It’s not every day that a bona fide future Hall of Famer joins the Houston Astros. But that’s just what happened on March 20, 2009, when the Astros signed catcher Ivan Rodriguez to a one-year deal.
Rodriguez was 37 years old at the time and well past his prime, but the club needed him. Longtime backstop Brad Ausmus had left for the Dodgers, and the fact that Rodriguez was still available in the second half of March was surprising. He wasn’t the player he had once been, but he was a worthy starter.