Bryan Abreu's struggles may force Astros into move they didn’t expect

Bryan Abreu might not be the Houston Astros' only problem in the bullpen, but he's certainly the biggest. The Astros have described Abreu as their "second closer" in the past, indicating their confidence in his abilities, but right now, he's become an arsonist.

It was assumed that this stint as the closer in Josh Hader's absence was a golden opportunity for Abreu to secure a massive payday this offseason, one that would surely end his tenure in Houston. Instead, he's fumbling the opportunity, and if it continues, the Astros might not even want him back next year, even if he comes at a discount

His velocity has mostly returned after the strange decline in his two outings, but the results haven't gotten any better. Through four appearances, the 29-year-old has only managed to complete 2⅔ innings and has a ridiculously bad 22.63 ERA.

The sample size is minuscule, but it still presents cause for concern. Abreu ascended to the closer role last season on August 9 when Hader's season ended due to a left shoulder capsule strain and posted a 3.86 ERA in his stead. The impact of Hader's absence on the entire bullpen was even more profound, as the relief corps posted a 3.30 ERA (2nd in MLB) with Hader, and a 4.62 mark (23rd) without him.

Some guys, even if they are elite setup men, simply can't handle the ninth. Whether it's nerves or some other sort of mental block, they seem to be unable to bring the skills that made them electric setup men into closer duties. Going back to last year's underwhelming performance closing games, it seems that Abreu is one of those guys.

Astros need to pull Bryan Abreu from closer duties, but have no Josh Hader replacement

If Abreu doesn't get his act together quickly, Houston might want to make a change in the ninth. The only problem? They don't have very many options to turn to.

While no one has been as bad as Abreu, the majority of Astros relievers have been bad to start the year. The lone two bright spots have been Bryan King (1.69 ERA) and Kai-Wei Teng (1.59 ERA). King established himself as a valuable member of the Astros' bullpen, but since debuting in 2024, he's thrown a total of 99⅔ innings. Only 18⅓ of those frames have come in high leverage, though those situations have been when he's performed at his best.

As for Teng, he's even less experienced, and the bulk of his big league work has come as a starter. This year, he's thrown 5⅔ innings, all of which have come in low-leverage situations.

Hader is projected to return by late-April or early-May, but he's yet to face live hitters, so that time frame is just a very rough estimate at this point in time. Any more setbacks and Houston will be in a lot of trouble.

The best-case scenario for the Astros is that Abreu shakes off his early-season malaise, but given he's been much less effective in the closer role dating back to last year, that isn't a good bet. What Houston desperately needs is for its offense to carry the team until Hader comes back. If the hitters can't do that, they might find themselves in a deep hole by the time their superstar closer returns.