Houston Astros relievers Luis Contreras and Bryan King enjoy their debuts

Bryan King, a left-hander from Littleton, Colo., is a former 30th-round draft pick who missed last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Luis Contreras, a right-hander from Maracaibo, Venezuela, didn’t play affiliated baseball until the age of 23.

Everyone realized a shared dream Sunday. In a culmination of improbable baseball journeys that converged on the mound at Minute Maid Park, King and Contreras each made his major league debuts, working a scoreless relief inning in the Astros’ victory over the Orioles.

King appeared first. In 2019, the Cubs drafted King in the 30th round out of McNeese State, making him the 912th player selected that year. He totaled 90 innings in his first four years in the minors, a result of the canceled 2020 minor league season and elbow surgery that shortened his 2022 season.

That mid-season brought a surprise. The Astros selected King, who was still early in the rehabilitation process, in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft.

“Once I got Tommy John, I kind of wrote off Rule 5,” King said. “Everyone always talked about it, but I didn’t expect to be selected at all.”

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King did not pitch in a game in 2023. He was not invited to Major League spring training this year, but he was added by Houston to pitch in three Grapefruit League games. Manager Joe Espada said his performances made a good impression. That included a 1.87 ERA in his first 31 appearances at Triple-A Sugar Land.

Called up Saturday, King played his first game in the majors. On Sunday, with a 7-1 lead in the seventh inning, the Astros told King to warm up.

“When my name was called, I had a few seconds during ‘God Bless America’ to catch my breath and take it all in,” King said. “And when I bolted out of the bullpen, I just kept my head down and I was ready to get after it.”

King needed seven pitches to complete a scoreless inning. He recorded his first strikeout by freezing Gunnar Henderson, the Orioles’ dangerous leadoff hitter, on a 90.6 mph fastball. King, 27, said it wasn’t the most memorable part of his debut.

“After the outing, they went to my family,” said King, whose parents and two sisters were at the game. “Judging by their reactions, that was definitely the highlight.”

Contreras tied the ninth inning. In 2015, at age 19, he signed with the Cubs after a tryout in Venezuela. However, Contreras never pitched in Chicago’s system and retired from baseball for more than a year. He returned to it by pitching in rec leagues and then in independent ball.

His stops included the Japan Islanders of the Empire League and the Eastside Diamond Hoppers of the United Shore Professional Baseball League before Milwaukee signed him in 2019. Contreras made 112 minor league appearances before his major league debut, which came in his second call-up by Houston.

“I had a little flashback about everything I went through,” Contreras said. “Once that (bullpen) gate opened, I was like, OK, I’m here, and that all came into my head while I was jogging to the mound. But once I got there, I was like, okay, game time. I forgot everything.”

Contreras allowed a leadoff double to Austin Hays. But he retired his next three batters, leaving Hays on third base. After eliminating Colton Cowser on a pop-out to end the game, Contreras met and hugged catcher César Salazar.

“I had a whole family far away texting me like, ‘Hey, that hug over there was all the people far away trying to hug you — he did it for us,” Contreras said. “It was a special moment.”

Contreras, 28, said his father, brother, wife and friends were present Sunday. He and King became the 27th and 28th pitchers to appear for the Astros this season, including position players, reflecting rotation injuries and relief turnovers. They are the first pair of pitchers to debut in the same game for the Astros since Andre Scrubb and Nivaldo Rodriguez in July 2020.

The Astros used 24 pitchers last season. They will have to call up a fifth starter for the upcoming road trip, but King and Contreras remained in their bullpen for the opener of a two-game series against the Rockies on Tuesday.

“The approach is the same,” King said. “We’re going to try to compete, attack. … I just hope I can contribute a little bit along the way.”