Surprisingly bad manners for Canadians to pull this shit during the inauguration
Damn. Damn damn damn.
Losing both Springer and Brantley, a Marisnick- or Kiermaier-type bat won’t cut it by itself. It’s now crucial that the Astros go all-in on Bradley, who isn’t an elite bat but is at least competent at the plate.
2 Likes
I agree, but Bradley by himself isn’t nearly enough to make up for the offense lost. If only Marcell Ozuna wasn’t a complete butcher in the field, or the Astros had an open DH spot for him.
Right. To put it in logical terms, Bradley is necessary but not sufficient.
1 Like
This is not going to be popular. There are no free agents available that replace Springer or Brantley. We do not have major league ready pieces at that position, catcher or first base. We are old or depleted at those positions. It’s time to retool WITHOUT going back to 100 loss seasons. It can be done. Trade the one player we have worth something. Trade Bregman to the Jays right now for Gurriel, Kirk and Austin Martin or Tellez. Trade to Dodgers for Ruiz, Rios and Beatty. Go get major league ready young talent to form a new young core with our young pitching, Tucker, Alvarez, Pena etc.
Either do that or settle for mediocrity behind the White Sox, Jays, Twins and perhaps the Yankees. All of whom are younger and have better systems than we do.
I feel like the team just went from a contender to a pretender but one with a chance. I hope Alvarez is all he has shown he can be. I hope the hitters bounce back and the young staff continues to get better, while Greinke maintains his brilliance. A lot to hope for, still.
This seems wholly unnecessary when you can deal Correa for potentially even more pieces and make Bregman your starting SS.
2 Likes
Very unlikely to get more than a single good piece for Correa as he is a rental, but if we can fine. But trading Bregman with four years of affordable control should net you a haul. We could rebuild multiple positions of need in one deal.
But considering their contractual status, can you get more for Correa than Bregman? FTR I don’t want to see either go.
I don’t WANT to trade them either. I’d like to have my cake and eat it too. Not going to be possible though. Correa will get you very little in a trade because he is a rental. Bregman is the player to move for multiple pieces to help retool, NOT, rebuild. We don’t have to go back to 100 loss seasons.
The Astros should not have to trade anyone to fill long-term holes. After the Pedro Baez signing, the Astros have roughly $55-$56 million committed in payroll obligations for the 2022 season if they accept Yuli’s $8 million club option. Framber Valdez is the club’s only arbitration-eligible player of note that season, too. In 2023, the Astros have $59 million committed to Altuve and Bregman, along with a club option on Pedro Baez, which they could easily decline. Tucker, Alvarez, Urquidy and Javier along with the young relievers we saw last season will be arbitration eligible for the first time that season.
1 Like
Just seems like it would be the wrong guy being dealt. Bregman’s contract status, his offensive production, and his elite defense at a premium position seem like they’re more valuable to the Astros in Houston than in a trade. That especially comes into relief for me with the context that Correa is likely gone after 2021 and they just let Springer walk.
I agree they will have some money coming off the books after this year, but this team has never spent significant money in the free agent market and they will have to in order to fill holes. And if you are trying win, you can’t just sign cheap players. Gurriel will be 37 next year. If he has another bad year, they aren’t picking up that option. I don’t see an everyday first baseman in our system that’ll be ready next year. Same for catcher. Same for outfield but hopefully Leon is ready after just one year in the minors. Yes, we have guys you can put in those positions, but Straw, Jones and Stubbs, at least to this point, don’t look like the future everyday starters we need.
I know. And I would normally agree with you. And I’m not saying I’m right either by the way. Just stating an option. But again, I would totally agree with you if we had our farm system of 3-4 years ago to fill our holes. Fact is we don’t. Our system is bottom third of the league and we have sanctions on top of that. We can fill some of these holes this year and next year by spending money, but if we were willing to do that, why aren’t Springer, Correa and Brantley signed??? If not all three, at least one???
I fully expect the Astros to decline Gurriel’s option for the 2022 season, which drops the club’s payroll obligation for that season down to $47-$48 million.
I also realize that the Astros under Drayton McLane were never a free-agent player, but Jim Crane has shown he is not afraid to take on big contracts if he thinks the player can help the Astros win a World Series (Verlander and Greinke). I would hope he realizes that he owns a team in one of the top-10 markets in MLB, and he has a fan base that has shown it will support a winning team. The Astros should not have to trade Bregman or Altuve right now to build another great team. In fact, while I know it currently doesn’t seem promising, we should be talking about Crane and Click locking up Carlos Correa long term or their prospects of signing one of the numerous elite free-agent shortstops available in free agency after this season.
All that aside, trading Bregman for a package like you described isn’t the way to address long-term holes. Addressing long-term holes will have to come from hitting on draft picks and player development, along with some free-agent signings.
Oooookaaaaaaay…
I agree. Bregman isn’t going anywhere. Correa could for sure be inked, and the 3/4 infield and a healthy Alvarez plus the young guns on the pitching staff sets them up nicely for years to come. If Correa doesn’t come back, Jeremy Pena should more than replace the defense.
1 Like
Fucking no, no, no to trading Bregman. We likely will need him to replace Correa at SS. I hope Brantley still is in the mix for us.
1 Like
Is Correa any more likely to sign a long-term deal than Springer was?