The Offseason Trade the Houston Astros Might Already Regret

The Astros didn’t give up much to acquire Burrows — at least not directly. He was part of a three-team trade. The Astros got Burrows, the Pittsburgh Pirates got Tampa Bay second baseman Brandon Lowe, along with two other players. The Astros shipped two prospects to the Rays — outfielder Jacob Melton and pitcher Anderson Brito. Both were Top 30 prospects.

Houston knew it was likely to lose left-hander Framber Valdez in free agency. He signed with the Detroit Tigers. So, the Astros sought as much volume as possible both on the trade market and in free agency. Houston was banking on getting last year’s version of Burrows, who went 2-4 with the Pirates but had a solid 3.94 ERA. He started 19 of his 23 appearances and held batted to a .243 average.

Even though he’s already won more games this year than last year, he’s been nothing like last year’s pitcher.

The right-hander is 3-7 but he has a 5.66 ERA in 12 starts. He’s struck out 57 and walked 26 in 68.1 innings. Last season in 96 innings he walked just 31 hitters. He’s pacing to pass that mark in his next couple of starts. Worse, batters are teeing off. They’re hitting .292 against him.

In half of his starts, he’s given up four or more earned runs. While he’s given Houston more length lately, consistency is an issue. He followed up a seven-inning effort against Texas on May 27, which led to a win, with a five-inning effort against his former team that led him to allow six runs.

Daikin Park hasn’t been kind to him, either. His ERA (7.26) is nearly three points higher at home than on the road (4.34).

Burrows made his MLB debut in Pittsburgh in 2024 with the Pirates but only pitched one game in relief. Before that, he toiled in the minor leagues after the Pirates selected him in the 11th round of the 2018 MLB draft out of the prep ranks in Waterford, Conn.

So far, the best thing that can be said about Burrows is that he’s healthy and takes the ball every fifth day. But when a pitcher’s best asset is availability, it says something about the trade.