This marks the team’s first big move at the deadline so far
At around 10 P.M., hours after the Houston Astros completed a 9-1 win over the Washington Nationals, Astros GM Dana Brown made his first move of the 2025 deadline, sending Single-A pitcher Twine Palmer to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for IF Ramón Urías, from Jon Heyman on X.
Ramon Urias goes to the Astros
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) July 31, 2025
This move comes at the heels of the Astros recently learning that they will be without All-Star third baseman Isaac Paredes for the remainder of the year. Meanwhile, Urías comes to Houston on a one-year deal worth just over $3 million with still one year left of arbitration.
On an Orioles team that has had a very unexpected year, currently sitting at 50-59 and last in the AL East, Urías has struggled to stay on the field, playing just 77 games. When he is on the field, he has been a decent third baseman for the O’s, with a .248 BA, .300 OB% and .388 SLG%, adding 20 extra base-hits to go along with it.
Hit bat has been heating up as of late too, with Urías hitting nearly .300 in his past seven games, including two homers and three walks.
He has also spent a large majority of those 77 games at third base, playing 68 games at third so far this year with just three errors. He won a Gold Glove back in 2022 and has been playing better defense this year.
While Urías’ numbers don’t pop out to anyone, one thing that does stick out is how good he has been at pulling the ball in the air. As a right-handed hitter, Urías should be able to bode well in Houston, just as Parades has. While he does not hit the ball very hard, his numbers do not fit better in any ballpark.
This is a sneaky good fit. Urias has been below average at the plate this year (90 wRC+) but his pull-air% has jumped to 20.8% in 2025, easily a career-high mark. He doesn’t hit the ball all that hard, but profiles better in Houston than basically anywhere else. Maybe he can get… https://t.co/Azgn76AntX
— Will Thompson (@will_thompson33) July 31, 2025
Heading to Baltimore in exchange for him is the Astros 2024, 19th round pick Twine Palmer. A 6’5, 20-year-old out of Connors State College, Palmer started a career with just two outings in 2024 before the season ended, but they were not pretty.
He has bounced back in a huge way during the 2025 season. Pitching for the Fayetteville Woodpeckers, Palmer has made 13 appearances this year, eight of them starts, and has been phenomenal, with just a 2.13 ERA in just over 42 innings this year. He is coming off a start on the 29th where he went five innings and allowed just one hit and walked three.
This news came on the same day that the Astros front office flirted with some other deadline moves, including a reunion with former teammate Carlos Correa or trade for San Diego Padres starter Dylan Cease. While it seems unlikely that Correa would end up back in Houston, the Cease trade is not something that is out of the question. This also does not cover the Astros biggest need at the deadline; a left-handed bat.