Houston Astros: The Trade Deadline 2018 Report Card

Ryan Pressly: B+

The former Twins reliever carries an ERA just south of 4.00 (3.86, to be exact.). Not the most stellar number in the world, to be sure.

However, Ryan Pressly has a WHIP on the season that is an eye popping 0.43. That kind of WHIP can rival even that of Collin McHugh, who is having the best season of his career in 2018. All this even after there were questions about moving McHugh from the rotation to the pen.

Now, Pressly will provide a tremendous compliment to the relief core. According to his stat report on MLB.com, he likes to pitch outside and get batters to chase. When that happens, Pressly is incredibly successful.

Typically, his go to pitch is a four seam fastball that tends to trail away from the hitter. His slider is the second most used in his arsenal, followed by an off-speed curve. You also won’t see Pressly sink a lot of pitches, either.

Pressly also has one of the highest spin rates on his pitches already. As you likely know, the Houston Astros value spin rate probably more than any other team in the league. It’ll be very interesting to see how the Astros continue to tap into this guy’s arsenal and help transform him in an even better pitcher.

With players like Hector Rendon and Chris Devenski being taxed as of late, Pressly will be great insurance as a pitcher capable of going multiple innings. The price was high but, 1+ years of Pressly could very well be worth it.