The Astros have found something useful in AJ Blubaugh, and the question now is whether they’re using him in the best possible way.
The rookie right-hander has turned into a real bullpen weapon for Houston. At 26, Blubaugh leads MLB relievers with 80 1/3 innings pitched, a workload that has come in 50 appearances and often includes multiple innings at a time. The results have been strong: a 3.25 ERA, 9.07 K/9, and a .206 batting average allowed.
What makes that even more interesting is that this isn’t some fluky breakout. Blubaugh’s 2025 production has followed on the heels of a sharp cameo last year, when he made 11 appearances, including three starts, and logged 32 innings with a 1.69 ERA. He was effective then both as a starter and out of the bullpen, posting a 1.64 ERA in his brief time in the rotation.
That’s why the fit feels worth revisiting now. Houston’s starting pitching has been a mess, and Blubaugh spent most of his minor league career working as a starter. With the rotation in shambles, it’s fair to ask whether the Astros should be getting more out of him than late-inning relief work.
The rotation issues run deep. Dana Brown was relieved of his duties in part because he failed to build a quality starting staff, and Houston’s bets on reclamation projects and upside arms mostly went nowhere.
Tatsuya Imai, the expensive addition, has struggled so badly that he’s been moved to the bullpen. Hunter Brown, last year’s third-place Cy Young finisher, has also had trouble getting back to that level, especially with fastball command.
The numbers tell the story. Houston’s rotation owns a 5.15 ERA, which ranks 28th. That’s a glaring problem for a team that has gotten enough from the bullpen to survive, with Josh Hader, Steven Okert, and a resurgent Bryan Abreu helping stabilize things.
That’s what makes Blubaugh such an intriguing case. Moving a reliever into the rotation isn’t simple, especially in the middle of a season, but he’s one of the few pitchers on the staff who already has the kind of multi-inning background that can make the leap work. He would still need a couple of outings to build up, but he could be ready faster than most.
The Astros may have missed a chance to get more value out of him earlier, especially since he doesn’t seem to have been seriously considered for the rotation while other arms like Ryan Weiss, Kai-Wei Teng, Lance McCullers Jr., and others got their opportunities.
There’s still time for Houston to correct that decision. If the Astros want to make a push, Blubaugh could help them separate from the Texas Rangers and others in the playoff race. The catch is timing: if they’re going to make the move, they need to do it now so he can be stretched out in time for October.
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To make room, the Astros optioned infielder Ray Delgado back to Triple-A Sugar Land. It is the kind of roster shuffle that usually flies under the radar, but it says plenty about how Houston is trying to balance coverage across the diamond while also reacting to Peas availability and the need to keep an extra bat on hand. [Read more 🡒]
Joe Espada's Astros Future Just Became A Real Storyline
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Astros Suddenly Have A Bullpen Question They Cant Ignore
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The bigger question for the Astros is whether the underlying numbers can buy him more time, since some advanced metrics still paint a friendlier picture than the ERA does. Even so, bullpen roles tend to tighten quickly when the results slip, and if De Los Santos cannot steady himself soon, Houston may have to start thinking about his place in the late-inning mix. [Read more 🡒]