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On Apr. 12, the Houston Astros announced that right-hander Joel Kuhnel is being called up from Triple-A Sugarland. After failing to play an entire season since making his MLB debut in 2019, Kuhnel will look to establish himself.
The six-foot-five right-hander made his first appearance of the season against the Rangers on the very day he was called up. Unfortunately, his allowance of four earned runs over a pair of innings has saddled the 29-year-old with a 18.00 ERA on the season.
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"First time watching Joel Kuhnel throw. He has some good breaking stuff. Like his sinker/sweeper combination. Liked his ability to spot today too. Will be a fun watch to see what he brings the Astros this season" - Will Kunkel
To make room for Kuhnel on their 26-man roster, the Houston Astros have optioned left-hander Parker Mushinski back to Triple-A. To free up space on the 40-man roster, rightie Wander Suero was designated for assignment.
Born in North Carolina, Kuhnel attended high school in Arizona and went on to pitch at Central Arizona College. After posting a 1.62 ERA over 39 innings, Joel Kuhnel transferred to the University of Texas at Arlington and was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 11th round of the 2016 Draft.
After making his MLB debut for the 2019 Reds, Kuhnel struggled in the MLB, earning a 4.97 ERA across 12.2 innings in 2019 and 2020. In 2021, Kuhnel didn't see MLB action, partly due to a shoulder injury that kept him out of commission for a large part of the season.
In mid-2023, Joel Kuhnel was traded from the Reds to the Astros and made five appearances for his new team this year. On Friday, Kuhnel threw a career-high 52 pitches as his team fell 12-8 to the Texas Rangers.
Joel Kuhnel hopes to aid struggling Astros bullpen
The Astros' bullpen's 5.31 cumulative ERA is the fourth-worst in the American League. Being 4-11 on the season, the pressure on manager Joe Espada to rectify his relief corps is mounting. Recently, Will Leitch of MLB.com wrote about the siutation:
"The new Astros manager learned this weekend that no matter how much talent you have, when your bullpen falters and you can’t get big hits with runners in scoring position, you will lose"
Although the promotion of Kuhnel doesn't yet appear to have solved their woes, perhaps the 29-year old will surprise and earn the big-league credentials he has been seeking for so long.
