Joe Espada’s first major call in Game 1 isn’t just about the score. It’s about how long he can ride A.J. Blubaugh before the Astros have to start digging into the rest of the bullpen.
Houston is set to open against the White Sox with Blubaugh, and both clubs will be in bullpen-game mode at Daikin Park. That makes the opener more than a simple first inning assignment. It could shape how much each relief corps has left for Game 2.
Blubaugh’s workload is the first thing that jumps out. He has made only three starts in his career, all of them coming in his 2025 debut season with the Astros, when he went 3-1 with a 1.69 ERA and 0.7 bWAR.
This year, he was used heavily out of the bullpen, finishing 5-3 with a 3.66 ERA and one save while leading Houston relievers with 96 innings in 64 appearances. Thirty-five of those outings lasted more than one inning.
That kind of usage put him in rare territory. The Astros cycled through 19 different starters, and Blubaugh, working in relief, threw more innings than 17 of them.
Only Peter Lambert, at 155 2/3 innings, and Hunter Brown, at 107 1/3, logged more for Houston. Across all of Major League Baseball, Blubaugh also paced relievers in innings, finishing ahead of Milwaukee’s Aaron Ashby, who totaled 87.
The problem for Espada is that the Blubaugh who piled up those innings hasn’t been the same pitcher lately. Over his last 10 appearances, he owns a 9.31 ERA and has given up at least one run in six of them.
He has also gone more than one inning only once in his last 12 relief outings, which does suggest he is a little fresher than the workload might imply. In that span, he has three holds, one blown save, eight strikeouts, eight walks and three homers allowed.
That recent stretch stands in sharp contrast to what Blubaugh was doing before September. In 12 relief appearances from July 31 through Sept. 3, he went 1-0 with a 0.47 ERA, struck out 18, walked three and allowed just one home run. He added four holds and a save during that run.
Blubaugh also has some history against Chicago from the regular season. He faced the White Sox three times and did not allow a run over four innings. Those outings came during that stronger stretch, and he earned a win on Sept. 2 in Houston’s 2-0 victory over Chicago.
Even so, the White Sox were able to put the ball in play against him. Chicago went 6-for-17 against Blubaugh, good for a .353 average, with three strikeouts and two walks in the small sample. Those six hits came from five different hitters: Brenton Doyle, Chase Meidroth, Braden Montgomery, Munetaka Murakami and Tristan Peters, who added a triple.
There is still some room for optimism if Blubaugh can stretch out beyond the first trip through the order. During the regular season, opposing hitters batted .217 the first time through and .250 the second time through. His strikeout-to-walk rate also improved from 12.9 K-BB% to 15.0, even as the average ticked up.
That is the balancing act in front of Espada: knowing when Blubaugh can keep going, when to turn to the next arm and which reliever fits best at the right moment. If Blubaugh can cover more than two innings and give Houston a strong start, that would lower the burden on the rest of the bullpen, including Bryan Abreu and Josh Hader.
In a short best-of-three Wild Card series, that may be the real pressure point in Game 1.
In Other News...
Astros Wild Card Roster Reveals A Plan Fans Will Notice
The Astros 26-man roster for the American League Wild Card Series offers a clear glimpse at how this group is being shaped for October, with 12 pitchers and 14 position players on hand and a roster split that leans heavily on a mix of veterans and newcomers. Half of the players on the list have no postseason experience, but the core still includes the familiar October names fans know well, including Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, Jeremy Pea and Christian Vzquez.
There are also a few decisions that stand out right away, starting with rookie Ethan Pecko being left off because of injury, which opened the door for Tatsuya Imai to make the roster. Houston also added Raynel Delgado and Joey Loperfido while leaving Steven Okert out, another sign the club has chosen flexibility and coverage over familiarity in a series where every spot matters. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Wild Card Hopes May Hinge On One Astros Problem
The Astros and White Sox are headed for a familiar October rematch, with the two clubs having already seen plenty of each other during the regular season and Houston taking five of those seven meetings. That backdrop gives this wild-card series a little extra edge, especially with Houston leaning on a lineup that can still tilt a game through Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez, while Jeremy Pena and Hunter Brown loom as important pieces on the other side of the matchup equation.
Chicago comes in with its own set of young names to watch, including Chase Meidroth and Sean Burke, but this still looks like a series where pitching and timely offense will decide everything. The White Sox have reason to believe they can keep it close if their run prevention holds up, yet Houstons deeper track record in this pairing suggests the margin for error is thin, and one Astros weakness could end up being the difference in a short series. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Playoff Roster Leaves One Bullpen Decision Under The Microscope
The White Sox have settled on their 26-man roster for the American League Wild Card Series against the Astros, and the breakdown already hints at the kind of tight, matchup-driven choices teams make in October. Chicago carried 14 position players and 12 pitchers, a setup that gave the club room to keep Tommy Pham on the roster instead of adding another arm, while also finding spots for rookies Noah Schultz and David Sandlin. Jake Rogers was kept as the backup catcher, another sign that the Sox leaned toward flexibility and familiar pieces as they finalized the group.
The one move that stands out most from Houstons perspective is the absence of Trevor Richards, who had been part of the White Sox regular-season pitching mix. In a short series, every bullpen spot matters, and leaving a veteran reliever off the roster can reshape how a manager navigates the late innings and the middle frames. Chicago clearly made a judgment call here, and whether that choice helps or hinders them against an experienced Astros club is one of the more interesting subplots hanging over the series. [Read more 🡒]