Houston Astros All-Star Reliever’s Return to Dominance Should Excite Fan Base

A Houston Astros relief pitcher has regained the form that previously made him an All-Star.

Apr 22, 2025; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros relief pitcher Josh Hader (71) delivers a pitch during the ninth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Daikin Park. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

One of the biggest moves made during the MLB offseason leading into the 2024 regular season was the Houston Astros' signing of Josh Hader in free agency.

He was coming off a dominant season with the San Diego Padres in which he made 61 appearances, recording 33 saves. Throwing 56.1 innings, he recorded a stellar 1.28 ERA with 85 strikeouts, recording a 2.5 WAR in the process.

That was enough to earn his fifth trip to the All-Star game.

Looking to solidify the back end of their bullpen, the Astros signed him to a massive five-year, $95 million deal to take over as their closer.

In his first season with Houston, Hader wasn’t nearly as dominant as he had been previously with the Milwaukee Brewers or Padres.

It wasn’t that he was bad; he still made 71 appearances and saved 34 games. But his effectiveness was not near the same level, disappointing relative to the standard he had set for himself previously.

One area in which Hader struggled with the Astros was surrendering home runs. He gave up 12 in 71 innings after surrendering only 17 the previous four campaigns combined. The 4.3% home run rate was the second-worst single-season mark of his career behind 2019, when he gave up 15 long balls.

Given the underwhelming nature of Year 1 of the deal, some people were wondering if Houston would have been better off spending that money elsewhere.

Cash restraints were a big reason they allowed third baseman Alex Bregman to leave in free agency and played a part in trading former closer Ryan Pressly to the Chicago Cubs. Accepting the harsh reality that they wouldn’t be able to afford right fielder Kyle Tucker played a part in him also being traded to the Cubs.

Alas, in Year 2, Hader is proving that he has plenty left to offer, returning to the dominant All-Star form he showed previously.

Through his first 11 appearances of the season, he leads the MLB with 10 games finished. He has thrown 13 innings, striking out 17 compared to only three walks with a stellar 0.69 ERA.

The home run issues that plagued him in 2024 have been figured out thus far as he is yet to surrender a long ball this campaign.

His 35.4% strikeout rate would be the lowest of his career in a single season, but if some of the other ratios and percentages he is racking up are a by product of inducing more contact, he and the team will be more than willing to accept that trade off.

The 85.4 mph average exit velocity would tie the lowest mark against him, while his minuscule 21.4% hard-hit rate is by far the lowest of his career.

A sixth All-Star nomination looks to be in his future as the talented lefty is back on top of his game.