Astros to trade Myles Straw for reliever Phil Maton

The Astros land another right-handed reliever in Phil Maton in exchange for Myles Straw.

The Houston Astros reel in another right-handed reliever in Phil Maton from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for center fielder Myles Straw. This move came as a shocker since Straw has been playing better as of late, but with a boosted resume, general manager James Click brings in another option out of the bullpen.

With this recent news, this leaves Chas McCormick as the starting center fielder, unless another deal is made. There are options in Triple-A in Jose Siri and Jake Meyers, who was called up, to fill the void as well.

For Maton, the right-hander has posted a 4.57 ERA over 41.1 innings this season, which at first glance doesn’t look all that great. But his advanced metrics look better compared to his actual numbers, giving him an upside.

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While his ERA is high, Maton has a 13.1 strikeout per nine innings. He also ranks high in chase rate and spin rate, while also not giving up too many walks.

Maton is under team control until 2024, pending arbitration deals. The right-hander makes him the fourth acquired reliever this week, while also being the fourth right-hander. Myles Straw bumped his slash line up to .262/.339/.326, before being traded to Cleveland.

The Astros were also sent Yanier Diaz, a catching prospect that is currently in Low-A with the Lynchburg Hillcats. The right-hander is currently slashing to a .821 OPS. While this adds to a weakened catching room in the minor leagues, he is already 22-years-old and in the top 30 of their prospects. He was placed in Low-A with the Fayetteville Woodpeckers.

Ryan Hartman, who was designated for assignment five days ago, was claimed off of waivers by the Baltimore Orioles on Friday. There are former Astros’ executives in Baltimore.