There are multiple relievers who can contribute in 2025, but the roster management side is a bit more complicated.
Options in the title hold a double meaning today. For one, the Astros do have options for various openings in the bullpen. Are they good options? Only time will tell. There is a lot of pressure on this group to not implode, especially as Ryan Pressly is no longer on the roster. As it currently stands, though, RosterResource has three non-roster invitees — Steven Okert, Logan VanWey, and Jalen Beeks — making the Opening Day roster. Such is life when certain relievers already on the 40-man roster underperform, in addition to a pair of injuries to Forrest Whitley and Kaleb Ort.
The Astros’ bullpen management in terms of options to send to the minors is somewhat concerning. Per RosterResource, of the projected Opening Day bullpen, only Bryan King and Luis Contreras have options remaining. Logan VanWey, if he makes the roster, will also have options available. Odds are that two of those three will likely be optioned to Sugar Land once Whitley and Ort are available, barring another injury coming up. With that said, Whitley and Ort are also without options, so bullpen management when they eventually rejoin the roster could become a bit complicated.
It will be fascinating to see how Dana Brown and the front office navigate this portion of the roster throughout the 2025 season. I’ve been critical of how the Astros have handled the fringes of their roster management in recent years. A bullpen with a lack of options to send down could create a dilemma in the event fresh arms are needed or if underperformance becomes a problem. Teams like to have the flexibility to maneuver relievers up and down multiple times during a season. If, or when, Whitley and Ort are brought back to the active roster, it essentially leaves King as the only optionable reliever.
For a bullpen short of proven veteran experience outside of Josh Hader and Bryan Abreu, that is a potentially daunting game to play with the bullpen. For example, it isn’t hard to envision another team claiming Whitley or Ort if they are hypothetically designated for assignment. The same thought applies to Tayler Scott, although Houston will give him every opportunity to prove that last season wasn’t a fluke. Teams go through so many arms as starters and relievers nowadays that it is possible to look at this pitching staff and see where that lack of roster flexibility could be an issue.
Of course, it’ll help matters if some of that starting depth, even without Luis Garcia for now, can provide some coverage. Lance McCullers Jr. will likely start when he returns from the IL early in the season (fingers crossed), which could bump Hayden Wesneski back to the bullpen. That could provide some needed depth and flexibility for a bullpen that will need it at some point in 2025. But, again, how Brown and the Astros navigate these potential roster complications will be something of interest to monitor.