Until the TV deal is settled, hard to imagine the Astros entering into a deal like that. They'll probably look for short-term deals. Guys that could be targets: Mike Napoli Tim Lincecum Josh Johnson Kevin Youkilis Justin Morneau James Loney David Murphy Paul Maholm Grant Balfour Matt Capps Joba Chamberlain Jesse Crain Joel Hanrahan Obviously tons more, but all guys that could seek short deals for multiple reasons.
I know it's a stretch, but what about Carlos Beltran? A lot of us Astro fans have been talkin' about that on twitter; we need an outfield bat.
Depends on how much playing time they want for Grossman & Hoes. If you see a move like that, I bet Carter becomes the regular 1B and you see the OF rotate and one of them spending time at DH on a regular basis.
If we're going to add a premium piece, I'd look for a big bat to play the OF. Our starting pitching depth already here at at high levels of MiLB looks good. Yes, let's add some relievers, too. However, aside from Springer, we don't have many high quality bats at the upper tiers of the minors. Hoes and Grossman don't have enough power in my opinion to be high WAR guys, although I suspect they'll be given a ton of PT next year to see what they can do. Domingo Santana might be a few years away, but his contact isn't all that great and he may not pan out.
A Grossman/Hoes platoon would get you very good production at a corner OF spot. Grossman had a .785 OPS against righties this year, even factoring in his disastrous first stint in May. So if combined they can give you above-average output at a key offensive position... I'd say they are. (And yes, I know that Hoes didn't do well against lefties in Houston, but that's a small sample. His MiLB background shows he'll probably be a good candidate.)
You also need as many young players as possible to maybe package for trade deals down the road.... although the Astros aren't quite to the point where they'll be buyers for trades.
Grossman impressed me a lot in his 2nd stint. Needs to be more aggressive at the plate some times, but really like what he was doing.
Same here. From July 28 on (his second stint), Grossman had a .322 average, .351 OBP, .816 OPS... I don't have split numbers for that sample, but I'm guessing that's at least a .850 OPS against righties. That's a very good starter if you can find a competent right-handed bat (Hoes or even J.D. Martinez) to platoon against the lefties.
Isn't he (Grossman) supposed to historically be even better as a right-handed hitter? His numbers were much better against lefties this year.
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/undefeated-japanese-ace-masahiro-tanaka-could-spark-mlb-free-agency-bidding-war-101113?ocid=ansfox11 Don't think the Astros would entertain the idea of getting into a bidding war with NYY or BOS...but the guy sure does have top of the rotation talent.
If we had Carlos Beltran (or another starting OF), hard to imagine them not giving playing time to Hoes, Springer, & Grossman, which would mean an OF would be the DH most days. Throw in Castro DHing, and it is just logical that Carter will play at 1B. While not a gifted defensive player there by any means, he is more passable there than in the OF (even though it would be nice for someone to bail out Villar from time to time). You'd hope Singleton would be ready at some point next year, and take over the 1B spot.
wish list: that we spend this money <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Bidding on Cuba defector Jose Abreu is expected to be for a $70 million deal, sources say. White Sox,Astros, Rangers viewed as frontrunners.</p>— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) <a href="https://twitter.com/Buster_ESPN/statuses/390568967644774400">October 16, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
yeah I thought it was interesting <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p><a href="https://twitter.com/yankeechick78">@yankeechick78</a> They have plenty of money.</p>— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) <a href="https://twitter.com/Buster_ESPN/statuses/390569499377676288">October 16, 2013</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
