I agree that there isn't much that separates a lot of the defense first, average bat CFs. If Chas plays like he has, there aren't many meaningful upgrades that aren't on contenders or signing for 150M+. Reynolds is really the only one, but he would more likely be a LF in Houston and have a large prospect cost.
The reigning AL batting champ that is still under team control with the Twins for 3 more years? How could he be had? Let's not get Yankee fan syndrome where we just assume any good player on any team is ripe for the picking just because.
sarcasm dude- Hence the sarcasm face. A lot of chatter on CF has been about how Chas should be our 4th outfielder and we need to upgrade the position. He’s a great value for the Astros.
On doing what he's doing, he's averaging 3.5 fWAR per 600 PAs for his career while playing less than half his time in CF. While I think there is a very good chance he's been playing above his talent level, there is also a chance his current true talent level is closer to how he's played than 2-2.4 WAR. I tend to value him about 2.5-WAR as a full time CF, but there is a lot of variance in how good he actually is with a floor likely around 1.5 WAR. Considering how good he's been at hitting LHPs, it is weird he's gotten less than 20% of the PAs against LHPs at CF in the past 2 years.
Which is why I am okay with the Astros signing It depends on how much it costs to extend them. I would extend McCormick at a reasonable cost. I would also talk to Gilbert and see what the cost would be, if it is 5-10 million dollars, then do it.
Pena is an obvious early extension possibility. For Chassy Fizz, it's not the worst idea. You lock him up to a Myles Straw extension (5/$25m total) and it's super unlikely to go underwater. You're basically talking 3 fWAR over the life of a 5 year contract to be worth it. One good season pays it off and then it's a highly attractive contract at that point. Re: not extending Chas or Meyers because there are better CF prospects in the system, I don't agree with that logic. Meyers I wouldn't extend now because he just hasn't had enough consistency or production. But saying there are "better CF's" in the system, I find a lot of flaws with that line of thinking. 1) cuz they're a year to years away (Leon vs Gilbert). 2) cuz you just can't accurately gauge how those prospects will perform in the majors. Yes if they hit their 80% percentile outcome they *should* be better than Chas, but if they hit their 50%ile outcome it may be similar to Chas's current production. Re: Lee: his projected outcome right now is backup catcher and there's no reason to lock that up IMHO. Same thing for Hensley.
Chas McCormick certainly has flaws, but he is under-rated by some Astros fans. His glove has become very good, he hits enough (and I think he will continue improving) to not be an automatic drag, he has a good attitude, stays healthy and plays a very demanding position and doesn't cost very much. I wouldn't be shocked to see an OPS in the 760-770 range if he plays all year.
Hunter Brown, RHP, Astros Projection: 100 IP, 3.41 ERA, 108 K The Astros' No. 1 prospect was an instant pitcher to watch when he got called up last September, featuring an upper-90s fastball and a delivery mirroring that of his idol, Justin Verlander. Brown posted a 0.89 ERA down the stretch and made three scoreless appearances in the postseason. If the 24-year-old can carve out a role on the Astros' pitching staff in 2023, Steamer likes what he can do, projecting Brown to reach 100 innings pitched with a top-15 ERA for pitchers in that category.
I'm more of a fan than most. He's not Springer, but I think that is the reason why everyone dogs on him. We had a top 3 center fielder for the longest time, and now we have one that is slightly above average. I'm totally cool with him in the 8th spot, and wouldn't spend on an upgrade unless it's near Springer level. No point spending 20 million a year unless they are a clear upgrade.
Also apparently Marlins and Twins talked about a Pablo Lopez trade recrntly and 1of the players Marlins brought up was Arraez as a player of interest and it was reported that Twins don't really want to trade him and the talks died down.
I still think the Astros will maintain a 6 man Starting rotation which should put Brown well over 100 IP. But that's an opinion, not inside info.
After the season ended the Astros intended to use a 6 man rotation but I haven't heard anything since Verlander left.
I give the 6 man rotation some credit for the success of the staff as a whole including the Bull Pen. Whether by accident or design, I think we have stumbled onto the next Rotation Strategy for post season success. It is also perhaps more important with the post season getting longer and longer.
The price for Dubon is insane. Field value of $350,000, a super 2 arbitration and he gets a million more than he's worth and $700,000 more than the minimum. Excuse me, $680,000 more.
