Cardinals Sign Former Astros Flamethrower

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When the Houston Astros were down four of their bullpen options from last year during this offseason, it seemed like everything was on the table for them to improve their unit.

Despite reportedly not having interest in reunions with Hector Neris, Phil Maton or Ryne Stanek, with a clear need, they might have reached out to those familiar faces.

Instead, owner Jim Crane did something unprecedented during his tenure and allowed the front office to offer a megadeal to a free agent that pushed him over the luxury tax for only the second time.

Now, Josh Hader is on the roster and there’s a restored faith that the organization is doing everything possible to bring home their third World Series title.

As free agency continues to roll on, one of the Astros’ former relievers has now found a new home.

According to MLB Trade Rumors, the St. Louis Cardinals have signed Josh James to a minor league contract.

The right-hander was selected in the 34th round of the 2014 MLB Draft by Houston and worked his way up through their pipeline to make his Major League debut in 2018.

James was a hard-throwing reliever who struck out a high percentage of batters, but also struggled with his command.

In four seasons with the Astros, he appeared in 73 games and recorded an ERA of 4.64. Over his 106 2/3 innings pitched, he had 158 strikeouts and a K/9 ratio of 13.3.

However in 2020, James underwent surgery to repair a labral tear in his left hip that kept him out for an extended period of time. He only appeared in 18 games during that season and 2021 combined.

He was non-tendered after the 2022 season, making him a free agent.

He’s now getting another opportunity to pitch with the Cardinals.

At 30 years old, if James can continue to strike out batters at a high rate and get his command issues under control, he could find himself making a Major League comeback at some point.