Injuries limited Howard to just nine starts with the Eagles in 2025. He pitched well when available, posting a 2.22 ERA in 48 2/3 innings. Howard is the second foreign signing for the Giants in the past ten days. The club signed a former Red Sox infielder Bobby Dalbec last week.
The 29-year-old Howard was once one of the top prospects in the Philadelphia organization. FanGraph And MLB.com both landed him the No. 1 spot in 2021. The righty briefly debuted the year before and made six quiet starts in the shortened 2020 season. Howard played 11 games for the Phillies in 2021, pitching to a 5.72 ERA with a solid 24.4% strikeout rate but a concerning 13.4% walk rate. Philly sent him to Texas at the trade deadline for a return headlined by veteran weapons Ian Kennedy And Kyle Gibson.
Texas gave Howard his longest look at the major league level, but injuries limited him to 62 2/3 innings from 2021 to 2023. He wasn’t particularly effective with the club, posting an 8.37 ERA in 21 appearances. Howard’s results at Triple-A Round Rock weren’t much better at that point. Texas sent him to the Yankees in August 2023. He would also spend time with the Giants and Guardians before making the move to NPB. Howard has a 7.00 ERA over 144 MLB innings. His 4.77 SIERA paints a rosier picture, although not enough to suggest a return to the big leagues is in the offing.
Photo courtesy of Junfu Han, Imagn Images
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