AJ was born in Mansfield, Ohio, but grew up and lives in nearby Bellville, Ohio, where his father, Reggie, is an amateur beekeeper and honey maker...the family lives on 20 acres of land, which has housed as many as 10 bee hives in AJ’s life...when he returns home in the offseason, it’s not uncommon for AJ to don a sting-proof suit and help Reggie with his hobby...When he wasn’t beekeeping, Blubaugh was a three-sport athlete at Clear Fork HS (Ohio) and was part of Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference (MOAC) titles in all three sports his senior year...was also named First-Team All-MOAC and all-district in baseball his senior season...was a starting wide receiver in football, catching 30 passes for 450 yards and six touchdowns...averaged 12.9 points and 7.1 rebounds as an All-Northwest District basketball player...was also a member of the National Honor Society...Went undrafted out of high school and went on to attend the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, which has only produced one other Major Leaguer: OF Daulton Varsho...Blubaugh was at UW-Milwaukee for three years (2020-22), where he was named the Horizon League Relief Pitcher of the Year in both 2021 and 2022...combined to go 5-4 with 14 saves and a 3.54 ERA (33 ER/84 IP) in 38 appearances (seven starts) in his three college seasons...struck out 92 in 84 innings, while allowing a .218 opponent average...Selected by the Astros in the seventh round of the 2022 draft...signed by Astros scout Drew Pearson...AJ grew up a part of a Catholic family that includes Father Homer Blubaugh, who is AJ’s great uncle and a retired priest in Ohio...AJ practices now and was part of the Astros Bible study group in 2025...AJ adopted Luke 1:37 as his special Bible verse, which reads: ‘For nothing will be impossible with God’...Prior to each series, Blubaugh will take a barefoot walk around the warning track at any stadium the Astros are playing that evening...this is called grounding, which is a wellness practice that involves making direct contact with the Earth’s surface...Was added to the Astros 40-man roster on April 30, 2025 and accrued 38 days of Major League service in 2025...is signed to a one-year contract for 2026.
2025
Entered the season ranking as the Astros No. 3 pitching prospect and No. 8 overall prospect by Baseball America...the rookie would excel in his debut season while working mainly in long relief, also making three starts at the Major League level...Went 3-1 with a 1.69 ERA (sox ER/32 IP), a 0.88 WHIP, .152 opponent average and 9.84 SO/nine IP through 11 Major League appearances (three starts)...his 1.69 ERA (six ER/32 IP) is the lowest through a player’s first 11 career appearances in Astros history (min. 30 IP)...Went 3-0 with a 1.71 ERA (four ER/21 IP) and .125 opponent average in his eight relief apps...Held LHH to a .132 average (7-for-53) compared to a .169 average (10-for-59) vs. RHH...Made four separate stints with the Astros this season...originally had his contract selected on April 30 and was optioned that same day...recalled on Aug. 5 and optioned on Aug. 6...recalled on Aug. 23 and optioned on Aug. 24...recalled on Aug. 26 and ended the season on the active roster...Made his MLB debut with a start on April 30 vs. DET (four IP, five H, seven R, two ER, one BB, six SO)...picked up his first career strikeout vs. IF Zach McKinstry...was optioned to Triple A after the game...Returned to the Majors in August and posted a 1.29 ERA from Aug. 5 through the end of the regular season, which ranked first among AL pitchers and second in the Majors over that span. (min. 25 IP)...Made his first career Major League relief appearance on Aug. 5 at MIA, allowing two runs with five strikeouts in five innings...was tied for the longest relief appearance by an Astro in 2025...Recorded a 21-inning scoreless streak from Aug. 23 through the end of the season...was the second-longest scoreless streak by an Astros pitcher this season...was also the longest active scoreless streak in the AL at the end of the season...was also the longest scoreless innings streak by an Astros rookie since RHP Alberto Arias tossed 21.1 consecutive scoreless innings from May 27-July 18, 2009...was the second-longest scoreless innings streak among MLB rookies, trailing only A’s LHP Jacob Lopez (25 innings)...Tossed 3.1 scoreless and hitless innings of relief with four strikeouts on Sept. 9 at TOR...was the longest hitless relief outing by an Astro since RHP Brandon Bielak tossed 4.2 hitless innings in relief on April 4, 2021 at OAK...Worked three scoreless and hitless innings in relief on Sept. 21 vs. SEA...became the 17th reliever in Astros history to record multiple outings of three-plus scoreless and hitless innings in a single season...was the first to do so since RHP Cristian Javier (2) in 2022...Made 22 total appearances (19 starts) with Triple A Sugar Land this season, going 5-8 with a 5.27 ERA (58 ER/99 IP)...posted a 1.89 ERA (seven ER/33.1 IP) over his final seven Triple A appearances (five starts), five of those coming in July, in which he went 2-0 with a 2.31 ERA en route to being named Sugar Land’s Pitcher of the Month...also named the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week (Aug. 4-10).
2024
Made all but one of his 2024 appearances with Triple-A Sugar Land, where he went 12-4 with a 3.83 ERA (53ER/124.2IP) in 27 games (25 GS)…was named a Pacific Coast League Post-Season All-Star, leading the league in wins while ranking second in ERA, third in opponent batting average (.250), fourth in WHIP (1.35) and fourth in strikeouts (128)…named PCL Pitcher of the Week for the week of June 17-23...got the start and earned the win in Game 1 of the PCL Championship vs. Reno (5.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 SO)…selected to represent the Astros in the 2024 Futures game at Globe Life Field, tossing 0.2 of a scoreless inning in relief.
2023
Split his 2023 season between Double-A Corpus Christ (4 G/3 GS) and Class-A Asheville (22 G/9 GS), combining for a 6-2 record with one save and a 4.41 ERA (49 ER/100 IP)...Excelled after his promotion to Double-A, posting a 1.26 ERA (2ER/14.1IP)...Pitched in the Arizona Fall League after the season and was named to the Arizona Fall League Rising Stars Game...Made six strong appearances in the 2023 AFL, posting three saves with a 2.25 ERA (3 ER/12 IP) while striking out 17 in 12.0 innings.
2022
Made his professional debut in 2022, making six appearances across two levels...finished his season at Class A Fayetteville, where he was named the Carolina League Pitcher of the Month for September...highlighted the month by being part of a six-pitcher no-hitter, tossed on Sept. 7, 2022 vs. Lynchburg...was the fourth pitcher used in the no-hitter...pitched the majority of the game, tossing 5.0 hitless innings in the contest.
