Astros: Kent Emanuel Offers Heartfelt Goodbye on Twitter

No Major League Baseball pitcher might have a debut and story like Kent Emanuel had with the Houston Astros. The rookie left-hander made his debut in late April of this past season at 28-years-old, pitching 8.2 innings in relief to seal a victory.

Emanuel was suspended during the 2020 season, after testing positive for dehydrochlormethyltestosterone. This didn’t stop Emanuel, while he put in countless hours into proving that he didn’t know how the drug entered his system in the offseason. The lefty then wore No. 0 to represent the amount of games he believes he should’ve been suspended.

After his historic debut, Emanuel only pitched in nine more games with the Astros, before his season ending due to an elbow injury. The left-hander had surgery and provided updates to fans on social media during his time away, as he was hungry for a chance come spring training.

That chance won’t be with the Astros, unfortunately. At 29-years-old, Emanuel was outrighted to the minor leagues but was claimed by the Philadelphia Phillies this past Friday. The 40-man roster needed spots to protect prospects from the Rule 5 Draft, and at his age and with his recent injury, the Astros elected to expose Emanuel to waivers.

Kent Emanuel said his goodbye to Astros’ fans on Twitter.

Emanuel became a fan favorite quickly after his debut, as many scrambled to find a way to include him in the rotation. The lefty kept his feet in the bullpen, until his season-ending elbow injury struck him.

While being claimed on Friday by the Phillies, Emanuel took to social media on Sunday to thank the Astros and their fans for their support.

The Astros now have three left-handed pitchers on the 40-man roster in Framber Valdez, Blake Taylor and Jonathan Bermudez, who is a 26-year-old lefty. Bermudez is a more regular starter than Emanuel, and while slightly younger, he could be Emanuel’s replacement.