The Astros have re-signed right-hander Joel Kuhnel to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Houston also inked righty Drew Strotman to a minor league pact with a non-roster invite to camp.
The 28-year-old Kuhnel (29 next month) was designated for assignment by Houston earlier this month. He went unclaimed on outright waivers and elected free agency, as is his right as a player who’s previously been outrighted in the past, but he’ll quickly return to the same organization on a new deal.
Kuhnel came to the Astros in a cash swap with the Reds back in June. He’s pitched in parts of four MLB seasons, logging a combined 6.02 ERA with a 19.3% strikeout rate, 6.5% walk rate and 52.5% ground-ball rate. Kuhnel only totaled 13 MLB innings between Cincinnati and Houston last year but delivered a huge 57.1% grounder rate in that time. However, he also struck out just 5.2% of his opponents in that small sample.
Kuhnel throws hard, averaging 95.9 mph on his sinker and four-seamer alike to this point in his career. He incorporated a splitter into the mix beginning in 2022 and has long favored a slider as his go-to breaking ball. Kuhnel has been homer-prone in his career (1.40 HR/9), though the vast majority of that has come in Cincinnati’s bandbox at Great American Ball Park. He’s also been plagued by an uncommonly and perhaps fluky low 64.6% strand rate. But between Kuhnel’s velocity, command and ground-ball rate, there are some intriguing aspects of his profile. Kuhnel still has a minor league option remaining as well, which adds to his appeal.
As for Strotman, he was once a prospect of note within the Rays system and was traded to the Twins alongside righty Joe Ryan in the 2021 deal that brought Nelson Cruz to the Rays. Injuries, including Tommy John surgery, have slowed Strotman’s development and surely contributed to lackluster performances in the upper minors in recent seasons.
Strotman, a 2017 fourth-rounder, was in his first season back from surgery (and the canceled 2020 minor league campaign) in ’21 when he was traded to the Twins. At the time of the swap he’d posted a 3.39 ERA through a dozen starts, but he perhaps began to wear down thereafter, working to a 7.33 ERA in Triple-A over his next dozen starts. After similar struggles in 2022, Strotman was designated for assignment by the Twins in September. He subsequently bounced to the Rangers and then the Giants but hasn’t found success. In 97 1/3 innings with the Giants’ Triple-A affiliate last year, Strotman posted a 6.47 ERA and walked 15.6% of his opponents. Like Kuhnel, he has a minor league option remaining in the event that he’s eventually selected to the 40-man.
Lance McCullers has pretty much been a waste of money. The money wasted here will very likely cost the Astros Kyle Tucker and perhaps Alex Bregman.
I think a 6 year extension for $150 million is likely too much for Bregman, and I don’t think he would accept it. Next year is his age-31 season, he probably is going to look for a 9-year deal around $270 million. If not more.
“6 yr extension”..He’s nuts if he turns down either 5 or 6 for 150M. Bregman’s age(he’ll be 32 in his walk yr)will limit the length of his next deal and the days of paying guys into their 40’s is likely over.
He turns 30 in March, and this is his walk year. Next season will be his age-31 season, and the 1st year of whatever deal he signs between now and opening day 2025.
He’ll probably get more. 31 isn’t that old. Some team will dump a lot of money into him. Personally, I think the Astros have to try and keep him, as there are no impact 3B prospects in the mix.
Whereas, the Astros farm is loaded with OF prospects. Tucker would be much easier to replace.
Yep – at the outset of this offseason, my position was to trade him. As time goes by, however, I think the Astros are nearly forced to pay to retain his services. I say “nearly forced” because everything is clearly a decision, but I’m unaware of any high-upside corner IF in the pipeline.
I think the Evan Longoria extension is a good starting point (6 years, $100 million but that clearly has to be adjusted upward to compensate for inflation), and the Rafael Devers extension is beyond the scope of what Bregman can earn. I know these are really vague comps so if someone has something closer please let me know.
The Astros can easily support a 230-250M payroll. There’s room for a Bregman contract, even if it’s a slight overpay.
If the Astros can extend Bregman and Altuve, the infield is pretty much set. Peña is good enough with 4 years of control and Yanier has 5 years. 1B is a question mark, but it’s a typically easy position to patch together, as the market has devalued the position.
For the outfield, I trust the farm to produce options to fill future holes.
Bregman would be a GIANT waste of money, let him walk or trade him to restock the farm.
McCullers deal was an emotional extension that never made sense. He’s never been reliable and is destined to be a bullpen arm.
Injuries have not contributed to Drew Strotman’s lack of success. His stuff is mediocre, and if he leaves anything over the plate, it gets crushed. Strotman nibbles at the plate in the shadow zone when he has success, but that success comes with a ton of walks, and it’s hard for that approach to translate to more disciplined MLB hitters. Guys like Strotman would have retired away from baseball a couple years ago, but with the new CBA, they’ll find more opportunity to chase their dreams even if it’s becoming foolish.
I stand corrected. I relied on incorrect information. He’s obviously an excellent player, but a 150M guarantee seems quite fair imo.
If Bregman agreed to 5/150, I’d be thrilled, but he can make a lot more on the open market. Plus, he’ll have already secured 100M in his career. He can take his chances on FA without fear of a career ending injury ruining his chances for generational wealth.