Houston Astros: The “Sipp” Solution

Do the Houston Astros need to trade for a second lefty?

As Eric Huysman wrote about in his article, “A Look at the Struggles of Tony Sipp in 2016,” Sipp is having the worst season of his career. In 35 games, he has a 5.32 ERA and 1.65 WHIP in his 23.2 innings pitched.

With his inability to get lefties out, with a 1.70 WHIP and .314 average against them, the Astros are in need of a lefty specialist out of the pen. With the trade deadline approaching, there are some options that the Astros could acquire. However, with talent already in the system, the Astros might also be looking within. Here are some options to offer some much-needed support against left-handed hitters.

Choice 1: Tony Sipp

After signing a three-year $18 million dollar deal with the Astros in the offseason, Sipp was expected to be the guy against left-handed hitters. That has not been the case in 2016.

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As Huysman pointed out in his article, Sipp has lost velocity on all of his pitches. This has led to a higher fly ball percentage, which, in a hitter’s park like Minute Maid is, leads to more home runs. How much more? He gives up 1.5 more home runs per nine innings this season than he did in 2015.

With the drop in strikeouts and dramatic rise in hits given up and home runs given up, Sipp is going on be on a short leash coming back from the All-Star break this weekend. However, there is hope that his season can be turned around.

First, in his Astros career, Sipp has been a great pitcher post All-Star break. Although his ERA is much different, with a 4.01 ERA in 2014 compared to a remarkable 0.41 ERA in 2015, both seasons show that hitters had a hard time figuring out Sipp. In 2014, Sipp gave up 11 earned runs in his 24.2 innings of work. However, those 11 earned runs came from only 12 hits and 11 walks. With a .143 batting average against, Sipp had a 0.93 WHIP post All-Star break.

Second, Sipp has shown in the past, especially in his career with the Astros, that ground balls lead to success. In his breakout season in 2015, Sipp had a career-high 38.8% of the balls in play lead to ground balls. This was because of how often Sipp used his fastball. His velocity this season is only down 0.5 miles per hour on average. However, this is leading more to Sipp relying on his breaking balls. This season, he has thrown his slider 32.6% of the time, which is his highest percentage since 2013. Also, he has used his

This season, he has thrown his slider 32.6% of the time, which is his highest percentage since 2013. Also, he has used his changeup more this year than any other year before. With those two pitches averaging in the high seventies, they are hittable pitches without movement. If Sipp can pitch to his strength and rely on his fastball once again, that will lead to more outs, especially against left-handed hitters.

Next: Choice 2

Choice 3: Will Smith

Smith has been a stellar piece out of the Milwaukee Brewers bullpen for the past three seasons. Before the 2016 season started, the closer’s role was down to either him or right-hander Jeremy Jeffress.  However, after he tore his LCL in his right knee in Spring Training, Smith lost a good chunk of his 2016 season.

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In his limited amount of playing time, though, Smith has been impressive. In his 17 innings of work, Smith has a 2.12 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP. With a .169 batting average against, he has only given up ten hits in his 17 innings.

More importantly, for the Astros, Smith has been practically unhittable against left-handed bats. He has given up no runs on five hits with seven strikeouts this season. He has a .179 average against lefties with a WHIP of 0.63.

The bad thing for the Astros is that they will not be the only team pursuing Smith. With the Brewers in fourth place and 14.5 games back in the NL Central, they are looking for prospects to aid in rebuilding that organization. Even though the Astros have the kind of prospects that would get them Smith, the Astros should be careful with how much they give away for another bullpen piece.

Although Smith has the stuff to gain him save opportunities and closer consideration, the Astros may not want to pay the price that the Brewers are expecting in return. However, Smith is an underrated piece that could put the Astros over the top come late September and early October.

Next: Choice 4

Choice 4: No Lefty Specialist

Although Sipp has been a solid contributor for the Astros for the past two seasons, there does not need to be a matchup-based bullpen for the Astros. Manager A.J. Hinch has already shown, through the construction of his bullpen, that every pitcher should be able to get every hitter out. On the current Astros roster, three guys have shown that ability to get left-handed hitters out.

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With a .194 batting average against left-handed hitters, Chris Devenski has only given up 19 hits and a 0.89 WHIP against them. He has also struck left-handers out 29 times. Ken Giles has been better against left-handed bats. In his 18.1 innings against, Giles has 19 strikeouts and a 1.25 WHIP against, which is .14 points lower than against righties.

Finally, our closer Will Harris has dominated everyone. Against left-handers, Harris has 18 strikeouts in 17.1 innings and a 1.04 WHIP.

However, let’s not forget about the arm that former Astros third baseman Morgan Ensberg regards as the best in the Astros organization. James Hoyt, like Harris, has been dominating all kinds of hitters in the PCL. Against lefties, he has a measly .205 average against with 30 strikeouts in his 20 innings.

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The Astros have the answer within the organization. It just may not be in the form of a southpaw pitcher.

***Stats from MLB.com, MILB.com, Baseball Reference, and FanGraphs***