4 hours ago 1

Houston Astros Make Pair of Roster Moves on Sunday

The Houston Astros will enter Sunday's game on the road against the Cleveland Guardians with a 36-28 record.

So far this season, the Astros have looked solid. They haven't been an elite contender, but they have shown flashes of being the kind of team that could pick up speed in the second half of the year.

Right now, they hold a 3.5-game lead over the Seattle Mariners in the race for the American League West division. However, there are clear areas where Houston should look to improve.

On Sunday before their matchup with the Guardians, the Astros made a pair of roster moves.

As shared by MLB Trade Rumors, Houston designated right-handed pitcher Forrest Whitley for assignment. In a corresponding move, they called up left-handed pitcher Brandon Walter from Triple-A.

Whitley, a 27-year-old relief pitcher, had appeared in five games for the Astros this season. He did not pitch well, compiling a 12.27 ERA, a 2.05 WHIP, eight strikeouts, and six walks in 7.1 innings of work.

Walter, on the other hand, has made 11 appearances this season at the Triple-A level, with seven of those games being starts. He holds a 3-1 record to go along with a 2.08 ERA, a 0.76 WHIP, 49 strikeouts, seven walks, and 47.2 innings pitched.

Houston has a lot of upside and potential with this move. Walter, who is 28 years old, could come up and be a difference maker either as a starter or a reliever.

At the very least, it's a slight shakeup to the pitching staff that could yield better results that the team was finding with Whitley on the mound.

Read Entire Article