Houston Astros Ink Jason Michaels to One-Year Deal, Cap 40-Man Roster

The Houston Astros signed Jason Michaels to a one-year deal on Monday, inking the outfielder for $800,000 with a club option for 2011.

With Michaels’ signing, the Astros are now at their max in terms of their 40-man roster and will spend the rest of the off-season searching for players the club can ink to minor league contracts.

“It’s nice to return to a place you are familiar,” Michaels told MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart (Houston’s beat writer). “Not just with the guys on the team, but with the surroundings and stuff like that. I’m glad it was able to be worked out.”

Houston also signed left-handed pitcher Gustavo Chacin to a minor league deal, along with an invitation to Spring Training.

And speaking of pitching, the Astros also made a big splash in that department on Monday as well when general manager Ed Wade confirmed the team has signed 17-year-old Dominican Republic prospect Edgar Ferreira.

According to McTaggart, Ferreira is considered to be one of the best Dominican pitchers on the market; Wade and his staff have had their eyes on Ferreira for quite some time.

“All the reports were very consistent,” Wade said. “They really liked this kid. They thought he had the makeup to be something substantial. His price tag was pretty high during the summer, and it came down into a range we thought was within reason. We made it work in our international budget, and we’re happy to have him in the mix.”

Houston assistant general manager Bobby Heck told McTaggart that Ferreira, who’s fastball is in the low 90-mph range, will likely begin his career at the Astros’ academy in the Dominican Republic.

“He’s a live-arm guy,” Heck said. “We really have to get him into more of a consistent delivery and throwing off his fastball. It’s appealing to add something you don’t have. It was easy to justify when the price deemed about what the market was.”

All that really awaits the Astros now is some minor deals and adjustments before Spring Training begins in a few months.

From there, the club will have quite a few decisions on their hands; and we’ll address those at a later time this offseason.

Denton Ramsey may be reached via email at [e-mail]