The Houston Astros find themselves in the middle of a tightly contested division race with the Seattle Mariners in the American League West. While the Astros hold a 1.5-game lead over the Marines, every game matters, so it isn’t particularly encouraging to see that the team has lost five of its past six games.
On Wednesday afternoon, the Detroit Tigers pulled off a sweep of the Astros with a 7-2 victory, which could prove to be a huge blow for the team moving forward. On Tuesday, the front office decided to try and get their team back on the right track by making an intriguing move involving veteran relief pitcher Tayler Scott.
Astros Designate Tayler Scott for Assignment
Scott is a veteran relief pitcher who broke into the MLB back in 2019 with the Seattle Mariners. He didn’t last long with them, as he spent time with the Baltimore Orioles later that season before heading to Japan for two years, where he pitched for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp. Scott returned to the majors in 2022, latching on with the San Diego Padres.
Since then, Scott has pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, Oakland Athletics, Arizona Diamondbacks, and the Astros. His best season was in 2024, when he posted a 7-3 record with a 2.23 ERA and 71 strikeouts in 68.2 innings of work for Houston, which helped him earn a spot with the team to start the 2025 campaign.
Scott struggled to begin the season, which led to him getting released and scooped up by the Diamondbacks. After Arizona cut Scott, he returned to Houston, but he only pitched in one game, getting shelled for five runs in 1.2 innings of work against the Tigers on Monday. After another rough outing for the Astros, they decided to move on from him again, designating him for assignment and promoting Logan VanWey in a corresponding move.
The Astros designated Tayler Scott for assignment. Logan VanWey recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land,” Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle shared in a post on X.
Astros Hoping to Find Consistency in Bullpen After Tanner Scott Move
GettyTayler Scott’s second stint with the Astros has come to an end, as he was designated for assignment on Tuesday
Houston has suddenly found itself searching for bullpen help as its postseason push heats up. Their closer, Josh Hader, likely isn’t going to pitch again in the regular season after hitting the injured list with a left shoulder capsule strain, meaning that guys like Bryan Abreu, Steven Okert, Bryan King, and Bennett Sousa are going to have to pick up the slack moving forward.
The Astros have made a habit of exceeding expectations in recent years, and they have continued that trend in 2025. However, if they intend on winning their division and finding their way back to the postseason, they are going to need their bullpen to deliver the goods over the final month-plus of the current campaign. Houston will look to get back in the win column when it kicks off a four-game series against the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday.
Astros Cut Ties With 24-Game Reliever After Rough Outing