Astros pick up Osuna from Blue Jays in swap of closers
OAKLAND, California — Before Roberto Osuna steps onto the mound as Houston’s new closer, the Astros want him to stand in the clubhouse and explain himself.
Swapping a closer with on-field problems for one with off-field troubles, the defending World Series champion Astros traded Ken Giles to the Toronto Blue Jays along with a pair of pitching prospects for Osuna on Monday.
The 23-year-old Osuna is eligible to pitch in the big leagues starting Sunday after a 75-game suspension under Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy. He has made six scoreless one-inning appearances in the minors since July 14, the last three at Triple-A.
“It’s a tough situation. I think the thing for us to remember here is that the details haven’t come to light,” Houston pitcher Justin Verlander said. “We don’t know the whole story. Obviously, I’ve said some pretty inflammatory things about stuff like this in the past, and I stand by my words.
“But I think with an ongoing case as is this one, just see what happens. But it will be interesting. I think he plans to talk to us when he gets here and we’ll go from there and see what happens,” Verlander said.
Osuna is to pitch in another minor league game this week before joining the Astros on Sunday.
Houston also sent right-handers David Paulino and Hector Perez to Toronto as part of the deal, a day before the deadline for trades without waivers.
The Astros lead the AL West but were set to begin a series at Seattle having lost a season-high four in a row. They also acquired reliever Ryan Pressly from Minnesota last week.
Osuna has not pitched in the majors since May 6, two days before he was put on administrative leave when he was charged with one count of assault in Toronto — which remains pending.
“This has been exceptionally difficult,” Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins said on a conference call.
Verlander and Lance McCullers Jr. voiced disdain for domestic abusers in March when video leaked of former Astros prospect Danry Vasquez beating his girlfriend. Vasquez was released by Houston following an arrest for the incident in 2016. KRIS-TV in Corpus Christi obtained and aired the video, which showed Vasquez, still partly in uniform, hitting his girlfriend in a stairwell at Double-A Corpus Christi’s stadium.
“[Middle finger emoji] you man,” Verlander tweeted. “I hope the rest of your life without baseball is horrible. You deserve all that is coming your way!”
“This is the reality of domestic violence,” McCullers wrote. “It’s always brutal, always sickening. We must fight for the victims, video or not. He should be in jail. If you need help, find it. People care.”
Osuna is 0-0 with nine saves in 10 chances and a 2.93 ERA in 15 games this season. He was an all-star last year, when he went 3-4 with 39 saves and a 3.38 ERA.