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The Houston Astros have signed Jake Odorizzi, taking the last big name off of the free agency market. Odorizzi is signing a two-year contract and he will hold a third-year option, per Jeff Passan.
The signing comes three days after Framber Valdez suffered a hand injury that is being described as a fractured left ring finger, per Chandler Rome. The early belief is surgery could end Valdez’s season, per Jon Heyman, but even if it is not a full lost season, he’ll be out for an extended period and created a hole in the Astros rotation.
Odorizzi is coming off a limited 2020 season in which he made four starts in the shortened campaign. He dealt with multiple injuries that kept him sidelined most of the season. It was his third season in Minnesota and was coming off arguably the best season of his career in 2019. He was 15-7 with a 3.51 ERA and 1.21 WHIP to go with a career-high 3.6 WAR.