Astros place Bryan Abreu on restricted list

Abreu entered the game in the ninth inning to try to force the Rays into extra innings. After striking out Yandy Díaz to start the inning, Abreu walked Jonathan Aranda to bring Junior Caminero, the go-ahead run, to the plate. Abreu made only one pitch to Caminero, but it was one he would live to regret. Caminero blasted the first-pitch fastball from Abreu 434 feet into deep left-center to give the Rays the walk-off win. It was an unfortunate turn of events for Abreu, who had allowed just one earned run over his last 13 appearances entering Friday.

Reporter Michael Marino said yesterday that a deal sending Larnach to the Astros for Bryan Abreu was nixed by Houston’s ownership, which much prefers to part with prospects instead of major league talent. Perhaps that’s still a path to a deal. The Twins could give Matt Wallner another look if they trade Larnach and also still have outfield prospect Walker Jenkins and Emmanuel Rodriguez as replacement possibilities.

Josh Hader had this one off after pitching the previous two days and four of the last five. Fortunately, though, Abreu is back in pretty good form now after his horrendous start to the year. He has a 2.20 ERA in 30 appearances since the beginning of June, though his 32/13 K/BB in 28 2/3 innings still isn’t quite reminiscent of how he performed the previous four years.

Covering for Josh Hader who’d pitched in three of the Astros’ last four games, Abreu easily dispatched of the Marlins here. It was his first save since June 13th as Hader hasn’t missed a beat since returning from injury, so don’t expect any more save chances unless there’s a major shakeup in this bullpen at the trade deadline.

Abreu was given three days off to take care of a personal matter. The right-hander will be a bridge to closer Josh Hader, but he has not been effective whatsoever in 2026 as seen in a 6.39 ERA and 1.82 WHIP over his 25 1/3 innings.

Josh Hader pitchd both Wednesday and Friday, so the Astros weren’t willing to go to him again tonight. That made Abreu the closer, and he worked around a Bobby Witt Jr. double for the save. Hader should get the ninth if there’s a save situation on Sunday.

This likely would have been a blown save, but the antsy Angels just couldn’t resist sending automatic runner Mike Trout home on Jose Siri’s single to open the bottom of the 10th. Trout was thrown out, and Abreu then struck out Jo Adell before Denzer Guzman’s liner to center, which surely would have been a sac fly with one out, was caught to end the game. It’s Abreu’s fourth save, but he isn’t in line for many more with Josh Hader back.

Bryan King started the ninth inning after throwing nine pitches in the eighth. He retired the first two batters of the final frame before allowing a single to Orlando Arcia that forced him out of the game. Abreu came in and promptly hit Luke Keaschall and then threw a wild pitch to get runners on second and third. However, he responded by getting Byron Buxton to foul out to third base to end the game and secure his third save of the season. It hasn’t been easy, but Abreu is pitching better of late and is clearly back in the saves mix until Josh Hader returns in a few weeks.

It took both Enyel De Los Santos and Bryan King to get though the seventh tonight. AJ Blubaugh opened the eighth with two consecutive outs, but he then walked two in a row to get Abreu into the game. Abreu got Justin Foscue to fly out to end the rally and then worked a scoreless ninth while giving up a walk and a single. In all, three of the four outs Abreu recorded came on hard-hit balls. He might earn another save or two before Josh Hader returns, but he hardly seems worth picking up in mixed leagues at this point.

Abreu entered the day with a 12.54 ERA, and his velocity in this one was about as bad as it’s been this season; he averaged 93.5 mph with this fastball, 1.6 mph off his season average and 3.8 mph less than his 2025 average. Still, he was more than a match for the punchless Red Sox. The one hit he gave up was an infield single that was originally ruled a double-error on Abreu; he failed to pick up Willson Contreras’s dribbler on the first try and then threw the ball past the first baseman to allow Contreras to take second. No matter, though, since Roman Anthony had a horrendous at-bat afterwards. The Astros still shouldn’t have much faith at all in Abreu. He only pitched in the tight situation today because everyone else was tired.