Astros: 3 bullpen trade targets to fortify pitching staff

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Houston Astros, Sam Selman (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) /

The Houston Astros pitching staff is really coming around, but that doesn’t mean this bullpen can’t still be shored up a bit. here are three candidates.

The Houston Astros bullpen has seen near double-digit professional debuts this year, with so many never-before-seen youngsters and oldsters alike toeing the rubber and trying to keep the Astros in games.

The Astros bullpen ERA has steadily risen to thirteenth in the majors as of writing, but they’re also fourth-worst in baseball at surrendering free passes. That’s not the kind of thing that boasts sustainability. The Astros still need improvement.

That can come at the trade deadline, if James Click so desires. Sure, there’s a value in stocking the bullpen with youngsters—they get some great trial-by-fire experience. But in the meantime, this club is using some of their prime offensive weapons, who may be leaving at the end of the season, without much hope of protecting leads.

The Houston Astros still need bullpen help, so here are some candidates

Are we really ready to sacrifice this year for the sake of getting experience to young bullpen arms? Or would it be better to invest in a vetted reliever or two to make a real shot at making it to another World Series?

If the latter is opted for, here are three candidates that Click should be looking at.

3. Sam Selman, San Francisco Giants

Part of the struggle with trades is picking teams who are out of the race. The Giants aren’t out of the race just yet, but that may change in the near future, especially with the Dodgers running away with the division.

So Sam Selman. The massively improved late-bloomer who is suddenly such a reliable bullpen arm that he’s given up just three earned runs in 10 innings pitch.

Selman ticks a lot of the boxes—he doesn’t walk many, he avoids home runs, he’s a strikeout wizard. All of these things combine to make him a lucrative option that wouldn’t command that big of a return. He’s 29 years old, he’s not a long-term fix, but in his second year in the pros, he’s proving to be a reliable bullpen arm on an unreliable team.

How about making him a reliable bullpen arm on a reliable team?

Also, he’s a lefty.

Option No. 2 coming up.

Houston Astros, Richard Rodriguez (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

2. Richard Rodriguez, Pittsburgh Pirates

Not as much of a secret as Sam Selman, Richard Rodriguez has been anchoring the bullpens of shoddy teams since 2018. Well, just the Pirates. But that’s a pretty shoddy team as of late.

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Still, Rodriguez is the real deal. Even if you incorporate his five-games of impotence with the Baltimore Orioles, he’s still looking at a 3.57 ERA, far more strikeouts than walks, and not a whole lot of home runs.

This year has been the best, though.

Rodriguez is currently boasting a WHIP of just 0.56. Opponents are hitting just .135 against him. He strikes batters out 35% of the time and only walks them 2.5% of the time. That’s 14 strikeouts to every one walk.

At 30-years-old, Rodriguez has a similar benefit to Selman—this isn’t a hefty investment. It’s a temporary fix to a prevalent problem. Maybe our young arms can fill out the bullpen in time, but right now? Get a Selman or a Rodriguez.

Or a No. 1. Who was, until recently, Brandon Workman. But the Phillies beat me to the punch.

Houston Astros, Jordan Romano (Photo by Bryan M. Bennett/Getty Images) /

1. Jordan Romano, Toronto Blue Jays

The youngest of the bunch, but following a similar trend of being a pretty well-kept secret. Jordan Romano only hit the Blue Jays professional club last season and he did not do well. Not unlike Sam Selman.

But like Sam Selman, he is doing well now, and by well, I mean really well. With a WHIP of 0.77 and accompanying stats to indicate that that WHIP is the real deal, Romano boats a lot of the perks we want to see in a reliever. He strikes out far more than he walks, striking out nearly 40% of batters he faces and walking just 8.2%.

He’s predominantly a groundball pitcher, with 53.8% of opposition contact getting drilled into the ground, just the way we like it. His line drive and fly ball percentages are trending downwards and he’s just as likely to get a pop-up as he is to give up a home run.

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And at just 27-years-old, Romano is more of a long-term fix if it’s deemed we need one. (Spoiler alert: We do need one.)

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