Josh Hader

What an odd night for Hader. First, he came on and pitched a scoreless ninth. Then, when the Astros took a one-run lead in the 10th, he came back out for the bottom of the inning. That wouldn’t be too weird for most closers, but Hader rarely throws multiple innings. He’d only gotten more than three outs twice this season and finished two innings once. He didn’t have it in his second inning, and that was clear from the jump. He walked three batters to set up a walk-off single by Josh Naylor in a critical loss for the Astros. In the end, he threw 44 pitches. The last time he threw over 20 was over a month ago, he hadn’t thrown 30 all year, and he hadn’t thrown at least 44 since 2019. Astros’ starter Ethan Pecko only threw 51 in this game and Hader clearly didn’t have that many in his tank.

Hader got the call in the top of the ninth to close out the game against the Royals with a two-run lead. He worked around a base hit, striking out the final batter to secure the win for Houston with his 26th save.

He got Edmundo Sosa to strike out on three pitches, induced a weak groundout from Kyle Schwarber, then got Trea Turner to ground out to end the game. It’s revenge for a run allowed on Tuesday -- the only run allowed Hader has given up in September or August this year. He should remain locked-and-loaded in lineups as the Astros try to chase down another AL West crown.

Working with a two-run lead, Hader gave up a single and then an RBI double to start the ninth, but he retired J.T. Realmuto, Derek Hill and Kyle Schwarber afterwards to end the game. The run Hader allowed was his first in 22 appearances dating back to July 20. His ERA increased from 0.69 to 0.89.

It’s Hader’s 19th straight scoreless appearance. He’s sporting a 0.72 ERA in 38 games overall.

Hader didn’t strike anyone out and did allow a hit, but it’s another effective outing for the 32-year-old. He’s now up to 21 saves on the year, and the scoreless outing lowers his ERA to a shiny 0.74. Hader remains one of the best relievers in the sport, and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon.

Hader save was his 19th of the year. He lowered his ERA to 0.81. After starting the season on the injured list, Hader has been at the top of his game this season as one of the better closer options in the league.

Entering in a one run game, Hader did not make things easy on himself by walking Travis d’Arnaud to start the ninth inning. Then, Adam Frazier came on to pinch-run and stole second base to make it even more tense. Yet, Hader slammed the door after and converted his 18th straight save without blowing a chance so far this season.

Hader received the call to protect a narrow one-run lead in the final frame and required just eight pitches to slam the door against the bottom of San Francisco’s lineup. He retired Andrew Knizner and Christian Koss on a pair of pop ups before coaxing a game-ending grounder from Jung Hoo Lee. This latest effort came after tossing two scoreless frames earlier in the series on Monday night to pick up a win. The 32-year-old veteran closer has been simply magnificent, recording a microscopic 0.96 ERA, 0.71 WHIP and 38/10 K/BB ratio across 28 innings since making his season debut back on June 3. He’s gone a perfect 17-for-17 in save opportunities during that span. He’s on track to finish as a top-10 closer, despite missing the first two months of the season to a biceps injury.

Hader hadn’t gotten more than three outs in an appearance this season, but the Astros asked him to continue after an 11-pitch ninth tonight and he needed only another 11 pitches to get through the 10th. Hader lowered his ERA to an even 1.00 through 27 innings. He’ll probably get Tuesday off after this, perhaps setting up a save chance for Bryan Abreu.

Hader is up to 16 saves. He hasn’t allowed a hit in any of his last seven appearances, and his ERA sits at 1.08 for the year.

Hader’s save was his 15th of the season. He struck out one batter in a perfect ninth inning to slam the door on the Rangers. After starting the season on the injured list, Hader is enjoying a spectacular year with a 1.17 ERA.

Hader took the mound in the ninth to close out the game against the Angels with a one-run lead. He worked quickly, needing only four pitches to induce two groundouts and a flyout, shutting the door on the Angels for his 14th save of the season to go with a 1.23 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, and a 33/10 K/BB ratio across 22 innings.

Hader walked two after the Astros’ unexpected ninth-inning comeback, but he was able to finish things off afterwards. He’s allowed just 10 hits while posting a 1.29 ERA in 21 innings this season.

Hader didn’t start the ninth inning with the Astros leading 4-0, but came in after back-to-back one-out singles made the score 4-1. The 32-year-old left-hander promptly struck out Luisangel Acuña and Braden Montgomery to end the game. Hader looks as good as ever this year with a 1.35 ERA.

Hader struck out one in a 12-pitch inning. The Astros also had him finish an 8-4 game on Monday, so he’ll probably get Wednesday off after this, potentially putting Enyel De Los Santos or Bryan Abreu in line for a save.

It’s the first loss of the season for Hader. The 32-year-old gave up a pair of hits without recording an out, and then an RBI single from Brandon Nimmo gave the Rangers the win. Even with the struggle Sunday, Hader still has an ERA of 1.17, and to say he’s in no danger of giving up his closing gig is the understatement of understatements.

Using Hader for a third straight day wasn’t the plan. Alimber Santa opened the ninth with a 6-2 lead and gave up a homer and a single while getting two outs. The Astros went to Hader then, and the lefty allowed an infield single and a walk before striking out Dylan Crews to end the game. He’ll certainly be off Wednesday after this, so Bryan Abreu might wind up with a save chance.

Hader issued a leadoff walk, and then had no issue getting through the rest of the Rays’ lineup while picking up his ninth save. He’s been dominant since returning from the injured list, and this scoreless frame lowers his ERA to a miniscule 0.61 over his 15 frames.

Hader took the mound with the game tied in the top of the ninth and worked around a walk, striking out one batter to keep the Rays off the board. The Astros would then walk it off in the bottom of the inning, giving Hader his third win of the season to go with eight saves, a 0.64 ERA, a 0.57 WHIP, and a 22/6 K/BB ratio across 14 innings.