Houston Astros pitcher Cy Sneed is heading to Japan in an attempt to jumpstart his career, signing with the Yakult Swallows.
It has become commonplace for struggling major leaguers to head overseas to jumpstart their careers. Sometimes, all these players need is a chance that is not coming stateside, or a different approach that they are not receiving. Those fringe players have been making the journey to South Korea or Japan in hopes of finding an opportunity that simply was not there.
Count Houston Astros reliever Cy Sneed amongst those making that journey. He has signed with the Yakult Swallows in hopes of getting his career back on track.
RHP Cy Sneed in agreement with Yakult Swallows of Japan’s Central League, source tells The Athletic. Spent parts of past two seasons with Astros.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) November 27, 2020
A casual look at his numbers would not suggest that this is the type of transaction that would move the needle. He spent parts of two years in Houston, posting a 5.59 ERA and a 1.629 WHiP in his 38.2 innings. Sneed would not seem to be a major loss for the Astros bullpen.
But there is more to him than those numbers would indicate. He has struck out 44 batters with 15 walks in that time, showing the ability to miss bats. Sneed has also performed reasonably well against righties, striking out 27 batters with just four walks in 95 plate appearances. His lifetime .377 batting average on balls in play against is a factor and would indicate that he has been relatively unlucky during his major league career.
However, his command is still a work in progress, both in and out of the zone. Sneed issued ten walks in just 17.1 innings last season, and has given up eight homers in his brief major league career. He has also struggled against lefties, with 17 strikeouts and ten walks in 83 plate appearances while being tagged for a .948 OPS.
Obviously, Sneed has things to work on overseas. He needs to find an out pitch against lefties and work to harness his stuff within the strike zone. But his ability to generate strikeouts makes him an intriguing arm to watch during his time in Yakult, as he may be able to turn his career around after a year or two.
Cy Sneed tantalized with his potential with the Houston Astros. A trip to Japan may be what he needs to unlock that ability.