Meyers is a better player than Straw. He’s likely a 3-4 WAR cost controlled CF if allowed to start every day. You don’t trade those guys away while you are competitive so that you can get more playing time for worse players like Dubon.
It isn't about playing time for Dubon. Dubon is our backup for several positions. I also think you are optimistic about Jake who hasn't proven to be anything near that level to this point.
Trading Meyers is absolutely an endorsement of the Dubon as a CF crap as they are unlikely to sign a starting OF given the limited amount of money they have. It’s either Dubon or Julks (with Chas sliding to CF), both of which are worse OFs than Meyers. Also, Meyers put up 1.7 WAR this year, which is a 3 WAR full season pace while playing irregularly.
It would make sense to trade Meyers if you have no intention of playing him close to full time. There are certainly teams that would highly value the 3-4 WAR player he would likely be if given 500 PA and every start against LHP.
Meyers should be valued in trade like an above average position player who has yet to hit arbitration, but there’s no way the Astros get that kind of return here given how sparingly he has played over the past couple of seasons. It’s just not going to happen even if both sides see him as that kind of player. It would only make sense to trade Meyers if he were blocking (as of today) a better player, which he is not.
We’ll just have to wait and see if Meyers is traded and what the return is. I think there’s a handful of smart orgs out there that properly see him as Kevin Kiermaier-lite and might be willing to assign him the $20M+ in surplus value that he has. Giants and Blue Jays and Royals are ones to watch.
It appears the Astros disagree with your analysis on Meyers. He is the 25th man on the roster (assuming Kessinger is the 26th). Dubon is ahead of him on the depth chart. The Astros also just added Kenedy Corona to the 40 man roster. They also have Leon at AAA. No, they haven't been as impressive offensively as Meyers was in the minors but they are both very good defenders. They also have stronger arms and are better at stealing bases than Meyers which is something I would like to see the Astros do more often. The Astros have gaping holes in the bullpen and limited financial flexibility. They need to put together the best 26 man roster they can, and if Meyers can get them a late inning reliever that is cheap and under team control they probably need to make that move to have a more complete roster.
They have multiple minor leaguers they think can play center for them… depends on what they get in return for him.
Meyers is a platoon player at this point. He has a weak arm, doesn’t steal bases or do anything extremely well offensively. He is a very good glove but we have a better fielder in the minors. I wouldn’t give him away - but if another team wants to start him 140 times a season and will give us a player that fits our needs better - I am all for making a move. There are literally 3-4 good glove guys in the organization that can play CF. I say that as someone that likes Meyers.
I don’t think trading away cost controlled above average position players in favor of relievers is the best strategy, even if the pen is more of a position of need than CF. Dubon has been a replacement level player more often than not in his career, and it’s not like anything fundamentally has changed with him as an offensive player. Having him as your replacement for Meyers is going to cost you more wins over the season than having to play a 0.5 WAR reliever instead of a 1.5 WAR reliever. Moreover, why didn’t the Astros trade for a reliever worth a **** last season knowing this was coming down the pipe? Why didn’t they bother protecting either Tamarez or Melendez when the backend of the 40 man is a big pile of ****?
Ha… Montero and Meyers for promising low level prospects. It clears money and the Astros can target a different pitcher with the $11.5 million saved this year and next …. or target a bat like Mitch Garver or a reliever and a back up catcher like Tom Murphy.
I think this sells Meyers short. Even though he didn’t hit as well as in 2021, Meyers was on pace last season to put up enough value to put him in the top 10 of CFs in the league…and that shows he’s a platoon player? Imagine with regular playing time if he returned to his 2021 performance at the plate or better, you’re talking about a 4-6 WAR CF, and that’s maybe a 75th-80th percentile outcome so nothing that outlandish based on his prior performance.
Brown apparently doesn't value Meyers like you do or see the farm system in the same light as you do. Or how I value the minor league system. But this is Brown's specialty and I trust his judgement.
Yeah and the guy who built the bullpen that won the Astros a World Series was willing to “bet his job” on Meyers.
You trade from your strengths to fill your weaknesses. The Astros have dog poop for pitching in the upper levels of the minors. Especially for a high leverage reliever. They have plenty of elite glove first outfielders in the minors. If Crane wants to add another 30 million to the payroll then sure... keep Meyers. I'm not saying they have to trade him, but if they can fill their biggest need they probably should do it.
