The Astros have had a lot of problems with the starting rotation this year, so the bullpen has been worked hard so far in 2013.  25-year old righty Paul Clemens has pitched in 14 games (0 starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 1-2 with a 4.55 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP.  Clemens has had issues with the long ball, as he has given up 7 homers in his first 27 2/3 innings for the Astros.  But, he has only given up 24 hits and 8 walks while whiffing 20 batters in those 27 2/3 innings and that is semi impressive.  Cisnero has pitched in 8 games (0 starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP.  He has given up 20 hits and he has walked 5 batters while whiffing 17 of them in his first 20 innings this year, which is pretty solid.  Clemens came into this season as the Astros’ #27 rated prospect and Cisnero came into this season as the Astros’ #15 prospect according to Baseball America.

Righty reliever/starter Danny Darwin was a pretty solid pitcher for the Houston Astros.  Darwin won the N.L. ERA title in 1990.  He pitched in 48 games (17 starts) for the Astros in 1990 and he was 11-4 with 2 saves, a 2.21 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP.  Darwin was also outstanding for the Astros in 1989.  He pitched in 68 games (0 starts) for the Astros in 1989 and he was 11-4 with 7 saves, a 2.36 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP.  Darwin pitched in 220 games (81 starts) in his six years with the Astros and he was 47-35 with 12 saves, a 3.21 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP.  Darwin is still #10 in ERA (3.21) and #7 in WHIP (1.16) in Astros’ history.

23-year old righty swinging 3B Matt Dominguez is off to a decent start with the bat in 2013.  He has played in 36 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 34 for 133 (.256 avg, .654 OPS) with 14 runs scored, 2 homers and 15 RBIs.  He has now played in 67 games in his first two years with the Astros and he is 65 of 242 (.269 avg, .714 OPS) with 28 runs scored, 7 homers and 31 RBIs.  If Dominguez hits well he is going to be a huge asset for the Astros, as he plays Gold Glove caliber D at 3B.

The Astros have designated 30-year old righty starting pitcher Philip Humber for assignment.  Humber pitched in 9 games (7 starts) for the Astros this year and he was 0-8 with a 9.59 ERA and a 2.02 WHIP.  Humber has pitched in 89 games (51 starts) in his first 8 years in the majors and he is 16-23 with a 5.34 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP.  Humber’s roster spot was needed for Edgar Gonzalez, who can’t be any worse than he was for the Astros.  Good riddance.

UPDATE:  (5/15/2013) - Philip Humber has been outrighted to AAA by the Astros.

The Astros have signed 30-year old righty reliever/starter Edgar Gonzalez and he will be the long man in the pen initially for them.  Gonzalez pitched in 3 games (0 starts) this year for the Blue Jays and he was 0-0 with a 7.88 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP.  Gonzalez pitched in 6 games (all starts) for the Astros last year and he was 3-1 with a 5.04 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP.  Gonzalez has now pitched in 116 games (47 starts) in his first 10 years in the majors and he is 17-26 with a 5.88 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP.  Don’t expect miracles out of Gonzalez.

22-year old righty starting pitcher Jarred Cosart is getting close to the show for the Astros.  He has pitched in 7 games (6 starts) in AA+AAA-ball so far this year and he is 4-0 with a 2.18 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP.  He has given up 25 hits and 14 walks while whiffing 39 batters in his first 33 innings in the minors, which is pretty impressive.  Cosart has now pitched in 76 games (71 starts) in his first five years in the minors and he is 29-22 with a 3.53 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP.  Cosart came into this season as the Astros’ #7 prospect according to Baseball America.

There have not been many bright spots for the Astros so far this year, but 25-year old lefty swinging Jason Castro and 29-year old switch-hitting Carlos Corporan have done solid work behind and at the plate for the Astros so far this year.  Castro has played in 28 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 28 of 109 (.257 avg, .705 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 2 homers, 7 RBIs and 1 stolen base.  Corporan has played in 12 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 12 for 40 (.300 avg, .853 OPS) with 5 runs scored, 2 homers and 6 RBIs.  The Astros hope that Castro and Corporan keep up the good work moving forward.

30-year old righty starting pitcher Philip Humber is getting sent to the pen and he deserves to get yanked from the rotation with the way he has been pitching.  Humber has pitched in 7 games (all starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 0-7 with a 8.82 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP.  He has given up 52 hits (6 homers) and he has walked 13 batters while whiffing 16 of them in his first 33 2/3 innings…..which is pathetic.  25-year old lefty Dallas Keuchel will replace Humber in the rotation.  Keuchel has pitched in 6 games (0 starts) for the Astros so far this year and he is 0-1 with a 4.96 ERA and a 1.84 WHIP.  Keuchel started 16 games as a rookie for the Astros last year and he was 3-8 with a 5.27 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP.

The Astros have designated 24-year old lefty swinging outfielder Fernando Martinez and 33-year old lefty swinging outfielder Rick Ankiel for assignment.  Martinez played in 11 games for the Astros this year and he is 6 for 33 (.182 avg, .501 OPS) with 1 run scored, 1 homer and 3 RBIs.  He walked only 1 time while whiffing 12 times for the Astros this year.  Martinez played in 52 games in his two years with the Astros and he was 34 of 151 (.225 avg, .709 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 7 homers and 17 RBIs.  Ankiel played in 25 games for the Astros this year and he was 12 for 62 (.194 avg, .715 OPS) with 6 runs scored, 5 homers and 11 RBIs.  He showed almost no discipline as he walked only 3 times this year while whiffing 35 times this year.  The Astros probably hope that Martinez clears waivers, but I don’t see them bringing Ankiel back.

UPDATE:  (5/12/2013) - The Astros have released Rick Ankiel and they have outrighted Fernando Martinez to AAA.

28-year old righty starting pitcher Bud Norris is looking good so far this year for the Astros.  He has started 7 games for the Astros so far this year and he is 3-3 with a 3.89 ERA and a 1.54 WHIP.  Norris has started 4 games at home so far this year and he is 2-1 with a 2.70 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP.  Norris has always pitched much better in his career in Houston.  Norris has started 52 games at home so far in his career and he is 19-15 with a 3.45 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP.  On the road, Norris has pitched in 53 games (52 starts) so far in his career and he is 12-25 with a 5.41 ERA and a 1.55 WHIP.  The Astros hope that one day Norris learns how to pitch away from home.