Luhnow feeling all right if he can’t add another lefthanded reliever
For most of the offseason, it seemed almost a foregone conclusion the Astros would acquire a lefthanded relief pitcher to protect themselves in case Tony Sipp’s struggles of last season persisted in 2017.
But such an acquisition now appears unlikely.
“I’ve kept tabs on the trade market for lefthanded relievers as well as the free-agent market,” general manager Jeff Luhnow said Saturday. “But at this point, I’m not sure that anything’s going to get done there.”
Declining to add another lefthanded reliever could come back to bite the Astros. Sipp, an eight-year veteran, is their only proven major league southpaw in the bullpen and he is coming off a career-worst season (4.95 ERA in 422⁄ innings). The other lefthanded relievers on their 40-man roster, Kevin Chapman, Ashur Tolliver and prospect Reymin Guduan, each lack a track record of success in the major leagues.
“We look at our bullpen and there’s a lot of ways to mix and match the bullpen,” Luhnow said. “You think about, if we bring in a lefty reliever, who’s on the outside? Is it ( James) Hoyt? Is it ( Michael) Feliz? Who’s going to be in Triple A?’ And I’m not sure that’s really an upgrade depending upon who it is.”
Options still exist if the Astros decide to address their bullpen. Veterans Boone Logan, Jerry Blevins and J.P. Howell are among the top lefthanded relievers who have yet to sign with a team. Justin Wilson, a trade candidate whom the Astros discussed with the Tigers earlier in the offseason, is still with Detroit.
Of Chapman, Tolliver and Guduan, Guduan offers the most intrigue. The 24-yearold Dominican throws his fastball in the mid-to-high 90s and his slider in the mid 80s, but he has struggled with control.
Chapman, 28, is out of minor league options, so if he does not make the Astros’ opening day roster he would be subject to waivers and removal from the 40-man roster.
Tucker says he’s 95 percent healthy
Four months removed from season-ending surgery on his right shoulder, Astros outfielder/designated hitter Preston Tucker said he feels about 95 percent physically but has yet to take swings.
Tucker, who spends his offseason in his hometown of Tampa, Fla., resumed lifting weights in December and said “from what I’m limited to do, I feel great.” He is
scheduled to visit his doctor for one last check-up in early February, at which point he expects to get cleared to partake in all baseball activities for the start of spring training.
“Once I start doing baseball stuff, I’ll have two weeks until (Grapefruit League) games start,” he said Saturday. “Ideally, I’d like to play in those. Realistically, I don’t know. I guess I’ll just have to see how my body adapts to it.
“I don’t think it’s going to take me too long to get back in the rhythm of swinging and everything, but I just want to make sure I’m 100 percent when I do it.”
Tucker, 26, is coming off what essentially amounted to a lost season. Up and down from Class AAA, he batted only .164 with four homers and a .551 on-base plus slugging percentage in 134 major league at-bats.
Given the Astros’ offseason additions of outfielders Josh Reddick, Carlos Beltran and Nori Aoki, it’s expected Tucker will begin the season in Class AAA if the Astros are at full strength. He should be called up at some point this season, though.
“It’s going to be interesting,” Tucker said. “Obviously, my first priority is to get healthy and my second is to play well. I think in a club like this, we have all the talent here. I think winning is the No. 1 goal.
“So, I think if I play well, I expect to play. But if I don’t play well, then I obviously don’t expect as many opportunities. The only thing I can control is just trying to play as well as I can, and if I do play well I want to get some shots to play.”
Odds and ends
General manager Jeff Luhnow said it’s “likely” the team will go to an arbitration hearing with at least one of its three unsigned players — starting pitcher Collin McHugh, infielder Marwin Gonzalez and relief pitcher Will Harris — but he added he was “not 100 percent sure about that at this point.” …
Hall of Famers Jeff Bagwell and Craig Biggio and former Astros manager Phil Garner are expected to serve as guest instructors in spring training, manager A.J. Hinch said. …
Biggio, Lance Berkman, Brad Ausmus and Andy Pettitte were among the former Astros invited to Monday’s public rally to celebrate Bagwell’s Hall of Fame election. Doors to the Union Station lobby open at 5 p.m., with the rally scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. …
The Astros signed 27-year-old righthander Dayan Diaz to a minor league deal with an invitation to major league spring training. Diaz, an international signee of the Astros in 2005, has only 62⁄ innings of major league experience, all of which came last season with the Cincinnati Reds.