Vive La France!

Astros Trade for Kai-Wei Teng, Designate France

Vive La France

Back in May of 2023, J.P. France was living the dream, reaching The Show after being taken as a 14th-round afterthought in 2018.

Not only did France defy the odds and reach MLB, but he also thrived that season, from his 5 shutout inning debut in Seattle to 7 shutout innings against the Rangers in late July.

Sure, there were bumps along the way, but getting 11 wins from an unheralded rookie that didn’t debut until May was a revelation, and the future looked bright for New Orleans native, despite peripherals that hinted at tougher sledding ahead (xERA of 4.96, for example).

In an era where a pitcher’s wins are less important, having a rookie go out there every fifth day and keep your team in the game was important.

The Astros went 14-10 in France starts and ended up needing every single one of those W’s to defend their AL West title in part because of his contributions.

The Game Shows No Mercy

Things move fast in professional sports.

Injured early in 2024, France has won exactly one MLB game since 2023 and was designated for assignment Thursday, when the Astros needed room on the 40-man for Kai-Wei Teng, whom they obtained from the San Francisco Giants for low-level minor league catcher Jancel Villarroel and considerations.

Known Unknowns and Unknown Unknowns

Teng is unknown to me, aside from his not-outstanding stats (7.30 ERA across 12 appearances, including 8 starts in 2024 and 2025 with the Giants).

His minimal innings (29.2) in 2025 mean his stats, both good and bad, traditional and advanced, should be taken with skepticism.

Teng’s arsenal includes a sweeper (39%), curve (25%), four-seam fastball (14%), sinker (12%), and change (10%).

Per run value, the sweeper and change were his best pitches in 2025 (1.5), but neither pitch was effective in 2024.

Caveats about the small sample size should be headed.

Blind Trust

The Astros obviously see something they like in Teng, though it doesn’t immediately jump out as it does with some of their other low-key acquisitions.

Four-seam velo is meh, extension is whatever, and results are mixed, leaning towards not good.

Perhaps they believe in the 2025 sweeper and change numbers more than 2024, who knows.

Roster Resource has Teng in the minors, but contributing 35 innings to the big club this season, and that is where the minor league options that Chandler Rome so frequently talks about come in, as Teng has two.

France was either not seen as a contributor this season, or at the very least a question mark, and, unfortunately, expendable, with Teng a better option, profiling as someone to yo-yo between Sugar Land and Houston as events warrant.

Tilting at Windmills?

It’s another move on the periphery for Dana Brown, perhaps improving the team minutely.

The thing is, as we sit here today, this team needs more than minute improvements to win the West, in my estimation.

This feels more like a move you’d make if you’re the favorite and just fine-tuning your roster, not one you make if you’re trying to catch up.

Maybe Brown knows more than I do (Captain Obvious here), or maybe he’s reached his budget constraints and is just trying to keep it close, hoping for something unexpected to change the dynamics in the AL West.

Things do happen, but hope ain’t a strategy.

As always, thanks for reading!