Astros make obvious Rule 5 protection roster move at expense of deadline addition

While the news has understandably focused on Framber Valdez declining his qualifying offer as expected on Tuesday, it was also the deadline to add players who are Rule 5 draft eligible to the 40-man roster to protect them from getting picked. The Houston Astros had a few candidates for such a move, but the most obvious one was, without question, Miguel Ullola.

Ullola possesses the almost perfect profile of a guy who would likely get picked in the Rule 5. He has big-time stuff, is a potential weapon as a starter or out of the bullpen, and he has missed bats in the higher levels of the minors. He is far from a perfect pitching prospect, but he absolutely would have been picked by some team in the Rule 5 if he were available.

Well, the Astros did indeed add Ullola to their 40-man roster on Tuesday, which instantly threw his name into Houston's 2026 pitching staff considerations. To make room for him, trade deadline acquisition Ramon Urias was designated for assignment.

Astros make Miguel Ullola's addition to 40-man roster official, designate Ramon Urias for assignment

With the move, it appears as though the Astros are wagering that Alimber Santa's history of command issues and lack of track record will keep him from getting picked. Outside of Ullola and Santa, the rest of Houston's Rule 5 eligible players were extreme dark horses to get protected this offseason.

As for Urias, he was a prime non-tender candidate anyway, and his roster spot is better used on Ullola. The Astros don't have a shortage of infield options at the moment, and once word got out that they were pursuing Brendan Donovan, it became extremely clear that his days were numbered. There was some hope that he could become a Swiss Army knife utility infielder for the Astros going forward when they traded for Urias at the deadline, but he just never got much going in Houston.

With that, the 40-man roster is full yet again, and several areas of the roster need some attention. This isn't going to be the lack of culling of the 40-man we see this offseason. Time will tell how extensive a roster makeover the Astros undergo before 2026.