Astros look even more foolish amid Nate Pearson's ridiculous Royals run

The Houston Astros may very well win the AL West this year. It's a notion that seemed unfathomable in the early going when the team crashed and burned out of the gate, but as they bumble towards the finish line, it's a real possibility, if only by default. However, the Astros aren't out of the woods yet, and if they collapse again in 2026, the pitching staff will be the reason why.

A major reason why Dana Brown was let go was his complete and total inability to elevate Houston's collection of hurlers over the offseason. He made numerous dart throws -- Christian Roa, Roddery Muñoz, Ryan Weiss, and Nate Pearson -- all of whom were DFA'd.

Then there are the big-ticket acquisitions. Mike Burrows was, at one point, the worst-qualified starter in the league by ERA before being sidelined with right elbow neuritis. Meanwhile, Tatsuya Imai has been such a catastrophic bust that he's been removed from the starting rotation and barely pitches these days.

Overall, the Astros staff ranks 25th in baseball with a 4.66 ERA. Their collective 4.59 FIP ranks 24th. Somehow, rather than reinforcing the club's pitching depth at the trade deadline, Brown made it even thinner by sending away Spencer Arrighetti in order to acquire Dalton Varsho.

There's another arm that Houston gave way that is proving to be even more regrettable than dealing Arrighetti. One of those dart throws, Pearson, is showing out in his new home with the Kansas City Royals.

Nate Pearson's Royals' success once again proves that the Astros shot themselves in the foot

The idea behind signing Pearson was to catch lightning in a bottle. The former first-round pick was a highly regarded talent at one time, though he hasn't had much to show for that fanfare in recent years. One way or another, Houston was banking on him realizing his potential and contributing in either the rotation or the bullpen.

An injury limited Pearson early, but once he returned, he actually didn't pitch that poorly for the Astros. Over 20 innings, he posted a 3.60 ERA, though the strikeout numbers were on the low side and the walks were a little too high. However, Houston pretty quickly decided that Pearson was unnecessary, and after DFA'ing him, found a willing trade partner in the Royals. And since then, Pearson has dominated.

The 30-year-old has made 15 appearances and thrown 14 2/3 frames for Kansas City. He's allowed just seven hits and one run, leading to a 0.61 ERA and 0.89 FIP. Wouldn't that look nice on a certain pitching-needy contender's roster?

To be fair, since Josh Hader returned, the Astros bullpen has been very good, but that doesn't mean that Pearson couldn't have helped shore things up further. Additionally, there's always the possibility that the Astros could have given him a chance in the rotation, or that his presence would have let them roll the dice on sticking a different bullpen arm with the starters.

Instead, the club proved to be too impatient to give Pearson a real shot, which is ironic given how long they've stuck with other struggling pitchers, even when it was clear that things were not going to improve. The rashness of the Pearson decision further proves how misguided the roster plan is. It would be nice to have another productive, high-octane arm, but alas, the Astros had one of those and gave it away.

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