After watching their World Series hopes slip away to an AL West Division rival, the Houston Astros have been trying to make a significant addition to their pitching staff by boosting their bullpen. While Ryan Pressly is still one of the best closers in MLB, the 35-year-old is only under contract through the 2024 season. Pressly and the Astros also hold a mutual option that could see the closer pitch into 2025 before entering unrestricted free agency too.
As good as Pressly is, he’s only one person, and the Astros have learned that you can never have enough pitching when the playoffs arrive. But Pressly is about to get a lot of help, and he may even see his role impacted in a major way in 2024.
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Houston Astros make Josh Hader highest-paid relief pitcher in MLB history
On Friday, the Houston Astros signed five-time All-Star relief pitcher Josh Hader to a five-year, $95 million contract. Unlike Shohei Ohtani’s recent contract, Hader’s agreement includes no future deferrals.
In doing so, the Astros have made Hader the highest-paid relief pitcher in MLB history, at an average salary of $19 million per season. Hader also secured a full no-trade clause, indicating there’s no other place he’d rather pitch in 2024 than for the Astros.
- Josh Hader’s stats (2023): 56.1 IP, 33 SV, 1.28 ERA, 85 K, 1.101 WHIP
Given that Houston has made the playoffs each of the past seven seasons, including winning two of four World Series appearances, Hader seems to have picked a great destination.
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