2022, but Vázquez wasn’t fond of Correa. He thought he was cocky after Correa’s post-home run watch celebration during the 2021 ALCS against Vázquez’s Red Sox. It’s become something the two of them joke about now, since growing closer while on the Twins.
“When we were in Minnesota, he was like, ‘I used to hate you, but now you’re my teammate, and you’re actually a nice guy,'” Correa said. “When you’re in the game, you don’t know the players, you know the way they play, but you actually don’t know the person behind that,” Correa added. “I guess when I play, I’m a little feisty and trying to get everything right and win. But when I’m in the clubhouse, you know, I talk about anything with anybody, and I’m always available. So, he saw two different people… and then he was like, ‘I like you.'”
Correa calls Vázquez a “clown in the best way,” because he’s always putting on music in the clubhouse, dancing or making jokes. For pitchers like McCullers, hearing talks of Vázquez’s return to the Astros brought a sense of comfort going into the season.
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“You get a guy who caught you when you were at the top of your game and really, really doing well, it’s just a great guy to talk to and (give you) confidence,” McCullers said. “He knows where you can be and how you’re fighting to get back there, whereas sometimes other guys are like, ‘I know, he had good years, but never really seen him when he was good.’ But when you have someone who’s from the past, who has caught you or played against you when you were at those times, you can always talk to them and you feel like you’re getting your way back there.”
The Astros returned home with their depleted pitching staff, taking two of three games against the Colorado Rockies before dropping two to the St. Louis Cardinals. They’ll wrap up the series with the Cardinals at 1:10 p.m. today.
While it hasn’t been the best start to the season, Vázquez is there to lead them through this rough patch.
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