Don't want him anywhere near the OF given his injury risk and the need for his production. Given the range of possible outcomes, Yordan's bat could very well make or break the Astros' 2021 season.
If you can't play the field, there are 15 teams that will have close to no interest, and every team values positional flexibility with the 25 (or 26) man roster.
What do you guys have for the Astros salary numbers for this year? I have around $197,000 for purposes of the luxury tax this year. That would give the Astros about 13 million before they reach the tax. For next year I have them at $75,000,000 but they will have massive holes to fill. I think it will be: 3 starting pitchers 3 relievers A starting: C, 1st It will be interesting to see how this all transpires and to see if the Astros are willing to spend up to the luxury tax line again. Click strikes me as a conservative spender so I will want to see who he targets pitching wise.
I don't think it is just that, I believe he really enjoys playing the field. I will be curious to see if they try to extend him and at what number he would consider it.... he had an obvious injury risk and is a candidate to take a lower deal in exchange for long term wealth.
We will see what happens. The Astros have not said "no" but they also haven't given him the green light. I remember Dusty saying if he is healthy he would give him a shot. I suppose the positive is that Alvarez is at least interested in staying in shape. I also agree with you on his bat..... if he is a .950 OPS bat, that covers some of the poor offense from CF and C.
Depends what site you look at for payroll numbers. It looks like somewhere between 197ish and 202ish depending on the site. Some issues regarding Pressly's AAV was one of the differences. Cots had his AAV lower and that matched up with an article about his extension from the AP/ USA Today. Could also go up some if Souza and/or Cishek make the team. Too many questions to even guess on next offseason. Are Framber, Urquidy, and Javier the top of the rotation or bottom of the rotation going into 2022? Can any of Whitley, Abreu, or Garcia emerge as legit starters or bullpen arms? Do the Astros look at extensions for any of Greinke, Verlander, or McCullers? Do we get an extension done with Correa? Does Pressly's option vest? Do we get 2019 Yuli or 2020 Yuli? That would determine if his option is picked up. I think Click will always be in the reliever market similar to the Rays, and I think a starting catcher will be the most obvious need for 2022.
I’m surprised Odorizzi is still available. He had a 3.5 ERA in 2019 and has a solid history unless I’m missing something. His 2020 was shaky but who’s wasn’t? Maybe there’s some medical issues but I would love to add him to our staff.
I think development in the minors will go a long way to determining the plan next offseason: There’s so many high ceiling arms in the upper minors that they may not need to add SP other than maybe a veteran stabilizer. I don’t see any way they spend much on bullpen help next offseason given all the depth they have. What happens with Korey Lee may dictate whether they just add a cheap vet to complement Castro or go for a longer term solution. Jeremy Pena may make a case to let Correa walk (although I think it highly unlikely Pena plays that well). Even if they just see him as a 1.5-2.5 win player, it may mean they can go after a cheaper 3B to replace Correa (and have Bregs play SS). Pedro Leon’s 2021 will determine what they need to do in the OF in 2022. I think next offseason needs will be: Ace SP Elite bat who plays 3B or SS Elite closer Veteran C Crane may step in and dictate to Click resigning Correa and Verlander. I’m pretty sure Crane loves both those guys. If that happens the roster will likely be very very good and they’d still probably have $40M+ to spend to address the other minor holes.
If Houston only has ~$105M committed for next season (including options and arb raises), they’d have $100M+ to spend to fill those holes. Something like this would be very realistic: Correa $280M/10yrs Verlander $50M/2yrs plus incentives Knebel $25M/2yr Maldonado $5M/1yr After those 4 signings Houston would have about $175M in committed payroll with this roster: 3B Bregman LF Brantley 2B Altuve DH Alvarez SS Correa RF Tucker 1B Gurriel CF Leon C Castro/Maldonado Bench: Diaz, Straw, Toro Rotation: Verlander, Valdez, Urquidy, Javier, Whitley Bullpen: Pruitt, Baez, Raley, Paredes, Taylor, Stanek, Pressly, Knebel
Altuve does not the arm strength for CF and that would put more wear and tear on his body. If Leon doesn’t work out, they will look to FA or trade for CF. First priority to keep us contenders for years to come is a Correa extension.
Yea. Maybe give him some CF reps in the minors if he has a good bat. I think we have a couple pretty good candidates for 1st base in the minors, plus it is easier to fill with trades and fa
You realize his prospect profile is as a defense first SS? If he's not playing a position with defensive value he's a bench player.
I agree this is the hope, that the arms that emerged last year continue to improve and maybe another one really establishes himself. That still leaves open the possibility of signing Verlander to an incentive heavy one or two year deal. Unless McCullers or Greinke really have strong seasons, I don't see them being back. The QO is possible with McCullers but I think they would likely rather spend that money else where. There is also a chance that is the arms that did well last year take a step back, that we start a soft rebuild. Castro on two years is smart. While I do not really like him or think he is anything great, he is capable of starting and handling a staff. If nothing else we can go into next year with Castro starting and Lee behind him. Jeremy Pena is an interesting prospect. I will tell you that someone that was involved in drafting him with the Astros told me that the Astros scouts and coaches believe it is only a matter of time until Pena hits for power and not 15 homer power either, but mid 20's and up... and that will raise his slugging percentage to go with a very strong glove. Now I would think Correa is the guy that Crane will want to keep, they spend a lot of time together. However, some of the numbers that same Astros person told me from the Correa camp were just not realistic. Going from half a billion to 350 million doesn't move the negotiation needle when Correa is often hurt, has a back condition and has been inconsistent. So I think that the Astros will offer him his fair market value but they aren't giving him what he seems to expect he will get. Yeah, Astros are VERY high on him and seem to think he would be in the big leagues if not for COVID but I think that fans need to be patient. He hasn't played real baseball in awhile. I agree on your priorities. I would not be shocked to see the Astros trade for at least one starting pitcher. Click has alluded a few times to not putting all your eggs in one basket and I think that is true. The Rays learned that when they signed that 3rd baseman to a long term deal. I don't think Crane is going to want to resign Correa personally because of the risks involved and the likely length of the contract. One think I will give Click, he was a loud voice in the room when the Rays were debating Franco and several other big talents. He seems more likely to put all his eggs in one basket when it comes to international and the draft. I personally agree with that strategy for the Astros.
