Houston Astros: 1 trade, 1 signing and 1 prospect to win the World Series
By Kevin Henry
Astros rumors: Sign Matt Moore
In his first full season as a reliever, the 33-year-old Moore was impressive for the Texas Rangers last year, posting a 1.95 ERA/2.98 FIP/1.176 WHIP in 74.0 innings across 63 games.
Adding a southpaw to the Houston bullpen (which is projected to have all right-handers to begin the campaign) would help bring some balance in the back end (Moore finished 18 games last season and earned five saves) and give Dusty Baker another veteran option in the late innings.
Last season, Moore remained healthy (something that he has been unable to do for much of his 11-year MLB career) and performed well. If he continues that trend, he could be a viable option for a Houston team that already has a strong bullpen.
Moore is one of several left-handed bullpen options still available, but his 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings would be a benefit for any team. And if you dig deeper into the statistics, you’ll see that Moore posted an 11.17 strikeout per nine innings against right-handed batters last year, meaning he could be employed against opponents on either side of the plate and find success.