Astros’ McHugh out 6 weeks with elbow injury

Astros right-hander Collin McHugh is sidelined for six weeks with a “posterior impingement of his right elbow,” the team announced Saturday on Twitter.

The Astros said in their release that the 29-year-old McHugh, who started the season on the 10-day disabled list to treat tendonitis in his throwing shoulder, had to leave his first rehab start with Triple-A Fresno on Thursday after the first inning because he experienced pain in his elbow. McHugh went back to Houston, where the team doctors told him the severity of his injury.

The team said McHugh’s injury “will not require” surgery and they will “re-evaluate” him after six weeks.

McHugh has been a solid starter for the Astros during his three years with the team. He has gone 43-26 with a 3.71 ERA in 90 starts since Houston claimed him off waivers in 2013. He showed great promise in his first year after posting a 2.73 ERA while going 11-9 in 25 starts and stepped up his game in his second year by winning 19 games in 32 starts, but went 13-10 with a 4.34 ERA last year.

McHugh’s lengthy injury now may make the Astros think about acquiring a starter at some point during the season. Bob Nightingale of USA Today tweeted the possibility that this “could re-start” the Astros’ trade talks for the White Sox’s Jose Quintana.