Houston Astros: Three most disappointing players from the 2018 season
By T.A. Mock
Chris Devenski, RHP
In 2016, Chris Devenski had an outstanding rookie season for the Houston Astros. He, both, started games and finished them while also providing valuable innings in middle relief. He truly burst on to the scene as an unheralded prospect who quickly gained the love of the fanbase.
Devo was the talk of the town heading into the 2017 season. With the rotation fully healthy, what would his role be on the team? Well, the Astros and Devo both answered that in an outstanding way. He became the team’s first tried and true bullpen ace.
At his peak, Devo can come in and pitch multiple innings in a game and completely erase the opposing team’s lineup top to bottom. His changeup is a huge part of that, becoming affectionately known as the “Circle of Death.”
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Devo was a guy that AJ Hinch could turn to in any situation and trust that he could carry the team through it. 2018 wasn’t supposed to be any different until it was. All of the sudden, Devo was vulnerable. Was it the injuries he experienced? Were batters finally able to get a bead on his impressive pitch arsenal? Both? Neither?
Regardless, Devo disappointed in the 2018 season, so much so that he was unable to crack the 25 man roster for the playoffs. He ended the year with a 4.18 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and 51 strikeouts in only 47.2 innings. All of those were career worsts by a wide margin.
The Astros are going to need Devo to get healthy, refind his pitches, or whatever else he may need to do if they’re going to contend at a high level next year.