Veteran reliever Hector Neris has elected to become a free agent rather than accept an outright assignment to the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate, as per the team. Houston designated Neris for assignment earlier this week, and after he cleared waivers and was outrighted off the 40-man roster, Neris’ nine-plus years of MLB service time allowed him the right to opt for free agency rather than remain in the Astros’ organization.
There wasn’t much surprise in Neris’ decision, and the 36-year-old will now seek out another new landing spot in what has been a nomadic season for the right-hander. Neris has already suited up with the Astros, Angels, and Braves in 2025, signing a guaranteed deal with Houston in July following minor league contracts with Los Angeles and Atlanta. Neris also opted into free agency after being outrighted off the Braves’ roster in early April, and after another DFA in late June, the Angels just released Neris rather than go through the motions of an outright.
A 6.75 ERA over 26 2/3 combined innings in 2025 underlines why Neris has had trouble sticking on a roster. On the plus side, Neris has a strong 28.2% strikeout rate, and his 3.85 SIERA reflects how some bad luck (.348 BABIP, 55.9% strand rate) has inflated his real-world ERA. However, Neris hasn’t helped his cause by allowing six homers within his small sample size of work, and his 12.9% walk rate is the highest of his 12-year Major League career.
Despite these numbers and a shaky 2024 season with the Cubs and Astros, Neris has enough of a career track record that he’ll surely catch on somewhere, likely on another minors contract. Teams in need of bullpen help may well focus more on the strikeout rate than Neris’ control issues, and hope that a change of scenery can help him finally get his wayward year on track. Signing with a new team before September 1 would also make Neris eligible for postseason play, though naturally he’ll need to perform a lot better than he has in order to receive consideration for a playoff roster.