Astros claim RHP Samuel Deduno outright from Twins

The Astros have claimed Samuel Deduno from the Twins outright on waivers, meaning he is now a member of the Houston organization. Deduno is a crafty pitcher, who relies on fastball movement within the zone to create weak contact, and is also able to pick up a K at a decent rate. He spins his heater a variety of ways and throws it between the mid 80s and mid 90s. He also frequently throws a hard curveball in the low 80s, and has been quite effective since moving to the Twins bullpen this season.

Deduno has showed some promise in the past as a starting pitcher, but in the end his lacking third pitch and less than ideal command pushed him to the bullpen. As a reliever, Deduno has a 3.21 ERA this season with a .315 wOBA against and a 51/22 K/BB mark in 53.1 innings, while maintaining a 49% ground ball rate. Deduno is 31 years old, but doesn't have a lot of mileage on his arm and could provide some value to the Astros' needy bullpen. He'll slot in as a middle reliever and should be able to provide some quality innings in front of Tony Sipp, Josh Fields, Jose Veras and Chad Qualls. Deduno also has the ability to throw multiple innings when necessary thanks to his starting pitcher background.