Astros Designate Cooper Hummel For Assignment
The Astros have selected the contract of right-hander Spencer Arrighetti, a move that was reported last night. Right-hander Wander Suero was optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land to open an active roster spot while utility player Cooper Hummel was designated for assignment to open a 40-man spot. Chandler Rome of The Athletic was among those to relay the list of transactions.
Hummel, 29, was just claimed off waivers last week but the Astros have been dealing with a notable roster churn of late. Each of Suero, Arrighetti and Blair Henley have been selected to the 40-man in the past few days, which has squeezed Hummel out of his spot.
It’s been quite a nomadic few months for Hummel, who was with the Mariners in 2023. Since December, he’s gone to the Mets, Giants and Astros via waiver claims or cash deals. It’s possible yet another jersey swap is over the horizon, as the Astros will now have a week to trade him or try to pass him through waivers.
His 227 major league plate appearances have resulted in an unimpressive batting line of .166/.264/.286 but he’s naturally been much better in the minors. From the start of 2021 through the present day, he has 992 Triple-A plate appearances. He has drawn a walk in a huge 17.3% of those while keeping his strikeout rate down to a respectable 21.2% rate. His combined batting line of .287/.419/.488 in that time translates to a wRC+ of 131.
Defensively, Hummel offers a unique level of versatility, having spent significant time behind the plate as well as the outfield corners, first base and even a small amount of time at third base. He also has one option year remaining, which means he can be kept in Triple-A for depth until needed. With less than a year of service time, he’s still not close to qualifying for arbitration or free agency.
That combination of his Triple-A offense, his defensive flexibility and his contract status clearly makes him appealing to clubs, judging by how many of them have tried to grab him since the end of last year. Taking all that into consideration, he may be on the move yet again in the days to come. If he were to finally pass through waivers unclaimed, he would stick with the Astros as non-roster depth, since he has neither the three years of service time nor the previous career outright that would give him the right to elect free agency.
Astros To Promote Spencer Arrighetti
The Astros are promoting pitching prospect Spencer Arrighetti, report Chandler Rome and Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. The right-hander will make his major league debut tomorrow evening in Kansas City. Houston will need to make a corresponding 40-man roster move when they officially select Arrighetti’s contract.
It’s the first major league call for the 24-year-old. Houston selected Arrighetti in the sixth round of the 2021 draft out of the University of Louisiana. While he didn’t enter the professional ranks with much fanfare, he has developed into arguably the top pitching prospect in the Houston system. Baseball America and The Athletic’s Keith Law each slotted Arrighetti as the organization’s best minor league pitcher and a top five talent in the system overall.
Both outlets suggest Arrighetti projects as a back-of-the-rotation starter. His fastball sits in the low 90s but plays a bit above its velocity because of its ride at the top of the zone. BA and The Athletic each suggest that Arrighetti’s slider is the best pitch in a generally solid arsenal, while he throws enough strikes to potentially stick in the rotation.
Arrighetti split the 2023 campaign between the top two levels of the minors. He allowed 4.40 earned runs per nine through 124 2/3 innings, striking hitters out at an above-average 27.1% clip. Arrighetti has logged 8 1/3 innings of two-run ball over his first two Triple-A starts this year. He has punched out 10 batters but issued seven walks in the early going.
Houston has been forced to dip its into rotation depth. The Astros knew all offseason they’d be without Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia deep into the season as they rehab from arm surgeries. Justin Verlander began the year on the shelf after a minor bout of shoulder soreness in Spring Training, while José Urquidy went down with a forearm strain during exhibition play. The Astros poked around the rotation market late in the offseason but decided against meeting the asking price for Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery.
They opened the season with a starting five of Framber Valdez, Cristian Javier, Hunter Brown, J.P. France and Ronel Blanco. Valdez recently felt some soreness in his elbow and landed on the 15-day injured list this evening. Houston called Blair Henley for a spot start in Valdez’s place last night but will give Arrighetti the next look in the rotation. It could be a brief first call, as Verlander is slated for a second rehab start this weekend and could be back in the majors by the end of next week.
Astros Place Framber Valdez On Injured List
The Astros have placed left-hander Framber Valdez on the 15-day injured list due to elbow soreness, retroactive to April 6, per Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 (X links). They also optioned right-hander Blair Henley to Triple-A Sugar Land. In corresponding moves, they recalled left-hander Parker Mushinski and selected the contract of right-hander Wander Suero. Mushinski was just optioned on Friday and hasn’t yet spent the minimum of 15 days on optional assignment, but players are allowed to return early when someone else goes on the IL. To open a spot on the 40-man roster for Suero, right-hander Oliver Ortega was transferred to the 60-day injured list, per Alexander. Henley relayed the news of his option last night, with Chandler Rome of The Athletic among those to pass it on. Rome also noted that Suero was at the ballpark earlier today and also relayed that Mushinski was on his way to join the club.
It was reported yesterday that Valdez was scratched from his start due to elbow soreness and sent to Houston to visit with team doctors. Manager Joe Espada says the plan is for him to be shut down for a few days while his inflammation subsides, per Rome. Further updates will likely follow in the coming days as the club continues to monitor his progress.
With Valdez scratched, the Astros tagged in Henley as an emergency starter in yesterday’s game against the Rangers but he allowed five earned runs while recording just one out. The Astros managed to come back and win that game 10-5 but used four relievers, getting multiple innings from three of them. Today’s moves provide the club with a couple of fresh arms for their beleaguered bullpen.
Now that Valdez is officially on the IL, the Astros will have to find another starter to join their rotation alongside Cristian Javier, Hunter Brown, J.P. France and Ronel Blanco, though Justin Verlander has begun a rehab assignment and may not be too far away. If Verlander wants to make a second rehab starts as planned, perhaps long reliever Brandon Bielak can take the ball in a few days’ time for a spot start.
Suero, 32, signed a minor league deal with the Astros in the offseason. He has 193 1/3 innings of major league experience, having pitched for the Nationals and Dodgers. He has a 4.75 earned run average in that time, striking out 25.4% of batters faced while walking 8.6%.
However, he’s a few years removed from his best results, as he had a 4.10 ERA with the Nats from 2018 to 2020 but then a 6.33 ERA in 2021. He was stuck in the minors in 2022 and then had a 7.88 ERA in eight innings for the Dodgers last year. But his recent Triple-A numbers have been better, as he had a 3.26 ERA in the Dodgers’ system last year and a 4.50 ERA through four appearances so far this year. Suero still has an option and also has less than four years of service time, meaning he can be retained beyond this season via arbitration if he holds onto a 40-man spot all year.
As for Ortega, it was reported last month that he would miss three to four months after undergoing surgery to remove loose bodies in his elbow, making this transfer an inevitable formality.
Framber Valdez Scratched From Start Due To Elbow Soreness
Astros left-hander Framber Valdez was scratched from today’s start due to soreness on the top of his left elbow after playing catch, with Chandler Rome of The Athletic among those to relay the news. While the club is in Arlington to face the Rangers, Valdez is in Houston to meet with team doctors, manager Joe Espada said.
At this point, it’s not yet clear how significant the injury is and Valdez has not yet been placed on the injured list, but it’s nonetheless a concerning development for a number of reasons. For one thing, there has been an unfortunate streak of pitching injuries of late, with stars like Shane Bieber and Eury Pérez recently requiring season-ending surgeries. Another big name, Spencer Strider, is still trying to discover the severity of his injury but there is concern that he could be set to go under the knife as well. Guys like Shohei Ohtani, Jacob deGrom, Sandy Alcántara, Robbie Ray, Shane McClanahan and many more are each recovery from undergoing surgery last year.
The litany of injuries has led to a recent dispute between the MLBPA and the league, with the players concerned about the effects of the pitch clock while the league believes increased velocity and spin in the modern game are to blame. It’s still not clear that Valdez is going to be following those other pitchers to a significant surgery, with both Espada and general manager Dana Brown downplaying the concern, per Rome. But the fact that another star player is dealing with a possible elbow injury could only add to the ongoing tension.
Beyond the league-wide implications, it’s also a scary development for the Astros, as Valdez has emerged as a huge part of the club’s success in recent years. He has a 3.17 earned run average in 617 innings dating back to the start of the 2020 season. He struck out 23.8% of batters faced in that time, walking just 8% of them while keeping the ball on the ground at a massive 62.8% clip.
Subtracting that kind of quality performance would hurt any rotation but it would be especially noteworthy for the Astros at this moment in time. They are already without Lance McCullers Jr. and Luis Garcia Jr., both of whom underwent elbow surgery last year and each is still working back to health. More recently, each of Justin Verlander, José Urquidy and Shawn Dubin landed on the injured list due to injuries. Verlander is getting close to a return, having begun a rehab assignment over the weekend, but it’s clearly a less than ideal time for another domino to fall so they will obviously be hoping that Valdez isn’t seriously hurt. For now, Blair Henley has been called up to make a start while Cristian Javier, Hunter Brown, J.P. France and Ronel Blanco fill out the rest of the rotation.
For Valdez personally, he’s in his penultimate season of club control, currently slated for free agency after 2025. In the worst-case scenario where he requires Tommy John surgery and misses over a year, it would mean that he would be heading into the open market with hardly any innings pitched in the two seasons prior to becoming a free agent.
It’s worth reiterating that none of that has come to pass yet and Valdez is not even on the injured list. Still, even this small update of some soreness clearly has the potential to set off some ripple effects if it turns to be something serious, given the potential impacts on the Astros, on Valdez himself and the tumultuous situation between MLB and the MLBPA.
Astros Designate Miguel Díaz For Assignment
The Astros have designated right-hander Miguel Díaz for assignment, with Chandler Rome of The Athletic among those to relay the news. This opens up a spot on both the active and 40-man rosters for Blair Henley, who was reported earlier to be getting called up.
Díaz, 29, was just claimed off waivers from the Tigers last week. He made one appearance on Friday, tossing a scoreless inning, and has now been quickly bumped off the roster for Henley. It’s still unclear with Henley is coming up to start for Framber Valdez, but whatever the reason, they need to get Henley on the roster and Díaz is the casualty.
The righty has 127 1/3 innings of big league experience with a 4.81 earned run average. Last year, he spent most of it with the Tigers’ Triple-A club, tossing 57 innings with a 5.05 ERA but better underlying metrics. His 10.2% walk rate was a tad high but he punched out 28.6% of batters faced and got grounders at a 49.3% clip. Were it not for a .340 batting average on balls in play and 59.6% strand rate, far fewer runs would have crossed the plate, which is why his 3.22 FIP was much more pleasant to look at.
He got added to the Tigers’ roster in September and tossed 14 innings at the major league level with an ERA of 0.64. The baseball gods decided to change their treatment of him once he came up to the majors, as his .242 BABIP and 92.3% strand rate were suddenly very fortunate. He obviously wouldn’t be able to sustain that ERA over a large sample but even his 2.04 FIP and 3.46 SIERA suggest he was doing good work on the mound.
The Astros will now have one week to trade Díaz or pass him through waivers. He’s out of options but has been putting up some intriguing numbers of late and could find interest. He came into this year with less than three years of service time and therefore could theoretically be retained through the 2027 season. He has a previous career outright and could reject another such assignment and elect free agency if he were to pass through waivers unclaimed.
Astros To Select Blair Henley
The Astros will select the contract of right-hander Blair Henley, per Ari Alexander of KPRC 2, with Henley starting in place of left-hander Framber Valdez. At this point, it’s unclear if Valdez is injured or if this is simply a spot start situation to give everyone extra rest. Henley will need to be added to the 40-man roster but they could easily move Oliver Ortega, who is out for several months due to elbow surgery, to the 60-day injured list.
Henley, 27 next month, will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. The righty was selected by the Astros in the seventh round of the 2019 draft. He cracked the Baseball America list of the top 30 farmhands in the system in 2020 and 2021 but has slipped off in subsequent versions. In 2021, he posted a 7.02 earned run average in 16 2/3 innings at High-A before requiring Tommy John surgery, wiping out the rest of that season and his 2022 as well.
He returned to the mound last year and tossed 106 2/3 innings at the Double-A level with a 5.06 ERA. His 11.1% walk rate was on the high side but his 22.3% strikeout rate was solid and his 51.2% ground ball rate quite strong. He was sent to Triple-A to start this year and has already made one start there, allowing three earned runs in five innings with six strikeouts and four walks.
He will now get a chance to come up and pitch at the major league level. Henley isn’t one of the club’s top pitching prospects so it’s a bit unusual that he’s the one getting the call today, but perhaps more information will be forthcoming on that decision as the game draws closer.
Astros Acquire Jacob Amaya From Marlins
The Astros have acquired infielder Jacob Amaya from the Marlins, per The Athletic’s Chandler Rome. In return, Rome adds that the Marlins will receive cash considerations and minor league right-hander Valente Bellozo. Amaya had been designated for assignment by the Marlins earlier this week. Per Rome, Houston has optioned Amaya to Triple-A and placed left-hander Bennett Sousa on the 60-day injured list to make room for the infielder on their 40-man roster.
Amaya, 25, was an eleventh-round pick by the Dodgers in the 2017 draft but made his big league debut with Miami last year after L.A. shipped him to the Marlins in exchange for veteran shortstop Miguel Rojas prior to the 2023 campaign. Amaya’s final season with the Dodgers saw him slash a respectable .261/.369/.427 in 133 games split between the Double- and Triple-A levels, but he took a bit of a step back upon joining the Marlins last year.
In 128 games with the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Jacksonville, Amaya hit just .252/.345/.407 (89 wRC+) during his age-24 season while primarily playing shortstop. Meanwhile, his four-game cup of coffee in the majors left something to be desired as he went 2-for-9 with no walks or extra base hits. On the other hand, his struggles in the majors came in an extremely small sample while his solid glove at shortstop helped to carry his subpar slash line in the minors.
Amaya entered the offseason looking like he could contribute in the big leagues for the Marlins at some point this year, though the additions of Tim Anderson and Vidal Brujan this winter left him largely blocked entering the season. After the youngster struggled at the plate both in camp this spring and in the first games of his return to Jacksonville, the club decided to move on by designating Amaya for assignment to make room for infielder Emmanuel Rivera on the 40-man roster.
Now, Amaya will get a chance to re-establish himself in an Astros organization with minimal infield depth in the upper levels of the minor leagues. Houston has Jose Altuve and Jeremy Pena locked into regular roles up the middle with Mauricio Dubon as their top option off the bench, though Amaya could compete with the likes of Grae Kessinger and David Hensley for a role on the club’s bench as a reserve infielder at some point this season.
To land Amaya, the Astros are giving up Bellozo, who made his pro debut with the club out of Mexico back in 2018. The right-hander split the 2023 campaign between the High-A and Double-A levels, struggling to a 5.55 ERA in 110 1/3 innings despite a solid 22.4% strikeout rate against a strong 6.8% walk rate. Bellozo’s results took a turn for the better late in the season, as he pitched to a 1.72 ERA in his final four appearances last season. He’ll look to build on that late-season hot stretch this season in what figures to be a return to the Double-A level.
Astros Release Justin Dirden
The Astros have released outfielder Justin Dirden, according to his player page on MLB.com (h/t to Chandler Rome of The Athletic).
Dirden signed with Houston as an undrafted free agent following the shortened 2020 draft. Already 23 when he debuted in the Astros system in 2021, the lefty batter quickly made an impact at the plate, putting up a .936 OPS in 58 games at Single-A Fayetteville and a .928 OPS in 25 games at High-A Asheville. He kept slugging the following season, producing a 1.027 OPS in 92 games at Double-A Corpus Christi. It wasn’t until he was called up to Triple-A in August 2022 that Dirden finally looked overmatched, and even then, he had 12 extra-base hits in 32 games.
Following his strong 2022 season, Dirden made the Astros’ top prospect lists at Baseball America (No. 9) and MLB Pipeline (No. 9). He also earned an invitation to spring training in 2023 and put on a show in the Grapefruit League. Over 19 games, he slashed .324/.425/.618, good for a 1.043 OPS and 171 wRC+.
Asked in early March if Dirden was a candidate for the Opening Day roster, then Astros manager Dusty Baker replied, “Who knows? We’ll see who’s injured, who’s not, who’s playing well and what we need…I’m impressed with him. We’re impressed with him. That’s why he’s here” (per Rome).
Unfortunately, Dirden was not selected to the Astros roster and continued to flounder at Triple-A. He posted a .709 OPS and 68 wRC+ while nagging injuries limited him to just 84 games. This past offseason, he dropped to No. 30 on Baseball America’s organizational prospect list and fell off of MLB Pipeline’s list entirely. The Astros chose not to protect him in the Rule 5 draft, and he ultimately went unselected.
Dirden’s professional career has had its high highs and low lows. The 26-year-old is now eligible to sign with a new team, where he can hope to reach a new high – perhaps the major leagues.
Bennett Sousa Undergoes Surgery For Thoracic Outlet Syndrome
The Astros announced to reporters, including Chandler Rome of The Athletic, that left-hander Bennett Sousa underwent surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome yesterday. He will miss the entire 2024 season.
Sousa, 29 on Saturday, has only been with the Astros since September when he was claimed off waivers from the Tigers. But the club is clearly fond of him, as general manager Dana Brown said in February that Sousa likely would have made their playoff roster last year if he had been acquired prior to the September 1 eligibility cutoff date.
That strong reputation with the club would have put him in a good spot to earn a notable role in their bullpen this year but he started the season on the 15-day injured list due to left shoulder inflammation. It seems that further testing revealed a more specific diagnosis and the recommendation of surgery.
Sousa has 29 1/3 innings pitched in his major league career with a 7.06 earned run average in that small sample. He started 2023 with the White Sox but rode the roster carousel to the Reds, Brewers and Tigers before landing with the Astros. He tossed nine major league innings on the year with four earned runs allowed, striking out 10 and walking two. He also tossed 20 1/3 minor league innings with a 4.43 ERA, 33.3% strikeout rate and 10.3% walk rate.
The news of the surgery and missed season is obviously tough for Sousa, but it comes with a silver lining. He’ll spend the year on the major league injured list collecting big league pay and service time, a notable thing for a guy who came into 2024 with less than a year of service. The Astros will transfer him to the 60-day IL whenever they need his roster spot for another transaction. Other than Josh Hader, the only left-handed reliever on the 40-man other than Sousa is Parker Mushinski, so perhaps the club will keep an eye on the waiver wire for southpaws.
Astros To Claim Miguel Diaz, Cooper Hummel Off Waivers
2:05 pm: The Astros have now announced both claims. In corresponding moves, they transferred right-handers Luis Garcia Jr. and Penn Murfee to the 60-day injured list. Both pitchers underwent elbow surgery last summer and won’t be available for a few more months, at least.
12:27 pm: The Astros are set to make a pair of waiver claims. Neither has been formally announced by the club just yet, but Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports that Houston is claiming right-hander Miguel Diaz off waivers from the Tigers, who’d designated him for assignment last week. Ari Alexander of KPRC-2 in Houston further reports that the ‘Stros are claiming catcher/outfielder Cooper Hummel, who was designated for assignment by the Giants last week.
Diaz, 29, has pitched in parts of six big league seasons — four with the Padres and two with the Tigers. He tossed 14 innings out of the Detroit ’pen in 2023, allowing just one run on eight hits and five walks with 16 strikeouts. It was a brief but dominant showing that surely enhanced his standing within the organization and gave him a chance to break camp with the 2024 club. However, Diaz struggled this spring, surrendering five runs on ten hits and five walks in 8 1/3 innings.
Originally selected by the Padres (by way of a trade with the Twins) out of the Brewers organization in the 2016 Rule 5 Draft, Diaz’s big league career began in rocky fashion. That was understandable, given that San Diego carried a then-22-year-old Diaz on the roster all season after plucking him directly out of A-ball. He pitched just 66 2/3 innings in his first three seasons, logging a lowly 6.62 ERA. The Friars non-tendered him in 2019 to remove him from the 40-man roster but quickly re-signed him.
In 2021, Diaz returned to the majors with 42 effective innings out of the San Diego ‘pen. Over the past three seasons, he carries a 2.87 ERA, 27.1% strikeout rate, 10.8% walk rate and 41.9% ground-ball rate in 59 2/3 innings. Diaz is out of minor league options, so he’ll head directly to the Houston bullpen as he cannot be sent to the minors without first passing through waivers. If he can demonstrate some staying power in manager Joe Espada’s bullpen, he can be controlled through the 2027 season via arbitration.
Hummel, 29, has bounced from the Mariners, to the Mets, to the Giants and now the Astros since the end of the 2023 season. He appeared in 10 MLB games last year and came to the plate 26 times with Seattle. He also received a brief look with the D-backs in 2022, and he’s posted an overall .166/.264/.286 line in 227 career plate appearances.
Ugly as that small-sample slash line may be, Hummel turned in a .262/.409/.435 batting line in Triple-A last year and drew walks at a massive 18% clip. His ability to play both catcher and corner outfield gives him a relatively uncommon brand of versatility. Hummel has logged more than 1800 innings in left field, 1054 frames behind the plate, 508 innings at first base and another 296 innings in right field. Add in that he has a minor league option remaining, and he’s an interesting depth piece even if he hasn’t yet produced at the big league level.