The “Crane just found out he has stage IV pancreatic cancer” roster: CF Bellinger* 1B Paredes DH Alvarez 3B Correa RF Tucker* 2B Altuve SS Pena C Diaz LF Smith Bench: Matthews, Caratini*, Arraez*, Cole SP: Brown, Framber*, Imai, Burrows, Javier RP: Hader, Abreu, Dominguez*, Robertson*, King, McCullers, Johnson*, Okert
There are still a lot of free agents that are not signed and have value. I was told last week that the Astros will not spend just to spend, but that Crane has told them to come to him if there is someone that they really feel helps and also is a good value. The market for Jake Meyers hasn't really developed because there are other options in free agency for teams. Astros will not give him away.
Clearly we can improve that rotation. I hear Skubal may be available. Seriously its a fun post. Thanks.
They don't really compare. If they dump Sanchez it will be because they added a lefty hitting OF. Ethan Frey is the reason I could see Dezenzo somewhere else in 2027 (and I like him)
If Dezenzo is competition for Cam in RF then Cam will be a big disappointment IMO I think Dezenzo is hoping he can land a bench spot and not be back in Sugar Land again while Cam already has his name written (in pencil) in the opening day lineup.
I believe Dezenzo can be a strong utility player with his ability to play outfield and some 1st and 3rd. Hopefully his bat can propel him to a different version of Dubon. I am excited to see the 2026 version of the Houston Astros. Cam Smith is also someone I am excited to see this season, hopefully he produces for a full year. Joe Espada will be challenged to fill out the lineup card every day and hopefully he is up to it, I was a big supporter of his in the beginning and I believe he still has the chance to become a good to hopefully great manager. We will see, sometimes it takes a bit seasoning to become who you are.
I sincerely hope not. Cam needs to earn his roster spot. One could even argue that Cam needs to play everyday in the MLB or AAA, and not platoon. I do not think Cam playing 80-100 games next season is a bad thing. Cam will see some starts versus RHP if he is in a platoon. But if the Astros FO disagree, I could easily see Cam starting the season in AAA.
I agree. I think there is a 50:50 shot Sanchez starts hot and wins the job. In this case, Dezenzo is probably off the bench and Cam is in AAA.
If Houston stands pat offensively (C Diaz, 1B Walker, 2B Altuve, SS Pena, 3B Correa, RF Cole, CF Meyers, LF Sanchez, DH Alvarez) I think the bench should be constructed as such: Paredes: effectively the backup at every position, playing every day and the other everyday players shuffling around to cover whoever has the day off. Salazar: backup C paired with 2 of the 6 SP (Javier and Weiss would be my guess) Allen: only used as a late game defensive replacement at 2B and SS 13: a rotating optionable player who is just up for exposure and spot duty in the outfield, mostly as a platoon-mate for Sanchez with some pinch running and scrub time mixed in. This would consist of Smith, Matthews, Dezenzo, and Whitcomb (assuming Cole wins an everyday OF spot alongside Sanchez and Meyers).
That’s pretty much what I see too. Pena Alvarez Altuve Pena Correa Paredes Walker Meyers Sanchez Cole Dezenzo Salazar Allen Either Smith wins RF and Sanchez is a backup OF or Sanchez wins RF and Cam starts in AAA. I hope Allen is only a late game def replacement too. Salazar taking 2 games a week is realistic.
No, he is not. Brown says a lot of stuff and a decent percentage of it is BS. I’m not even criticizing it. Just saying he is not straightforward.
