Astros Have Intriguing Dilemma with Tatsuya Imai

Imai’s splits suggest he’ll be better as a reliever going forward. But Houston has numerous offseason questions surrounding its pitching that could complicate his potential role next season.

Astros Have Crucial Decision with Tatsuya Imai’s 2027 Role

Imai has $36 million remaining on his contract with player options for 2027 and 2028. Although he hasn’t decided whether to exercise his 2027 option, it’s hard to imagine Imai passing up that money after a less-than-ideal first year in the majors.

With Imai likely back with the Astros, the question becomes how they will use him.

On the surface, the answer should undoubtedly be to keep him in the bullpen: his 2.00 ERA over eight relief appearances speaks for itself. Furthermore, the fact that high-leverage relievers Bryan Abreu (3.73 ERA) and Steven Okert (2.13 ERA) are both set to become unrestricted free agents further supports Imai’s case.

However, Houston’s starting pitching depth also needs an upgrade. Peter Lambert was the only Astros starter to pitch more than 150 innings this season (155.2), and Hunter Brown was the only other starter to surpass 100 (107.1).

Yes, injuries played a major role, with Cristian Javier and Ronel Blanco missing significant time. But even when healthy, both starters struggled. Javier went 2-6 with a 5.14 ERA over 17 games (12 starts), while Blanco posted a 6.68 ERA over eight games (five starts).

Those rough numbers further magnified Houston’s starters’ 4.81 ERA, which ranked fourth-worst in MLB this season.

Yet inserting Imai back into the starting rotation may not be the best move. Of his 15 starts, he pitched at least five innings just seven times. Even more worrisome, Imai didn’t even make it out of the first inning in three of them.

The Astros need to revamp their pitching staff, from the starting rotation to the bullpen, this offseason. Those moves will likely have a significant impact on Imai’s future role with Houston.

But wherever he finds himself, Imai will have to improve and live up to the expectations he set when he signed that lucrative contract in January.