Astros may have revealed their secret weapon on Opening Day few saw coming

The Houston Astros bullpen has been a pretty hot topic heading into the season. Most of that chatter has centered around Josh Hader's injury, to be sure, but Bryan Abreu's future has also been in question. However, one name that hasn't been brought up much at all is AJ Blubaugh.

That is not a knock on Blubaugh whatsoever. The Astros clearly like Blubaugh and with good reason, but most fans probably considered any stint in the bullpen for him to be temporary, as he has been considered a starting pitching prospect that Houston simply didn't have room for in their rotation.

Well, after Blubaugh's performance on Opening Day against the Angels, who aren't named Mike Trout, there is good reason to believe that Blubaugh's turn in the bullpen could be longer than we thought. In fact, there seems to be a decent shot that he could become a multi-inning weapon that could be a huge help for the Astros in 2026.

AJ Blubaugh shone coming out of the Astros bullpen, so now the team has some decisions to make

Blubaugh is not new to a relief role. He was a closer in college and split time between starting and the bullpen in the minors before shifting full-time to the rotation in 2024. However, it wasn't his experience that carried the day, but instead the sheer quality of his raw stuff.

While Blubaugh did make a mistake to Trout that the future Hall of Famer deposited over the train tracks at Daikin Park, Blubaugh looked great other than that in his 2.1 innings of work. Normally sitting in the mid-90's as a starter, Blubaugh's ratcheted things up in relief with fastballs consistently in the 97-98 mph range. By giving Houston multiple innings, the Astros' bullpen is surprisingly fresh heading into the weekend despite Hunter Brown being unable to finish out the fifth inning.

If Blubaugh can be exactly that guy for the Astros in 2026, it would be ideal. This is a team that has successfully used swingman types in the past, with the latter years of Collin McHugh's tenure being just one example. Given the questions about the Astros' rotation beyond Brown, having a guy like Blubaugh who can throw gas for multiple innings to get starters out of games and help preserve the rest of the bullpen over a long season is invaluable.

At least, that is the theory. Blubaugh has to keep pitching well for this plan to work, and there is a chance that he may be pressed into service as a full-time starter again if more injuries pop up. So far, Blubaugh is off to a great start, no matter where he ends up.