We interrupt the crazy Cliff Lee/Carl Crawford/Adrian Beltre chatter to tell you that the Astros have signed pitcher Ryan Rowland-Smith. That from Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Yes, we realize that this isn’t an Earth-shattering signing, but it’s nice to have a transaction that doesn’t invoke the name of large, monied east coast teams.
Rowland-Smith had a couple of good years in Seattle, working out of the pen exclusively his first year, and then transitioning into a swingman (though usually a starter). He hit a wall last year, however, culminating in a late July start in which he allowed 11 runs to the White Sox. After a stint on the disabled list -- which some of us thought was questionable -- he returned for four more games in which he was at least serviceable.
If he can return to his pre-2010 form -- he had a 4.57 ERA in 362 career innings -- he’ll be a cheap and useful pickup for the Astros. If not, well, he’ll still be cheap.
