The Houston Astros’ bullpen is about to get a visit from Santa—and it’s not even December.
The Astros will select the contract of right-hander Alimber Santa ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field, The Athletic’s Chandler Rome reported. It will be the 23-year-old’s first appearance in the major leagues.
To open a spot on the 40-man roster, the Astros designated right-hander Cody Bolton for assignment. Bolton, 27, appeared in eight games this season, posting a 5.40 ERA in 20 innings. He had been used as both a starter and reliever after opening the year in the bullpen.
Santa has been one of the more intriguing arms in the organization for several years, a right-hander out of Azua, Dominican Republic, whom the Astros signed for $75,000 as an amateur in 2020. Early in his minor league career, elbow inflammation limited him to just 23 innings across his first two professional seasons. The development was slow, but the stuff was never in question.
His fastball sits 94-95 mph and can touch 98, and his mid-80s slider has been his best pitch throughout his time in the minors. This season at Triple-A Sugar Land, he has simplified his approach, relying almost exclusively on that two-pitch combination—the slider accounting for nearly two-thirds of his pitches—with strong results. In 19 innings across 18 appearances, Santa has struck out 32 percent of batters faced, allowed just three earned runs, and posted a 1.42 ERA. Opposing hitters are batting .159 against him.
His walk rate has been a persistent concern throughout his minor league career—he walked 13 percent of batters faced in 2025—but that number has dropped to 9.2 percent this season, closer to league average and a meaningful step in the right direction.
Houston left Santa unprotected in last winter’s Rule 5 Draft, and every other team passed. Their gamble paid off. He returned to Sugar Land and turned in the best stretch of pitching of his career in 2025, earning a Futures Game selection before finishing with a 2.31 ERA across 70 innings between Double-A Corpus Christi and Triple-A.
Baseball America ranked Santa the 28th prospect in the Houston system heading into this season.
The bullpen he is joining has been one of the worst in baseball, carrying a 5.78 ERA entering Wednesday’s action. Closer Josh Hader remains on the injured list and is still weeks away from returning. Santa is expected to fill a low-leverage role initially, though his strikeout ability gives the Astros a reason to think he can handle more.
The Astros will need to option a pitcher to create an active roster spot before Friday. They have not announced that move.
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Photo courtesy of Latinos En Pelota / CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons.
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