Houston Astros: Brad Hand should be on team’s trade radar

The Houston Astros have let it be known that they are on the look out for a starting pitcher. But it is also known that their solitary left handed reliever, Tony Sipp, has not gotten the job done since signing a three year $18 million dollar deal after his phenomenal 2015 season.

The Houston Astros are solidly in the buyer’s market. The San Diego Padres are solidly in the sellers market. Now there’s not a lot that’s appealing about the Padres roster in terms of trade purchases to be made off their roster.

But they do have someone of interest on their team, and it’s all-star reliever Brad Hand. Hand is having an amazing year this year as he’s pitched to the tune of a 2.25 ERA with a 0.98 WHIP and 61 strikeouts in 48 innings. He is currently the set up man for the Padres and the team has said they are looking for a haul of prospects for him. Per Jerry Crasnick of ESPN.com tweeting yesterday:

The reason being Brad Hand is 27 years old and under team control for two more years currently making only $1.4 million dollars with two years of arbitration left. He’s also a lefty, something we all know is a valued commodity out of the bullpen to offset the power of some big left handed hitters in the oppoenent’s lineup.

The Astros definitely need bullpen help. Especially because of the contenders we are lined up to face in the American League (were the playoffs to start today), here are the bullpen rankings in terms of ERA in the entire Major Leagues:

1. Cleveland Indians- First place with an ERA of 2.89
2. Boston Red Sox- Third place with an ERA of 2.97
3. New York Yankees- Fifth place with an ERA of 3.45
4. Houston Astros- 11th place with an ERA of 4.04
5. Tampa Bay Rays- 20th place with an ERA of 4.33

Now obviously it’s great that we’re not in as bad a bullpen situation as the Rays. But our bullpen is certainly lagging behind the other contenders by a margin that’s significant enough to cause for alarm in a head-to-head matchup in a best of five or best of seven game series.

It was only a year and a half ago we learned that not adding a significant piece to our bullpen at the trade deadline lead to a fatigued bullpen struggling in the month of September and into October against a “Never say die” Kansas City Royals offense in the 2015 American League Divisional Series.

Hand would be able to come in and eat some innings to help alleviate the stress that has been put on the bullpen due to some of the blow-up starts the team suffered from earlier in the year calling up young pitchers that were still figuring out how to pitch in the show.

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Hand is also a lefty so he could be used in special circumstances to face the tough part of a lineup batting from the left side of the box, but also could slot in nicely in the set-up role or seventh inning when Will Harris returns.

Regardless, with the trade the New York Yankees made to acquire bullpen help in the form of David Robertson and Tommy Kahnle, adding a closer and set-up man to a bullpen that already has a closer and set-up man, the first move has been made by a challenger to the title of American League champion.

The first trade shoe has dropped in the American League and the Astros need to respond in kind. Now obviously if the Padres asking price is something absurd like Francis Martes and Derek Fisher than the answer would have to be no.

Giving up a solitary top five prospect in a package is a possibility though. And if not top five then definitely a top 10 prospect in a package would be necessary considering the season Hand is having, the fact that he’s left handed, and the fact that he’s under cheap control for two more years.

No matter what though, the Astros don’t want other teams to dictate the pace of this trade market. And they don’t want to have other teams grab top option after top option leaving the market bare and giving the remaining sellers leverage knowing full well the Astros will want to improve themselves like their fellow World Series contenders are doing.

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The Los Angeles Dodgers have also been connected to Brad Hand, but that will be a tougher pill for them to swallow trading within the division so that may give the Astros the edge in acquiring him if it’s down to those two teams. Either way there have now been two big moves made, and the most recent one is by a playoff contender that could get in the Astros way of a march through October. It is time to respond in kind and remain ahead of the pack before it’s too late.