Ryan Pressly is one of the best closers in postseason history. But the Houston Astros might want him to share ninth-inning duties or supplant him entirely in 2024.
The reason: They are trying to sign free agent Josh Hader, who is considered perhaps the best closer in the game.
The Astros are making a push for Hader, according to sources briefed on their discussions. Hader, 29, has been seeking a contract above Edwin Díaz’s five-year, $102 million deal with the New York Mets, the largest for a reliever. Hader rejected a qualifying offer from the San Diego Padres earlier this winter, too, meaning any team that signs him will forfeit a draft pick.
Advertisement
The addition of Hader would significantly reinforce the Astros’ bullpen at a time they are dealing with the loss of right-handed setup man Kendall Graveman, who underwent season-ending shoulder surgery last week.
Coupled with Hector Neris, Ryne Stanek and Phil Maton’s departure in free agency, Houston has now lost 207 1/3 innings from its 2023 bullpen — which very nearly included Hader for the final two months.
After last season’s trade deadline, owner Jim Crane acknowledged the team pursued “both a starter and reliever” from the San Diego Padres, but the duo “never got on the board.” Though he did not name them, Crane presumably meant Hader and Blake Snell, neither of whom changed teams.
Crane and general manager Dana Brown then pivoted to Justin Verlander in a deal Crane helped to consummate. Crane remains involved in the team’s baseball operations decisions.
Signing Hader would represent a stark departure from the standard operating procedure across Crane’s ownership tenure. He has never signed a free agent for more than $58.5 million and has given just three deals of more than $100 million — extensions to franchise cornerstones Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman and another to Yordan Alvarez.
Even if Hader does not match Díaz’s record-setting contract, it stands to reason he will require the largest free-agent deal since Crane purchased the club in 2011 — one that will also launch the Astros over the $237 million competitive balance tax threshold. Crane has exceeded the luxury tax once just once in his ownership tenure.
Signing the sport’s best available reliever is generally heralded, but bringing in Hader would raise questions about how first-year manager Joe Espada would handle the closer role.
If the Astros sign Hader to a record contract or something close, it will not be because they want him to share the ninth inning. And Hader — who hasn’t recorded more than three outs in a regular-season game since 2020 — might not agree to such usage. Other teams in pursuit of Hader could promise a more defined closer role, too.
Advertisement
In the modern baseball era, starting in 1901, Hader is the career leader with a .156 opponents’ batting average and 15 strikeouts per nine innings (minimum 300 innings). His average fastball velocity dropped from 97.4 in 2022 to 96.1 in 2023 while his walk rate increased from 9.6 percent to a career-high 13 percent. But his .157 expected batting average against was the lowest in the majors (minimum, 1,000 pitches).
Pressly, 35, is 14-for-14 in postseason save opportunities with a 2.22 ERA in 44 2/3 innings. He has a streak of 20 games in the playoffs without allowing a run. During the 2023 regular season, Pressly went 31-for-37 in save opportunities with a 3.58 ERA.
Pressly has been the Astros’ full-time closer for the past four seasons and closed for Team USA in last spring’s World Baseball Classic. He is in the final guaranteed year of his contract, which contains a $14 million mutual option for 2025. The option will vest if Pressly makes 50 appearances in 2024 — a benchmark he’s cleared in each of the past five 162-game seasons.
Those inside the Astros’ clubhouse view Pressly as a consummate professional who puts team success before his own, but bringing in Hader would still create some understandable awkwardness.
Since becoming the team’s full-time closer in 2021, Pressly has 90 saves, a 141 ERA+, 0.985 WHIP and 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings. He has allowed one earned run in 24 postseason appearances since 2021, a span that includes 10 saves and one win. Pressly is one of the sport’s five best closers — and already one of the best postseason closers in baseball history — but now faces the possibility of sharing the title.
Signing Hader could also represent an opportunity for the Astros to correct a past mistake. The Astros acquired Hader as a minor leaguer as part of a deal for pitcher Bud Norris at the 2013 deadline.
Advertisement
Two years later, in what became one of the worst trades in franchise history, Houston sent Hader to the Milwaukee Brewers as part of a package for outfielder Carlos Gomez and pitcher Mike Fiers. Gomez got designated for assignment one year later while Fiers blew the whistle on Houston’s electronic sign-stealing scandal at Minute Maid Park during the 2017-18 seasons.
GO DEEPER
Fantasy baseball closer tiers, plus a bonus tier for our favorite sleepers
(Photo of Josh Hader: Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images)