By trading Ryan Pressly, the Astros’ margin for error in the bullpen diminished significantly. Pressly previously had joined reliever Bryan Abreu and Josh Hader as the big guns in the final three innings of the game. Now the lower ranked reliever candidates in the bullpen move up a step in the pen, taking on the leveraged innings previously pitched by Pressly.
What is my concern about the new relief pitcher chain? Several of the lower leverage relief pitchers who looked good last year may be susceptible to regression this season. That may be a problem for the bullpen if these same pitchers are expected to replace Pressly in the 7th or 8th inning of close games.