What's been a fairly consistent rotation this season has taken a turn for the unpredictable this week with the surprising demotion of J.A. Happ to Triple-A. Well, it wasn't a surprise if you looked at his performance, but it was sort of surprising that Houston chose to do something in August after putting up with Happ all season.
↵The problem now is they have to decide who takes Happ's place. Because of off days and how the rotation shakes out, the Astros had a little flexibility and won't need to make a decision until Wednesday. If Aneury Rodriguez pitches in relief Tuesday or Wednesday, he'll likely not start and the Astros will need to call up a guy from the minors.
↵If you were putting odds on it, Aneury is probably at 2-1 to take Happ's spot. What are the odds for the various minor leaguers?
↵5-1 Henry Sosa - Just acquired in the Jeff Keppinger deal, Sosa has been dealing since joining the Houston organization. He's old for a prospect at 26 and has limited upside at this point, but the Astros could try to ride a hot arm for a bit and see if he can eat some innings for them.
↵3-1 Lucas Harrell - Picked up off waivers from the Chicago White Sox organization, Harrell isn't exciting, but should be a serviceable option.
↵10-1 Ryan Rowland-Smith - He just started Monday's game, so there's no way he starts Thursday. He also hasn't been great for the RedHawks, so I doubt he'd be much better than Happ.
↵25-1 Dallas Keuchel - Same problem as Hyphen, as Keuchel is scheduled to start Tuesday's game against Tucson. However, he could be scratched from that start if the Astros want him as an option. Less likely to happen than Hyphen getting the call.
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