The Rangers have signed right-hander Adrian Houser to a minor league deal, in line with Simply Baseball Media’s Aram Leighton (through X). The contract accommodates an invite to the Rangers’ huge league spring camp.
It was just below a 12 months in the past that the Mets acquired Houser and Tyrone Taylor from the Brewers, as New York president of baseball operations David Stearns appeared to bolster the Mets’ roster with two acquainted faces from his previous place in Milwaukee. Taylor delivered respectable manufacturing as a part of New York’s outfield combine, however Houser had a a lot rougher time within the Huge Apple, posting a 5.84 ERA over 69 1/3 innings.
Accidents to different pitchers opened the door for Houser to start the season within the Mets’ rotation, and he briefly moved again to beginning pitching when the Mets briefly adopted a six-man rotation. The splits had been fairly stark — Houser had an 8.55 ERA in 33 2/3 innings as a starter and a 3.28 ERA in 35 2/3 innings as a reliever, with these bullpen assignments often coming in multi-inning type.
Whereas it appeared like Houser had discovered his groove as a protracted reliever, the Mets opted to designate him for task after which launch him in late July. The Cubs and Orioles every signed Houser to minor league contracts through the season however these offers did not translate into any extra huge league enjoying time for the righty.
Houser has began 104 of his 152 profession Main League video games, delivering solid-to-passable outcomes as a swingman for the Brewers for a lot of his profession. A grounder specialist whose profession strikeout price is barely 18.5%, Houser’s ends in 2024 might considerably shut the door on his utilization as a starter, even when the Rangers might see worth in having a swingman round as rotation depth. Past simply final 12 months’s splits, Houser has a 2.32 ERA in 97 profession innings as a reliever, as in comparison with a a lot much less spectacular 4.57 ERA in 511 2/3 frames as a starter.
Aid pitching can be a way more vital want for a Rangers group might lose most of its 2024 bullpen (Kirby Yates, David Robertson, Jose Leclerc, Jose Urena, and Andrew Chafin) to free company, plus Josh Sborz might be out till no less than the beginning of June attributable to offseason shoulder surgical procedure. A multi-inning reliever like Houser might eat some up helpful innings out of the bullpen, whereas additionally offering a rotation security web. The present Texas pitching workers of Jacob deGrom, Jon Grey, Tyler Mahle, Kumar Rocker, and Jack Leiter is stuffed with well being query marks or inexperienced arms, so along with depth signings like Houser, the Rangers are additionally hoping to re-sign no less than one in all Nathan Eovaldi or Andrew Heaney.
