Urquidy gets call to start in pinch
Rapid rise to majors aided by problems of ballyhooed arms
To open a two-game series in baseball’s most hitter-friendly ballpark, the Astros will turn to an untested 24-year-old righthander with fewer than 80 innings above Class A.
Jose Urquidy’s impending promotion to the major league roster is not unwarranted. Unforeseen, sure, but such is the reality of Houston’s dire starting pitching situation.
Urquidy is the best option in an organization grappling with injury, ineffectiveness and a “season reset” for a player projected as its future ace.
The result is a revolving door behind Justin Verlander, Gerrit Cole and Wade Miley — one Urquidy will walk through Tuesday. He fills a spot vacated by Brad Peacock, who went on the injured list with right shoulder discomfort he’d been pitching through for a month.
Urquidy will make his major league debut at Coors Field, a stadium where more homers are hit and runs are scored than in any of its 29 counterparts. The Mexican righthander traveled to Denver on Monday afternoon to join the Astros, who flew following Sunday’s 6-1 win over the Mariners.
“It’s hard to hand someone their major league debut at Coors
Field,” general manager Jeff Luhnow said Monday. “It’s a difficult assignment for anybody, whether they’re debuting or not. Jose has performed well this year. He did well in spring training for us and has performed well in the (Pacific Coast League).
“He’s been our best guy in Triple-A right now.”
Suggesting such a statement before the season would have bordered on lunacy. Urquidy started on opening day for the Class AA Corpus Christi Hooks. He ranks 29th among MLBPipeline’s top 30 Astros prospects.
Top-five organizational prospects Forrest Whitley and Corbin Martin began the season with Class AAA Round Rock. It stands to reason that, under normal circumstances, both ballyhooed pitchers would be in line for this start before Urquidy. Perhaps for Whitley, it would turn into an audition to remain in the major league rotation. For Martin, another chance to prove he can stick.
Instead, neither man is pitching competitively. When or if they will return to minor league competition is anyone’s guess.
Once baseball’s top pitching prospect, Whitley had a 12.21 ERA and walked nearly six per nine innings in eight Class AAA starts. Soon, he reported right shoulder fatigue. The Alamo Heights product was jettisoned to West Palm Beach, Fla., for a “season reset” that has passed a full month.
No definitive timetable has been revealed for Whitley’s return to a full-season affiliate, but Luhnow remains optimistic the gangly, five-pitch fireballer could be back in late July.
Martin, meanwhile, made five major league starts and could not repeat his delivery with any consistency. His walk numbers rose, and his starts were short, none more than five innings in length. He threw just 57 percent of his pitches for strikes.
The Astros optioned Martin in June with hopes he could fix his mechanical issues and return sometime later in the season. Right elbow pain now has him in
Houston seeking a second medical opinion. Luhnow said Sunday the Texas A&M product will not pitch “any time soon.”
“This is how it works when you have four or five young prospects, all of whom have major league upside,” Luhnow said Monday. “It’s a numbers game, and not all of them are going to make it right away. We’re glad we have options, but we’re dealing with the realities of developing pitching prospects in today’s world.”
Collin McHugh’s miserable two months as a starter compelled the Astros to call up Martin. After combating a bout of elbow soreness, McHugh has pitched much better from the bullpen, a role from which the Astros may not be able to remove him. Same for Josh James, the hard-throwing righthander, who has not eclipsed 50 pitches during his 30 outings as a middle reliever.
Framber Valdez’s frequent bouts with fastball command make him an enigma. He has shown the ability to get good major league hitters out with one of the organization’s best curveballs. But when he falls behind too many batters, the Dominican lefthander is left with only a sinker and four-seam fastball — both of which he struggles to locate.
The Astros opted to demote Valdez following his three-inning tire fire against the Pirates last Tuesday, the same day Urquidy made a final, impressive start for Class AAA Round Rock.
The Astros purchased Urquidy’s rights from a Mexican professional team during the 2014-15 international free agent period. Urquidy pitched under the name Jose Luis Hernandez for the first three years of his Astros career. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2016 and returned in 2018 with a four-seam fastball hovering only around 90 mph.
Urquidy has upped that velocity this season, starting his ascent up the organizational hierarchy. Those within Houston’s organization say Urquidy can now touch 96-97 mph with his fastball. It averages 92-94 mph.
Urquidy pairs the fastball with a plus changeup and a slider he’s continuing to develop. Across 762⁄3 minor league innings this season, he struck out 104 and walked 15. He earned a promotion to Round Rock after only eight appearances in Class AA.
In the Pacific Coast League — a notoriously hitter-friendly league that now uses the major league baseballs flying so frequently out of ballparks — Urquidy possessed a 0.962 WHIP and permitted just 6.6 hits per nine innings and only six home runs in 432 ⁄3 innings.
That Urquidy has excelled despite the PCL’s spike in offense was a plus for Luhnow. Urquidy has pitched in Mexico City, so he’s not unfamiliar with the sort of high altitude Colorado will present. Both are advantages for Urquidy.
Perhaps his biggest one, though? He’s healthy and producing good numbers. Few of his minor league counterparts can relate.
“We invited him to big league spring training with the idea he’d get the taste of it and get some exposure with our big league staff to be someone we’d consider maybe next year or for a September callup,” Luhnow explained Monday.
“(His rise) has been faster than expected, but it’s very much needed in our organization right now.”