Former Astros Reliever Agrees With AL Rival

The Houston Astros have lost another workhorse from last year's bullpen as Phil Maton is headed east.

The Houston Astros are set to lose another of their workhorse reliever from 2023, as MLB.com reported that the Tampa Bay Rays have an agreement with Phil Maton.

Terms of the deal are not known. Maton made $2.5 million with Houston last season, which was his final year in arbitration.

Maton’s deal comes about a week after the Astro lost Hector Neris to the Chicago Cub. A third free agent from last season’s bullpen, Ryne Stanek, is still a free agent.

Maton is entering his age 31 season with 347 career innings and a 16-12 record. He has just two career saves as the Astros deployed him as a set-up man for Ryan Pressley. He also had 26 holds with the Astros and has 46 for his seven-year career.

He broke in with the San Diego Padres in 2017 and also spent time with Cleveland. He joined the Astros in 2021 in a package that included new starting catcher Yainer Diaz, as the Astros sent Myles Straw to Cleveland for the pair.

With the Astros he is 8-5 with a 3.67 ERA in 162 appearances. He handled a high volume and helped the Astros win the 2022 World Series.

Last season Maton went 4-3 with a 3.00 ERA in 68 appearances, the second straight season he made at least 60 appearances. He’s appeared in at least 60 games three times in his career.

The Astros solidified the back end of their bullpen by signing the market’s top closer, Josh Hader, to a five-year contract. He’ll combine with current closer Ryan Pressly and Bryan Abreu to handle the core of the Astros’ late-inning work in 2024.