Left-hander Parker Mushinski went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for task final week, the Astros introduced Monday. He’s been assigned outright to Triple-A Sugar Land and can stay with the group however not occupy a spot on the 40-man roster. Mushinski’s DFA got here because the corresponding transfer for Kyle Tucker’s return from the 60-day injured checklist.
The 28-year-old Mushinski has pitched in every of the previous three seasons with Houston, logging a mixed 33 innings of reduction and pitching to a 5.45 ERA alongside the best way. He’s fanned 17.4% of his opponents in opposition to an 8.1% stroll charge and stored 45.2% of his batted balls on the bottom. He’s had spotty command in opposition to lefties however usually prevented them from hitting for energy, evidenced by a profession .255/.354/.327 slash from opposing southpaw bats. Nevertheless, righties have tattooed Mushinski at a brutal .280/.357/.587 clip in his profession. He’s confronted 84 righties within the massive leagues and surrendered 13 extra-base hits (5 homers, eight doubles).
Whereas Mushinski hasn’t had a lot massive league success, he does have a pointy monitor document in Triple-A. The 2017 seventh-rounder out of Texas Tech has pitched in components of 4 seasons on the high minor league degree and sports activities a collective 3.25 ERA, 27.3% strikeout charge and 10.1% stroll charge there. That’s come over a pattern of 127 1/3 innings, with all however one among his 118 appearances on the Triple-A degree popping out of the bullpen. Mushinski isn’t a very exhausting thrower — his four-seamer has sat simply over 92 mph this season — however he’s nonetheless missed bats at a excessive degree within the higher minors, each when it comes to swinging-strike charge and his uncooked strikeout charges.
That is Mushinski’s first profession outright task, and he additionally lacks three full seasons of massive league service. As such, he can’t reject the outright task in favor of free company in the interim. He’ll have the ability to change into a minor league free agent within the offseason, nevertheless.