WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Astros left-handed reliever Bennett Sousa will begin the season on the injured list after straining his left oblique in last Thursday's Grapefruit League outing against the Nationals.
Sousa was sent back to Houston for further tests, but manager Joe Espada said Thursday he would “be down for a while.”
“We’re going to not have him throw until that pain goes away,” Espada said.
Sousa was set to be a key member of Houston’s bullpen this year. He appeared in 44 games in 2025 and posted a 2.84 ERA, holding left-handers to a .145 average and a .433 OPS. He was placed on the IL on Aug. 22 with left elbow inflammation and finished the season there.
The injury opens the door for another reliever to make the club. The current locks to break camp in the bullpen are Bryan Abreu, Bryan King, Enyel De Los Santos and Steven Okert. Swingmen Ryan Weiss and Kai-Wei Teng appear to be headed for the Opening Day roster as well.
Abreu will assume the role as closer to start the season, with Josh Hader set to begin the year on the IL with biceps tendinitis. King, a lefty, became Houston’s primary seventh-inning option last year and can get both right-handers and lefties out in high-leverage situations.
De Los Santos, signed for $1.6 million in November, sprained his right knee early in camp, but he is facing hitters and should get into some exhibition games in the next week.
If Houston carries eight relievers, that would leave two spots from among AJ Blubaugh, Rule 5 Draft pick Roddery Muñoz and non-roster pitchers Christian Roa and Peter Lambert, who has Major League experience. Lambert allowed three runs in 3 1/3 innings in Thursday’s Grapefruit League game against the Mets at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches.
“I’ve felt good all of camp,” said Lambert, who has a 2.92 ERA in 12 1/3 spring innings. “I’ve gone out there and I think I’ve done pretty well, but that’s all out of my hands. I’m just going out there and competing every time I can.”
Spencer Arrighetti, who’s competing for a spot in the rotation, could also begin the year in the bullpen if he doesn’t make the rotation, and he’d be able to make the easy transition to starter.
Muñoz is scoreless in his past six Grapefruit League innings and has struck out 14 batters and walked one in 8 1/3 innings this spring. He has to stay on the Major League roster all season or be offered back to his former club, the Reds. Roa has allowed one run and struck out 12 batters in 8 2/3 innings and is pushing for a spot.