Astros: Jake Odorizzi will have a bounce back season in 2022

Jake Odorizzi gets a full spring training.

We as fans constantly underestimate the difficulty to assimilate to a new team in a new culture. After missing most of 2020 with injury, Odorizzi signed late with the Astros in March 2021, so he never got a spring training.

He ended up making his first start on April 9, literally one month from the time he signed with Houston. That’s a short amount of time to move to Houston, and sync up with the teams workout programs and pitch strategy.

Odorizzi delivered a dud in his first start with five earned runs on seven hits against the Detroit Tigers, which included two home runs. He then left the game early after his third start with injury and missed about a month on the the shelf.

Odorizzi returned and had a very successful June, before abruptly falling off the cliff in July and August where he posted a 5.10 ERA. Some players can walk into a new situation and thrive right away, and others need time to acclimate.

Odorizzi will come into 2022 with a full offseason with the same club, an entire spring training to work out the kinks and has no known nagging injury to slow him down. The last time he had a steady offseason like this was before his 2019 campaign, where he was an All-Star.

The right-hander took the bump Tuesday, working two innings on 27 pitches (17 strikes). Odorizzi allowed two base runners — a double and a walk — to his one strikeout.