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The Astros announced earlier today that theyve activated right-hander from the injured list. Righty was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move. The move sets up what could be the first extended shot in the majors of Whitleys career. Selected 17th overall by the Astros all the way back in 2016, Whitley was a consensus top-10 prospect in the entire sport in the late 2010s and considered by many to be the best up-and-coming young pitcher in the minor leagues. Unfortunately, things came off the rails somewhat for the righty from there. He was suspended for 50 games for violating MiLBs drug policy prior to the 2018 season, and that suspension, shoulder i sues, the canceled minor league season in 2020, and Tommy John surgery led to Whitley throwing just 66 innings in minor league games over a four-year period. When he finally made his way back onto the mound in 2022, the results were not good. Whitley struggled to a 6.53 ERA in 40 innings spread acro s three levels of the minors, including a 7.09 ERA at Triple-A. He struggled again the following year with a 5.70 ERA in 30 innings before being sidelined by a lat strain Jovani Moran Jersey but stuck around to make his big league debut last year. He threw just three innings in the majors last year but did not surrender a run and also posted an excellent 1.89 ERA with a 31.9% strikeout rate in 32 appearances at Triple-A last year after moving to the bullpen. A bone bruise in Whitleys left knee prevented him from making the Astros roster out of camp this year, but the i sue didnt keep him sidelined for long. Since Whitley is out of options, he had to either be designated for a signment or added to the Astros big league roster once he was ready to be activated from the injured list. Houston chose to bring him back up to the majors, and hes now set to join a bullpen that has virtually no certainty outside of closer and top setup man . has looked good as another potential high leverage arm from the left side to complement Hader, but theres little in Whitleys way to stop him from becoming the clubs second high leverage arm from the right side after this offseasons trade vacated the role. With that being said, the righty will need to show better control than he did during his latest stint at Triple-A. While Whitley struck out a solid 26.3% of his opponents during his latest rehab a signment, he walked an unplayable 21.1% of batters as well. Fortunately, that was acro s a sample of just four appearances. Its not at all difficult to imagine a player with Whitleys talent and prospect pedigree finally being able to put things together in the majors this year, particularly now that hes moved to the bullpen full-time in a move that should help to minimize injury risk. Making room for Whitley on the Astros active roster is the departure of Hernandez, who will head to Triple-A Sugar Land and wait for his next opportunity. Hernandez departs the roster without having made an appearance this year, though he has a 9.00 ERA in seven appearances with the Astros and Padres in his career since debuting with San Diego back in 2023. The 28-year-olds career 3.34 ERA at Triple-A suggests theres reason for optimism he could be effective in the majors if offered the opportunity, but he doesnt appear ticketed for an extended look in the majors any time soon given the current construction of Houstons bullpen. Byung-ho Park Jersey |
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发表于 2026-3-17 15:55:33