Young Starting Pitcher Expected to Have Breakout Season for Houston Astros

Who will have a breakout season for the Houston Astros in 2025?

Sep 22, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Spencer Arrighetti (41) delivers a pitch during the second inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Minute Maid Park. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

It has been a wild offseason so far for the Houston Astros this winter, with plenty of notable moves.

After a disappointing end to the 2024 campaign, the Astros figured to be a team that might look a bit different come 2025.

However, likely nobody predicted the massive shake-up that Houston would do this winter to overhaul the team.

Coming into the offseason, there was always the possibility that the Astros were going to lose Alex Bregman in free agency. However, trading their star outfielder Kyle Tucker was a shocker.

Due to the massive contract that Juan Soto received in free agency, Houston realized that they weren’t going to be able to sign their slugger long-term. Instead of trying to run it back in 2025 with him, they elected to trade him to the Chicago Cubs for a solid package of players in return.

As the Astros get set for the new year, they will be trying to avoid a similar slow start to the campaign as they did in 2024. Fortunately, despite a lot of changes, this offseason, they do have a starting rotation that could be one of the better ones in the league. However, they will certainly be looking for some of their young players to step up with the roster looking much different.

Brian McTaggart of MLB.com recently named starting pitcher Spencer Arrighetti as the player on the Astros who would have a breakout season in 2025. He highlighted his development from last season and what this year coming could look like.

“Arrighetti reached the big leagues earlier than expected because of injuries to Houston’s starters last year and more than held his own as a rookie. He wound up making 28 starts and showed the potential of a frontline starter at times, including back-to-back starts in which he struck out a combined 25 batters on Aug. 4 and 10.”

When looking at the overall numbers, it wasn’t a great season for the young right-hander. He totaled a (7-13) record and 4.53 ERA. However, he was much better in the second half of the season compared to the first.

In the first half of the year, Arrighetti totaled (4-7) record and 5.63 ERA. The soon-to-be 25-year-old improved after the All-Star break, as he totaled a 3.18 ERA.

Seeing the drastic jump from the first half to the second half makes him an easy choice for a player who could potentially have a breakout season.

With 2024 being his first taste of action in the big leagues, the young right-hander should be primed for a big year in 2025. If he can pitch like he did in the second half of the year for a complete season, he will be a big part of the rotation in the next campaign.