Jeremy Pena Leaves Game Due To Knee Tightness
Houston’s 7-2 lead on Saturday turned into an 8-7 loss to the Mariners, and the tough loss also contained yet another injury concern for the struggling Astros. Shortstop Jeremy Pena left the game in the fourth inning due to what the team described as right posterior knee tightness, and Pena told the Houston Chronicle’s Matt Kawahara and other reporters postgame that he’ll undergo imaging today.
The knee tightness first arose on Friday in a more limited fashion, Pena said, and he didn’t let the training staff know about the issue since it faded as Friday’s game went on. “I didn’t tell anybody, which I probably should have,” Pena said. “I woke up today feeling pretty good, went into the game feeling really good, and then it tightened up on me.”
The issue resurfaced when Pena was running the bases on Saturday. After reaching on a single, Pena advanced to second base on a Yordan Alvarez fly ball, and then to third after Isaac Paredes singled. Once he reached third base, Pena indicated some discomfort in his knee and was removed for pinch-runner Nick Allen. Pena downplayed the severity of his injury and felt his removal was just a “precaution,” though “we’ll have a better understanding…after we get some imaging done.”
Injuries have already been a factor for Pena in 2026, as he sustained a small fracture in the tip of his right ring finger while playing in an exhibition game for the Dominican Republic’s team in advance of the World Baseball Classic. Pena was able to avoid the injured list, though the Astros have played him in only 10 of the team’s 15 games as a way of allowing some extra rest and recovery time until his finger was fully healed.
Houston’s next off-day isn’t until April 23, so Pena don’t have the benefit of any built-in schedule help if he needs a day or two to rest up his knee. The Astros are deep enough in the infield to get by if Pena only misses a bit of time, or has a minimal 10-day IL stint — Carlos Correa can slide over from third base to shortstop, and Paredes can then take over at third base.
That being said, the last thing the Astros need is another injury situation given how the club has already been plagued by poor health. Most of the hits have come on the pitching side (Hunter Brown, Cristian Javier, and closer Josh Hader are just three of the eight pitchers on the IL), and the lineup is also missing Jake Meyers to a Grade 2 oblique strain.
Astros Option J.P. France, Recall Jayden Murray
The Astros have made a pair of minor pitching moves after Tatsuya Imai exited his start with right arm fatigue. According to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, the team has optioned right-hander J.P. France to Triple-A and recalled Jayden Murray to take his spot on the roster.
France’s contract was selected from Triple-A two days ago. His selection was mostly to give the Astros a fresh bullpen arm, and he was ultimately used for 2 2/3 long relief innings in the team’s 9-6 loss to the Mariners yesterday. Although he did not earn the loss, France walked four batters and allowed four earned runs, including the game’s deciding runs. With France having thrown 59 pitches and likely being unavailable for a few days, the team opted to cycle in Murray as another fresh arm.
That the club is keeping France on the 40-man roster means is a good sign for him. He was designated for assignment back in January, but it appears he’ll get more big league opportunities this time around. That may be partly due to Cristian Javier‘s uncertain status after he incurred a shoulder injury on Wednesday. It is also due to the fact that France is now healthy after missing significant time in 2024-25. In 24 innings at Triple-A last year, the righty posted a 6.59 ERA while striking out 21.9% of opponents and walking 17.2%. While his ERA and walk rate were eyesores, some rust was expected after a long layoff, and the club was probably happy just to have him pitching in games again. For his part, France has a more manageable 4.49 ERA and 8.9% walk rate in 168 1/3 big-league innings.
In the meantime, the 29-year-old Murray joins the active roster as the last man in the bullpen. Since joining the Astros organization in a trade with the Rays in 2022, Murray has mostly pitched at the Triple-A level. He threw 64 innings in 50 relief appearances there in 2025, posting a 4.64 ERA along with a 10.6% walk rate. He made his major league debut last year with a small sample of 11 2/3 innings, although his peripherals were less impressive than his 1.54 ERA. Given his age, minimal track record, and three remaining option years, he’s probably due to cycle on and off the roster when the club needs a fresh reliever.
Photo courtesy of Sam Navarro, Imagn Images
Tatsuya Imai Dealing With “Right Arm Fatigue,” Undergoing Examination
5:04 pm: The official wording from the team is that Imai is experiencing “right arm fatigue,” according to Rome. He remains on the active roster as of now.
2:47 pm: As the Astros prepare for tonight’s game with the Mariners, Tatsuya Imai has left Seattle to return to Houston to undergo examination from team doctors. MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart reported earlier today that Imai was heading to Houston, and The Athletic’s Chandler Rome adds the detail that Imai is dealing with a “tired arm,” in the words of a team source.
More will be known once the Astros’ in-house medical staff gets a look at Imai, and it is possible the righty is just dealing with a bit more fatigue than usual. Some adjustment time was probably inevitable for Imai in his first season in the majors, first and foremost because he is pitching with a bit less rest than usual. Starters in Nippon Professional Baseball usually start just once per week, as opposed to every-five-days approach of MLB clubs. Imai hasn’t even been on the five-day schedule yet, as he has had five full rest days between his starts.
That said, Imai’s 7.27 ERA over his first 8 2/3 Major League innings is a sign that something isn’t quite right. Ironically, his only good start came in the hitter-friendly environment of Sutter Health Park, as Imai tossed 5 2/3 shutout innings against the Athletics on April 4. That impressive outing was sandwiched between two duds — Imai allowed four runs over just 2 2/3 innings against the Angels on March 29, and last night the Mariners torched Imai for three runs in just a third of an inning. Imai retired only one of the seven Seattle batters he faced, as he hit a batter, allowed one hit, and issued four walks.
Imai told reporters (via interpreter) postgame that that he was bothered by both the cooler weather in Seattle and a hard mound at T-Mobile Park. McTaggart notes that Imai had also expressed his issues with getting used to both Major League mounds and the MLB baseball. Again, an adjustment period isn’t unusual for pitchers coming over from NPB for the first time, though the “tired arm” factor now adds an injury scare to Imai’s status.
Imai signed a three-year, $54MM deal with the Astros last offseason, and he can opt out after each of the first two seasons. The contract fell below most projections, as it seemed like several teams had concerns over Imai’s ability to translate his NPB success to MLB. Imai and his agent Scott Boras therefore settled for a shorter-term deal that still locks in some solid immediate money for the right-hander, and allowed him the flexibility to re-enter the market as early as next winter if he pitched well in his first season in the Show.
Losing Imai to the injured list would be another big hit to an already undermanned Houston rotation. Just within the last week, Hunter Brown and Cristian Javier were both placed on the 15-day IL due to Grade 2 shoulder strains. The plan for both pitchers is a re-evaluation after two weeks and a general shutdown period of at least three weeks, though the timelines are still fluid. Even in a best-case scenario, Brown and Javier won’t be back until May, leaving the Astros scrambling for starters even before Imai’s situation arose.
The Astros’ rotation currently consists of Imai, Mike Burrows, and Lance McCullers Jr. Cody Bolton already made one spot start and might be pressed into more rotation duty. J.P. France, Ryan Weiss, AJ Blubaugh, and Jason Alexander are other starting candidates either already in the big league bullpen or at Triple-A, and the Astros could use any of this group or more pitchers in a piggyback capacity rather than in a normal starting capacity. Houston won’t have any time for a rotation reset until an off-day on April 23, as Friday’s game was the first in a stretch of 13 games in 13 days for the club.
Astros Select J.P. France, Taylor Trammell
April 10th: The Astros announced the expected moves today. Trammell and France have been added, with Blanco transferred to the 60-day IL. Javier’s injury was listed as a grade two shoulder strain and Meyers’ is a grade two oblique strain. Both are retroactive to April 9th.
April 9th, 11:13 am: Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports that the Astros are also planning to select outfielder Taylor Trammell. This almost certainly indicates that fellow outfielder Jake Meyers is headed to the injured list. Meyers exited on Wednesday with lower back tightness. Like France, Trammell will require a spot on the 40-man roster, and currently, Houston only has one opening. That means the Astros will have to free up one more space to add both France and Trammell before tomorrow’s game. Ronel Blanco, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery last June, is a likely candidate to move from the 15-day IL to the 60-day IL.
Trammell, 28, is a five-year MLB veteran. After bouncing from the Mariners to the Dodgers to the Yankees in 2024, he was traded to the Astros ahead of the 2025 campaign. A pair of IL stints limited him to 52 games for Houston, though that was still a career-high for the lefty batter. He slashed .197/.296/.333 with an 80 wRC+, mostly splitting his time between left and center field. He was DFA’d and sent outright to Triple-A after the season. However, a hot spring (.904 OPS, 136 wRC+) and an even hotter start for Sugar Land (1.003 OPS, 177 wRC+) have earned him another chance in the majors. He’s likely to serve as at least the strong half of a platoon in center field while Meyers is on the shelf.
10:00 am: The Astros will select J.P. France’s contract from Triple-A Sugar Land before tomorrow’s game against the Mariners, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic. He will be able to take the 40-man roster spot left vacant after Roddery Muñoz was designated for assignment on Monday.
As for the 26-man roster, there’s a good chance France is replacing Cristian Javier, who exited his start on Wednesday with shoulder tightness. It’s also possible the Astros won’t be ready to make a decision about Javier by tomorrow, but that they still want a fresh arm for the bullpen, given the workload their relievers shouldered in yesterday’s 9-1 loss. In that case, they might consider optioning AJ Blubaugh, who has given up nine runs on nine hits in his last two outings. Meanwhile, Spencer Arrighetti is the most likely candidate for a call-up if Houston needs a longer-term replacement for Javier in the rotation. Jason Alexander is also available at Triple-A.
France, 31, made 23 starts for the Astros in 2023, his rookie campaign. Unfortunately, a shoulder injury ruined his next two seasons. He made just seven appearances for Houston between 2024 and ’25 and struggled in a handful of minor league outings as well. The team designated him for assignment this past offseason and sent him outright to Triple-A. However, if the early results from 2026 are any indication, France seems to be throwing with a healthy shoulder again. He struck out 13 batters in 11.2 innings this spring and another eight in his first 5.1 frames for the Sugar Land Space Cowboys. The righty has yet to allow a run at Triple-A, with just one walk and two hits allowed to the 19 batters he’s faced.
If France can get back to pitching the way he did in 2023 – whether he’s starting or working in long relief – the Astros will surely be grateful. Through 13 games, Houston’s pitchers have the highest ERA in the AL (6.05). Walks and home runs have both been serious problems. What’s more, two of the team’s most important arms are on the injured list: Hunter Brown (shoulder strain) and Josh Hader (biceps tendinitis). Losing Javier for any period of time would only further weaken a beleaguered staff. While the team still has depth arms to call on for the rotation and the bullpen, those options are starting to wear thin.
Davey Lopes Passes Away
The Dodgers announced today that Davey Lopes passed away today at the age of 80. Lopes made his debut as a player in the early 1970s and went on to have a career as a coach and manager, making him a staple of the game for the bulk of five decades.
Lopes was a late bloomer. He didn’t make it to the majors until 1972, which was his age-27 season. Even then, he only got into 11 games for the Dodgers. The following year, his age-28 campaign, he finally established himself as a big league regular. He became the club’s second baseman and showed off the speed that would become his standout trait. He swiped 36 bags that year, his first of what would eventually be a 14-year streak of stealing at least 15 bases.
He stayed on the Dodger roster through the 1981 season, mostly covering the keystone but also with occasional action at shortstop, third base and in the outfield. The Dodgers had a very consistent infield during that stretch, with Steve Garvey the mainstay at first, Lopes at second, Bill Russell at short and Ron Cey at third.
Lopes played in 1,207 games for the Dodgers from his 1972 debut until the end of that 1981 campaign. He hit .262 in that time and launched 99 home runs but the eye-popping stat was his 418 stolen bases. He led the league in steals in both 1975 and 1976, with 77 in the former and 63 in the latter. The second instance was particularly impressive as injuries limited him to only 117 games. In 1978, he won a Gold Glove and also made the All-Star team, the first of four straight All-Star selections.
The Dodgers were quite good in that time but couldn’t quit win a title for most of it. They lost the World Series to the Athletics in 1974, then to the Yankees in both 1977 and 1978. In 1981, they were able to get the job done, topping the Yankees 4-2. Lopes stole ten bases in in 16 postseason games that year.
Prior to the 1982 season, he was traded to the A’s, kicking off the journeyman phase of his career. He would also bounce to the Cubs and Astros, playing past his 42nd birthday. He finished his career with 7,340 plate appearances over 1,812 games. He racked up 1,671 hits, including 155 home runs. He scored 1,023 runs and drove in 614. His 557 steals put him 26th on the all-time list.
He quickly pivoted to his post-playing career by becoming a bench coach with the Rangers. That was followed by stints as a first base coach with the Orioles and Padres. He was hired to manage the Brewers for the 2000 season. The club did not fare well and he was fired early in 2002. He never got another managerial gig and had a 144-195 record in that job. He then went back to being a first base coach, starting with a return to the Padres, followed by stints with the Nationals, Phillies, Dodgers and back to the Nationals. He retired from coaching after the 2017 season.
We at MLB Trade Rumors join the rest of the baseball world in sending condolences to the Lopes family as well as everyone else mourning him today.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
Cristian Javier Exits Start Due To Shoulder Tightness
Astros right-hander Cristian Javier was removed from today’s game after just one inning due to shoulder tightness. As relayed by Chandler Rome of The Athletic, Javier was warming up for the second inning but summoned catcher Christian Vázquez and the training staff to the mound before departing.
At this point, it’s too early to know any details about Javier’s injury or its severity. However, even a minor absence would be a big blow for the Astros. Just a few days ago, they lost their ace, as Hunter Brown landed on the injured list due to a shoulder strain.
Even with Brown’s injury, the Astros still planned to go for a six-man rotation in the near future. On Friday, they start a stretch of playing 13 games in a row. Going to a six-man rotation would lower the impact on Tatsuya Imai, who is still in the first few weeks of his MLB career. In Japan, starting pitchers normally throw once a week as opposed to the five-man rotations that are common in North America.
Imai, Javier, Burrows and Lance McCullers Jr. would have accounted for four spots. The other two would have been more up in the air. Cody Bolton was just recalled to make a spot start and could be in the mix. Spencer Arrighetti is on optional assignment but could be recalled. Ryan Weiss, AJ Blubaugh, and Kai-Wei Teng have some starting experience but have been pitching in the big league bullpen. Blubaugh came in to replace Javier today but allowed five runs in the second and was replaced in the third. He threw 39 pitches in his one inning of work.
Subtracting Javier would further require the Astros to reach even further into their depth, assuming they still want to go six deep in the rotation. Weiss threw 62 pitches in a long relief outing Monday, so he’s fairly stretched out, though he allowed six earned runs in 2 2/3 innings. Houston also has Jason Alexander, Colton Gordon and Miguel Ullola on optional assignment.
Houston’s outfield also seemingly took a blow today. Jake Meyers tried to check his swing during a plate appearance and grabbed at his oblique area. He left the game and the Astros announced his injury as lower back tightness. Meyers has taken the majority of playing time in center field this year. He is a strong defender and has a solid .243/.326/.378 line so far on the season.
If Meyers needs to miss some time, then the Astros will have to figure out a solution in center. Brice Matthews entered the game for Meyers today. He is one of the club’s best prospects but he entered today with just 22 games of big league experience and a .148/.212/.410 line in those. Right fielder Cam Smith has gotten some work in center but not in official game action. Left fielder Joey Loperfido does have some center field experience but less than in the corners.
Houston has Zach Cole and Shay Whitcomb on optional assignment. However, Cole recently broke his toe when he was hit by a pitch in a Triple-A game. His timeline is unclear but he’s not immediately available. Whitcomb has far more infield experience than he does on the grass. In terms of non-roster options with outfield experience, they have Taylor Trammell, Cavan Biggio and CJ Alexander.
Photo courtesy of Ron Chenoy, Imagn Images
Astros Notes: Brown, Hader, Bullpen
The Astros provided an update on injured ace Hunter Brown on Tuesday, noting that the righty has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 shoulder strain. The club said he’ll be shut down from throwing for a few weeks.
Manager Joe Espada provided a little more specificity in his pregame media session with the Houston beat (link via Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle). The skipper said Brown would be reevaluated in two weeks. Espada and GM Dana Brown stressed that there’s nothing structurally amiss and that the issue is muscular.
That’s a relief, but it’s still trending towards more than a monthlong absence. Even if Brown is able to resume throwing two weeks from now, he’ll need to recover from a few bullpen and live batting practice sessions. A multi-week shutdown is going to require one or two minor league rehab starts as well.
The Astros are sticking with their plan to move to a six-man rotation after tomorrow’s off day. They’ll play on 13 straight days beginning this weekend. The six-man staff will keep Tatsuya Imai on a weekly schedule and allow them to keep an eye on workloads for their back-end arms.
Imai joins Mike Burrows, Cristian Javier and Lance McCullers Jr. in the top four of Espada’s rotation. Cody Bolton made a spot start on Monday against the Rockies, stepping into Brown’s schedule when the latter was placed on the injured list over the weekend. Bolton could get continued run out of the rotation. Spencer Arrighetti is working out of the Triple-A rotation. Ryan Weiss, AJ Blubaugh, and Kai-Wei Teng are all pitching in relief but have starting backgrounds.
Espada provided a few more encouraging updates on rehabbing pitchers this evening (relayed by Chandler Rome of The Athletic). The most notable is that closer Josh Hader, out all season with biceps tendinitis, is expected to face hitters for the first time next week. Depth starter Nate Pearson will throw a two-inning simulated game this weekend.
Houston’s bullpen has been shaky in Hader’s absence. Fill-in closer Bryan Abreu has allowed at least one run in each of his first four appearances. Abreu has only successfully locked down one of his three save opportunities this year. That came with a three-run lead and still required him to rebound from a Roman Anthony home run. Abreu took the loss in his most recent outing, giving up a walk-off three-run homer to Brent Rooker in the tenth inning on Sunday.
Bryan King and Steven Okert give the Astros a pair of quality left-handers. Abreu has a track record as a high-end setup man. Even if he gets on track, he’s a better fit earlier in games as a leverage arm given the Astros’ lack of established righty relievers. Blubaugh has been pushed up the bullpen hierarchy early in his big league career as a result.
Astros Place Roddery Muñoz On Waivers
4 pm: Muñoz has been designated for assignment, the team announced. Reliever Enyel De Los Santos was activated from the IL to take Muñoz’s spot on the roster. Infielder Isaac Paredes is also back from the bereavement list. Shay Whitcomb was optioned to Triple-A.
1:45 pm: The Astros have placed Rule 5 pick Roddery Muñoz on outright waivers, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Players can be placed on waivers while remaining on the 40-man roster but it seems likely that the Astros plan to cut the right-hander. If any club claims him, they would also be bound by the Rule 5 parameters. If he clears waivers, he would have to be offered back to the Reds, who could assign him to the minors without putting him on the 40-man roster.
Muñoz was an unusual Rule 5 selection. Most guys taken in that draft have been in the minors for a few years without getting a big league shot. Muñoz had already seen a notable amount of time in the majors, having tossed 93 2/3 for the Marlins and Cardinals. He didn’t have much success, however, with a 6.73 earned run average in that time. He exhausted his option years over the 2023 to 2025 seasons.
The Cards put him on waivers in November. The Reds claimed him, non-tendered him and re-signed him to a minor league deal. Shortly thereafter, the Astros grabbed him in the Rule 5. He had a good spring, striking out 16 opponents in ten innings. He did allow five earned runs but the punchouts were enough to get him an Opening Day roster spot. Unfortunately, he has been lit up to start the season. Through four innings, he has allowed seven earned runs. He racked up six strikeouts but also gave out six walks and threw two wild pitches.
Even if Muñoz weren’t out of options, he couldn’t be sent to the minors as a Rule 5 guy. It seems the Astros have run out of patience and will make a move. As mentioned, teams are allowed to place players on waivers while keeping them on the active roster, so it’s possible Muñoz could still be with the club tonight. However, it’s also possible he gets designated for assignment before game time to make way for someone else.
Rule 5 guys can be traded or claimed off waivers. If any other team takes a shot on Muñoz, they would be bound by the same Rule 5 parameters. If he clears waivers, he’ll be offered back to the Reds. That club could send him to the minors as non-roster depth.
Photo courtesy of Troy Taormina, Imagn Images
Astros Place Hunter Brown On Injured List With Shoulder Strain
1:40pm: Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle relays that, according to manager Joe Espada, Brown felt off during his throwing program on Friday and underwent imaging before returning to Houston to be evaluated by team doctors. It’s possible the Astros will have a clearer picture of Brown’s timeline for return once he’s been more thoroughly examined by the team’s medical staff.
12:44pm: The Astros are placing right-hander Hunter Brown on the injured list due to a right shoulder strain. Right-hander Christian Roa was recalled to the majors to replace Brown on the roster.
Brown, 27, broke out last year to become one of the top pitchers in the entire sport. In 31 starts last year, Brown pitched to a 2.43 ERA and struck out opponents at a 28.3% clip. He earned his first career All-Star nod and finished third behind Tarik Skubal and Garrett Crochet in the AL Cy Young award race. Through two starts this year, he was arguably even better with a 0.84 ERA in 10 2/3 innings with a 39.5% strikeout rate. After losing Framber Valdez to free agency over the offseason, the Astros entered the year counting on Brown to lead their rotation as they look to make their way back into the postseason picture.
All of that is now on hold for the time being. While it’s unclear just how much time Brown should be expected to miss, even a minimum stint on the shelf constitutes a big blow to the Astros. A longer one could be devastating. Mike Burrows, Tatsuya Imai, Cristian Javier, and Lance McCullers Jr. make up the rest of Houston’s Opening Day rotation. Burrows has significant upside but has struggled so far this year. McCullers looked quite good in his first start of the year last week but pitched to a 6.15 ERA last season and last threw even 60 innings at the big league level back in 2021. Javier offered reasons for optimism after returning from Tommy John surgery last year but has been shelled for six earned runs in each of his first two starts this season. Losing Brown from the top of a rotation that already has so many question marks is going to be hard to stomach.
In the long-term, the Astros figure to turn to a depth option like Spencer Arrighetti, Colton Gordon, or perhaps even prospect Miguel Ullola to fill the void. The good news for Houston is that they’ve shown a remarkable ability to weather the storm of rotation injuries in recent years, getting passable or better production from little-known youngsters and depth pieces. Arrighetti has a bit more name recognition than that after a solid start to his career, and after two scoreless starts at Triple-A to open the season he seems likely to be the Astros’ first choice to replace Brown. MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart writes that the Astros were expected to a move to a six-man rotation this week prior to the news regarding Brown thanks to an upcoming stretch in the schedule where they play 13 consecutive games without a day off. If that’s still the plan, the Astros will need to turn to multiple Triple-A arms to fill out a rotation that now has just four active members.
For now, however, the team is turning to Roa to fill Brown’s roster spot. Brown’s spot in the rotation won’t come up until tomorrow, and so the Astros can afford to give their bullpen some extra depth for the time being as they figure out what direction they want to go in with Brown sidelined. Roa surrendered a run in 1 1/3 innings of work during his first stint with the club earlier this year and has a career 2.08 ERA in four appearances after briefly making his big league debut as a member of the Marlins last year. The righty sports a career 4.52 ERA in 171 2/3 innings of work as a swing man at the Triple-A level, and while he won’t be an impact arm for the Astros he should be capable of eating innings in long or middle relief for the club over the next few days as they figure out their longer-term pitching plan.
AL West Notes: Donovan, Joyce, Crawford
Mariners utilityman Brendan Donovan left last night’s game with an apparent leg injury in the seventh inning. Facing Angels left-hander Reid Detmers, Donovan hit a grounder to second base that he attempted to beat out for an infield hit. He landed awkwardly on the bag with his left leg, and he was replaced by Leo Rivas on defense in the bottom half of the inning. Donovan has soreness in his groin region, per Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times. Divish added in a separate post that imaging came back clean.
Donovan has gotten off to a hot start in 2026, batting .370/.485/.667 across his first 33 plate appearances. Defensively, he has played all eight of his games at third base, though he’ll inevitably spend time around the diamond as the season goes on. The club recently signed infield prospect Colt Emerson to a record extension, and they will reportedly play him at third base when he gets called up. That said, the club immediately optioned him after signing the deal, so he can get more seasoning in the upper minors. A short-term Donovan absence wouldn’t change that plan, leaving Rivas as the likeliest candidate to fill in if needed.
A few other updates from around the division:
- Emerson’s extension happens to align with the end of shortstop J.P. Crawford‘s contract. The veteran is in the final year of the five-year, $51MM extension he inked in 2022. Crawford missed the first week of the season with a shoulder injury. Seattle did not opt to give Emerson the role while Crawford was sidelined, but he appears to be the heir apparent at the position. The incumbent is taking it in stride, though. “I congratulated him, wishing him nothing but the best,” Crawford told Daniel Kramer of MLB.com. “And he’s going to come up here and help us win ballgames. And that’s what we want at the end of the day, is to go win the World Series — and he will for sure help us do that. So I can’t wait to get him up here.” Crawford seemed to acknowledge his impending departure, calling 2026 the biggest year of his career.”I have the chance to make some money if I play well, and we’ll see what happens after that.”
- Angels reliever Ben Joyce is currently on the mend from May 2025 shoulder surgery, and Jack Janes of The Sporting Tribune reports that Joyce is throwing normal bullpen sessions without issue. However, it is unknown when he will start facing live hitters. Joyce is well known for his triple-digit fastball velocity, but his impact in the majors has been limited by injuries. The 2022 third-round draft pick has thrown 49 big-league innings from 2023-25 with a 3.12 ERA, a 21.0% strikeout rate, and an 11.4% walk rate. He had a 2.08 ERA and a massive 58.9% groundball rate in 2024, but he was less impressive in limited samples in the other two years. Joyce is expected back relatively early in the season, though he’ll need a rehab assignment after such a long layoff.
- Astros reliever Enyel De Los Santos is nearing a big-league return. The right-hander made consecutive Double-A appearances on Thursday and Friday. Manager Joe Espada called De Los Santos “close” to rejoining the Astros, relayed by Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle. As Kawahara notes, getting De Los Santos back in the mix could create a difficult roster decision for Houston. Cody Bolton and Roddery Munoz are out of options. Bryan King, Ryan Weiss, Kai-Wei Teng, Steven Okert, and AJ Blubaugh are off to solid starts. Bryan Abreu obviously isn’t going anywhere. De Los Santos himself is out of options. The Astros also plan to go with a six-man rotation soon, which would trim down another reliever. That tweak could be Weiss moving into the rotation.
Photo courtesy of Arianna Grainey, Imagn Images