Astros trade former top prospect to Diamondbacks to aid pitching depth

The Houston Astros made a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night, per Chandler Rome of The Athletic. According to Rome, Houston acquired Matthew Linskey, a right-handed pitching prospect, for infielder Grae Kessinger.

The Astros are making changes this offseason. Kessinger had a potential opportunity to make the big league team in 2025 after spending parts of the 2023 and 2024 seasons at the MLB level with the Astros. However, Houston ultimately decided to move him in order to acquire pitching depth.

Kessinger, 27, made his MLB debut in 2023. Overall, he has played in 46 total big league games over the past two years. Kessinger has struggled in those contests, though, slashing just .131/.243/.213/.456. Kessinger has eight total big league hits across 70 plate appearances. Perhaps a fresh start in Arizona will help Kessinger find his footing.

Linskey, meanwhile, is an intriguing pitching prospect. At 22 years old, there is a chance that he could impact the Astros at some point down the road. He has pitched well at the minor league level in the Diamondbacks' organization, recording a 2.75 ERA across two seasons in 2023 and 2024.

Linskey is likely still a couple of years away from reaching the big league level, as he has not pitched in Double-A or Triple-A yet, per milb.com. Still, the Astros clearly believe in his potential. If Linskey continues to perform well, he could end up reaching the big leagues sooner rather than later.

The Astros' offseason has been interesting to say the least. They traded star outfielder Kyle Tucker to the Chicago Cubs in a massive move. Alex Bregman is still a free agent, but Houston may not re-sign the third baseman. Trade rumors are swirling around current Astros as well such as reliever Ryan Pressly.

This is an Astros team that has won two World series championships within the past 10 years. Houston has discovered a way to find consistent success. Is that success coming to an end, though? Are the Astros entering a rebuild?

Only time will tell. The team still features stars such as Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez. Houston could realistically still compete. If the Astros struggle in 2025, though, the team will have difficult decisions to make.

For now, the Astros will continue to focus on the offseason and preparing for the upcoming '25 campaign. Their trade with the Diamondbacks will not receive much attention, but it could prove to be important in the future.