Brett Myers

Brett Myers was added to the rotation this offseason when Cleveland ownership ponied up for the relief pitcher-turned starter-turned relief pitcher with a one-year, $7 million deal with an $8 million team option for 2014. Myers wanted to start and he'll have every opportunity to do so in Cleveland.

Brett Myers may not be Zack Greinke, David Price or, even, Justin Masterson, but the signing of a veteran, free agent starter was fantastic news for Cleveland Indians manager Terry Francona and the fans of the team.

Raise your hand if your team has been hit by the injured closer epidemic spreading like wildfire around Major League Baseball this season.

Most of you should have your hands up, for what it's worth.

That's why teams willing to sell at the trade deadline this year might be able to acquire premium returns for their closers. One such team might be the Houston Astros, and one such player could be Brett Myers.

Houston Astros fans were surprised when Brad Mills announced Brett Myers would be the Astros' primary closer heading into the 2012 season. The biggest reason was Myers was expected to be No. 1 or No. 2 in the rotation; a rotation that was atrocious last year.

The season is only a few weeks old, but already teams have began to separate themselves from the pack, while others have shown once again that they still do not have what it takes to compete for a playoff spot.

Injuries and under performing players will inevitably create a need for some contenders to make a move to bring in a player to shore up their lineup as they make a push towards the playoffs, with the Chase Utley injury in Philadelphia a perfect example of that.

By all accounts Brett Myers pitched a strong seven innings for the Astros during yesterday's disappointing loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. Myers threw a quality start, pitching seven innings and allowing two earned runs on three hits, three walks and no strikeouts. However, a closer look at yesterday's box score, radar gun and pitch/FX data show that Myers' stuff may have regressed. 

Before the start of the season, I wanted to see which pitchers statistically had the best fastballs, curveballs, sliders, cutters, changeups and splitters of the 2010 season.

Here are a look at the top curveballs of the 2010 season. A few notes:

The Pitch Value data was created by Fangraphs.com. I will be using the statistic, wCB, which denotes the runs above average for a particular pitch—in this case a curveball.  

It is being reported in the Houston media that the Houston Astros have officially named right-handed pitcher Brett Myers as their Opening Day starter against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Myers came to the Astros via a one-year deal on January 8, 2010. After the 2009 World Series, he filed for free agency after the Phillies informed him that they would not be pursuing a new contract with him.

TAMPA, FL—According to multiple reports originating from the New York Post’s George A. King III, the New York Yankees could be keeping very close tabs on a veteran right-hander as the season progresses.

For the first month of the season, the Astros were the worst team in baseball.  They garnered a bit of respect by finishing 33-27 down the stretch.

This is clearly a team rebuilding.  They traded their two most recognizable names, Roy Oswalt and Lance Berkman, before the trade deadline.