Career Journeyman Reliever Has Found New Life In A Houston Astros Uniform

The pitching troubles for the Houston Astros this season have been hard to miss, but that isn't the case for everyone on the roster.

Veteran reliever Tayler Scott has found a career resurgence in Houston after struggling to find his footing for years.

After jumping between six teams in his first three seasons in the MLB and a stint in Japan, Scott has become the high-leverage reliever for the Astros and is looking like the most reliable arm on the roster.

The South Africa native was a fifth-round selection out of high school by the Chicago Cubs in the 2011 MLB draft and didn't make his debut until 2019 with the Seattle Mariners. That stint didn't last very long as he was DFA'd after just five games. He then went to the Baltimore Orioles.

After 13 games in 2019, he had a 14.33 ERA. Things weren't working in the majors so instead of signing another minor league deal, he went over to Japan.

He had similar success in the NPB as he did in the minors. Through two years there, he had a 4.02 ERA and 1.256 WHIP.

The right-handed pitcher then signed a minor league deal with the San Diego Padres but that led to another short and unsuccessful stint.

Within 2023, he played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox and Oakland Athletics. He didn't play much in the majors, but did have a successful season in Triple A. He had a career-best 1.64 ERA in 35 games.

Finally, he signed a minor league deal with Houston and went on to make the opening day roster.

Entering the season, his ERA had balooned up to 9.00 through 39 games played. While there may have been some optimism still that he could become the player that flashed in the minor leagues, no one could have expected the success he has had.

In 29 games, he has a 1.60 ERA and has become the guy that Houston turns to in times of need.

Despite signing Josh Hader to a historic contract in the offseason, Scott has been their best option out of the pen. Even the normally reliable Ryan Pressly, who had started the season as the high-leverage guy, has fallen apart during this campaign.

The Astros bullpen, as a whole, has a 3.71 ERA and ranks 25th in WAR. Scott's career-year could not have come at a better time.

One major change in the 32-year-old's pitch mix has been heavily increasing usage in his fastball and changeup, while decreasing the less effective sinker and slider. It may seem self-explanatory, but throwing his best stuff has worked out for him.

It's not that batters aren't making a lot less contact this year, but the contact they have made is much weaker.

Hopefully this isn't just a flash in the pan and rather the start of a new era in Scott's career.