The Houston Astros may be ready to come of their hibernation.
Houston is interested in a potential trade for Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan, MLB reporter Jon Heyman revealed on Wednesday during an appearance on “B/R Walkoff.” Heyman notes that the Astros would like to add another pitcher to pair with ace Hunter Brown.
The Astros, who went 87-75 last season but missed the playoffs, have some key free agents this winter. Most notably, two-time All-Star lefty Framber Valdez is a free agent and is expected to leave the team.
As for the righty Ryan, he went 13-10 last season with a 3.42 ERA and 194 strikeouts through 30 total starts. At 29 years old, Ryan still has two years of arbitration eligibility remaining, making him an attractive potential trade chip.
The Twins were 70-92 overall last season and sold off most of their roster at the midseason trade deadline. One of their other longtime mainstays was also just mentioned this week as a trade candidate, and now Ryan could be joining that conversation as well.
Meanwhile, Houston already made a notable trade last month by selling off one of their former World Series team standouts. If they would like to replenish their talent cupboard a bit, Ryan would be a very strong option for the Astros to consider.