J.P.

France

France was just released by the Astros. He was a big help to Houston in 2023, when he went 11-6 with a 3.83 ERA, but he injured his shoulder afterwards and has pitched just 10 times in the majors since the beginning of 2024. He had a 3.72 ERA and a 39/25 K/BB in 36 1/3 innings while working as a reliever for Triple-A Round Rock this season.

The 31-year-old hurler had been stationed at Triple-A Sugar Land where he registered a 3.72 ERA, 1.68 WHIP and a 39/25 K/BB ratio over 36 1/3 innings of work. He’s now free to explore opportunities on the open market.

France passed through waivers unclaimed and will remain with Houston as organizational relief depth. The 31-year-old former starter allowed six runs over 6 2/3 innings across three relief appearances earlier this month. He was removed from Houston’s 40-man roster over the weekend.

France loses his spot on Houston’s 40-man roster with the club claiming young outfielder Dustin Harris off waivers. The 31-year-old righty returned to the big leagues last week, and wound up allowing six runs over 6 2/3 innings of work over three relief appearances. He’s likely to pass through waivers unclaimed given his struggles since undergoing shoulder surgery back in 2024.

France was sent down Saturday after giving up four runs over 2 2/3 innings in his one relief appearance for the Astros. He’ll be available in middle relief for now, but this might be another brief major league stint.

France was awful Friday, allowing four runs in 2 2/3 innings. The 31-year-old will head back to the minors with Jayden Murray up to provide a fresh arm. France will likely be back in a low-leverage role at some point.

It’s unclear if France is just up as an emergency option to add length to the Astros’ bullpen, or if he’ll fill one of the spots in the team’s rotation that have been vacated by the injuries to Hunter Brown and Cristian Javier. France has posted a 4.35 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and a 128/61 K/BB ratio over 165 2/3 innings with the Astros over the last three seasons.

Hunter Brown (shoulder) is out for at least a month, and Cristian Javier left his start yesterday with an injury, so the Astros need to fill innings in their rotation. France has been pitching in a multi-inning role in Triple-A, so it’s unclear if he would move into the rotation or perhaps keep his bullpen role, which would allow Ryan Weiss to enter the rotation. Weiss looked good in spring training and could be an interesting name in fantasy leagues if he gets a chance to start.

France did not make the Astros as a starter and is now working to establish himself as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen. His fastball velocity was in line with what we saw last year, and he pounded the strike zone for 77 percent strikes while registering a 42 percent whiff rate. He’ll likely see some MLB innings in some capacity this season.

He also struck out four and walked none while registering a 26 percent whiff rate and throwing 75 percent strikes overall. France was waived and remained with the Astros, so he will start the season in Triple-A and give them an option should injuries crop up during the year.