As the calendar flips to September, the Houston Astros are preparing themselves for what should be an exciting final month of the regular season.
The Stros are getting healthy at the right time, as Cristian Javier and Yordan Alvarez returned from the IL recently, giving Houston a boost on the mound and at the plate. Houston currently has a three-game lead over the Seattle Mariners for the AL West crown, but they know it's not over yet.
These two teams will play each other one more time for a three-game set in Houston on Sept. 19-21.
That said, we are still a long way from that matchup. The Astros are focused on solidifying their roster for the final stretch of the regular season. On Saturday, Houston signed a struggling relief pitcher, who was sent packing by one of the more disappointing teams in baseball this year.
The Astros signed right-handed pitcher Matt Bowman to a minor-league contract and assigned him to Triple-A Sugar Land. Bowman, 34, had a 6.20 ERA in 20 relief outings for the Orioles this season and has a 4.38 ERA in 231 career major-league games.
— Matt Kawahara (@matthewkawahara) August 30, 2025
Astros Ink Ex-Orioles Reliever Matt Bowman to Minor League Deal
According to Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle, the Astros announced that they signed right-handed relief pitcher Matt Bowman to a minor league contract. Houston immediately sent Bowman down to Triple-A Sugar Land.
The 34-year-old right-handed pitcher was designated for assignment by the Baltimore Orioles on August 26 and was subsequently released three days later. Bowman has spent the last two seasons in the Orioles’ organization.
This season, Bowman made 20 appearances with the big league club and didn’t perform well on the mound, posting a 6.20 ERA. The veteran relief pitcher allowed 31 hits, 17 earned runs (four home runs), six walks, while only picking up 18 strikeouts over 24.2 innings pitched.
While things did not pan out for Bowman in the majors with the O’s, he was a little bit better at Triple-A Norfolk. The veteran reliever produced a 4.10 ERA across 22 appearances out of the pen. He only gave up 26 hits, 12 earned runs (five home runs), six walks, while landing 24 strikeouts in 26.1 innings pitched.
That being said, it would be surprising to see Bowman in the majors with the Astros, given what he’s shown this year with the Orioles. Houston likely has better pitching candidates in the minors that they could call up, especially with rosters expanding on Labor Day.