Astros reunite with player from World Series team

Oct 22, 2019; Houston, TX, USA; The Houston Astros logo is seen during the third inning of game one of the 2019 World Series against the Washington Nationals at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-USA TODAY Sports

As they try to make another World Series run this year, the Houston Astros are bringing back a player from their last one.

Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 Houston reported Thursday that the Astros are signing reliever Hector Neris. The righty Neris had become available after getting released by the Chicago Cubs earlier this week.

Neris, 35, already has a rich history with the Astros. He pitched for them from 2022-23 and was a member of their World Series-winning team in 2022. Neris was one of Houston’s pitchers during a combined no-hitter in June of that year and posted a 2.69 ERA overall with 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings during his Astros tenure.

A summer surge has the Astros sitting at 68-58 with a five-game lead in the AL West division and looking poised for another deep postseason run. With fellow righty reliever Ryan Pressly currently on IL, Neris (8-4 with a 3.89 ERA this season) should help. He will be a further reinforcement for a Houston team that also just got another boost to their pitching unit.