Yusmeiro Petit
There is a lot of youth in the Houston Astros bullpen. They could use some veteran leadership in the form of Yusmeiro Petit. To sweeten the deal, Petit could be signed to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training. This will give the Astros time to figure out who gets voted off the 40-man roster allowing Petit to join prior to the team heading north for the season.
Petit is a veteran of 13 years and is coming off a season where he pitched to the tune of a 1.66 earned run average. His eight holds ranked second on the team, behind Jake Diekman’s league leading 14.
In 2018, Petit lead the American League with 80 appearances. The workload didn’t slow him down as he had a solid 2.71 ERA.
The backend of the starting rotation is young, and may not pitch deep into games. The bullpen as a whole, save the prospective closer and setup man, is also very young. At 36 years of age, Petit can be an innings eater and arm saver coming out of the bullpen. He can also be a bridge man from starter to eighth inning guy.
Yusmeiro Petit may not be the sexy choice on the free agent market, though he is the cost efficient, effective choice.