Why may the Astros contemplate this? As previously stated, extending both Altuve and Bregman could be problematic, with the preference leaning toward Altuve. Dealing with Bregman could help the farm system. He’s the type of guy that can bring in top prospects in a trade.
He’s a lifetime .274 hitter with 165 home runs and 588 RBI in his eight-year career.
There are also cheaper options in the free agent market, including Jeimer Candelario.
But unfortunately for Houston, they were dealt some bad news about the return of their star.
“Scott Boras said today that Lance McCullers Jr. is ‘certainly going to be pitching next year, no doubt’ but did not provide a specific timeline for when he could be back. Dana Brown said yesterday that it could be early July,” Chandler Rome of The Athletic reported.
The landing spots in a potential trade are big-name teams like the Blue Jays, Mets, Yankees, Cubs.
There’s also the free agency looming for Bregman next winter. If the Astros can’t extend him they run the risk of not re-signing him and being left with nothing in return.
As noted, it’s a small chance. But, as they say, there’s a chance.
That is a major blow to the Astros, but not something completely unexpected.
Now, they will have to once again rely on the young starters J.P. France and Hunter Brown to begin next season.
Or, this could be the push that the front office needs to aggressively pursue a free agent starter or make a trade to get another into the mix.
It could be argued that either of those approaches should be what Brown does this offseason anyway. There’s no assurance that McCullers Jr. returns to being the solid starter that he was before the injury.
So, while Houston prepares its free-agent strategy, they appear to have a pressing need that can be filled.
