Astros expected to promote Bloss for MLB debut vs. Orioles

The Houston Astros are expected to promote fast-rising pitching prospect Jake Bloss to make his major-league debut Friday against the Baltimore Orioles, multiple league sources told The Athletic on Thursday.

Bloss, a third-round selection in last July’s draft, has made just eight starts at Double A and will bypass Triple A entirely en route to his big-league debut.

Bloss, 22, boasts a 1.74 ERA across 62 minor-league innings this season. He began the season with four starts at High-A Asheville before earning a promotion to Double A. Opponents are hitting .127 against Bloss at Double-A Corpus Christi, where last week he teamed with reliever Cesar Gomez to throw the first nine-inning no-hitter in franchise history.

Bloss has allowed one earned run across his past 18 1/3 innings. Double-A hitters are slashing .127/.195/.207 against him in 44 2/3 innings, prolonging a rapid ascent up the Astros’ farm system hierarchy.

Houston chose Bloss with its third-round pick in last July’s draft, the first of general manager Dana Brown’s tenure. Brown has been bullish on Bloss ever since, dropping subtle hints that he could fast track the right-hander amid a rash of injuries in Houston’s major-league rotation.

“I’ve got my eyes on him,” Brown told the team’s pregame radio show Sunday. “I’m not afraid to move guys fast. He’s proving to us he can throw strikes, he’s got power stuff and he can log innings. If he continues to progress, you never know. Our rotation has been beaten up a bit. I’ve been paying a lot of attention to Bloss.”

In 2023, Bloss won Big East Pitcher of the Year honors at Georgetown, where he obtained a master’s degree in finance. He spent his first three collegiate seasons at Lafayette College.

Bloss’ five-pitch arsenal includes a four-seam fastball that can touch 98 mph, but averages around 94-96 mph with good extension. He throws a cutter to both left- and right-handed hitters along with a sharp curveball to combat lefties. Bloss can also show a slider and changeup.

Bloss’ arrival in the big leagues is out of nothing but necessity. Houston has already lost two starters to season-ending Tommy John surgery and put Justin Verlander on the injured list earlier this week with “neck discomfort.”

(Photo: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)