Houston Astros to open with AJ Blubaugh in Game 1 against White Sox in wild-card series

The Houston Astros have announced that rookie right-hander AJ Blubaugh will take the mound in Game 1 of their wild-card series against the White Sox on Tuesday. This decision comes as the team aims to deploy a bullpen game, given their limited pitching options following a quick turnaround from their regular-season finale, where they clinched the AL West title.

Blubaugh, who led the majors with 96 relief innings this season and posted a 3.66 ERA, has not started a game during the regular season but has thrown multiple innings in 37 of 64 appearances. His longest outing this season was 3⅔ innings on May 3, while his later-game outings were often shorter. The Astros hope Blubaugh's inclusion will allow them to gain more length from the opener and rely less on bulk-innings relievers to bridge the gap to their late-game arms.