I keep hearing Liam Hendricks connected to the Astros..... It doesn't make a lot of sense to me. He is going to look for and take the largest contract he can and I don't see the Astros out bidding everyone for the top reliever.
Unless Crane is willing to go into the luxury tax again it makes no sense. Sounds like agent BS to me.
Why wouldn’t he be willing to go into the luxury tax? He has for several years. Revenue is high. Dumping Osuna just about offsets what Hendriks will earn/per year.
Crane was in the luxury tax for one year.... last season. Revenues were not "high" for any team last year. On top of the COVID losses, Crane was fined 5 million, had to payoff Hinch, and has to fight several lawsuits that will cost millions in legal fees and possibly tens of millions if he loses. Aside from that, the Astros can spend 30ish million and still stay under the tax with some room to add at the deadline. He can put together a solid roster that will compete for the division title. That's all I expect with the current economic issues
I don't think everyone is bidding on Hendriks. I think Springer, Realmuto, and Bauer go to Mets, Blue Jays, and Phillies no specific order. Dodgers and Yankees likely sign IFs and likely don't spend much on relievers. If Astros don't sign Ozuna and don't get a decent starter in FA, they may have the most money left for a reliever if they choose to spend money there. Though, I expect Astros let someone else get Hendriks and settle for who's left out of Hand and Colome.
That is what I think as well. I have read it several different places and then had an MLB player that played with Hendricks claim the Astros are very aggressive wanting him. Personally I don’t see it.
Of the 10-12 teams with money to spend, who do you see prioritizing relief? I don't see a team that reliever will be their big offseason move.
Outside the box, what if Click thinks Hendriks can be an elite opener, throwing 2-3 innings every 5th day (perhaps followed by another multi-inning guy like Javier) and still being able to close once between starts? That would make him much more valuable than a traditional closer and might make Click think he’s worth outbidding other teams. I could see 100 innings of Hendriks being worth at least 1/2 of what somebody like Bauer would cost. That puts him in the $15m/yr range.
Especially if you are assuming you have enough to get to the playoffs (assuming line of sight to another credible OF), this makes a lot of sense. We’ve now seen multiple times that an elite tandem is just as good as an ace in the playoffs ... and maybe better as each tandem member can come back in relief, potentially impacting every game in a series with days off.
Javier was the absolute best at facing the top of the lineup in the first with only 3 batters reaching base. The opener is for multi-inning pitchers that a team doesn't want to face the top of the order in the first.
If you run a reliever out there for 100 innings, I'm not sure there's enough gas left for the kind of elite performance needed late in the playoffs. Recent experience gives me doubts.
That's a valid concern. Of course that could be managed by tapering off his innings once the division is in hand or once the playoffs start getting closer.
CFM looked okay in 2017 as a reliever after throwing 100 innings. Same for LMJ and his 24 curves in relief. Yarbrough was tough AF in 2019. The problem with "relievers" throwing lots of innings is most on the coach for not giving them more consistent rest. The Astros have had more problems with relievers burning out than the Rays despite the Rays using them for more innings. This is the main reason why I expect Javier to remain a starter in the regular season. It forces Baker to give him rest so that his arm is strong in the playoffs for relief.
Regular season rotation: Greinke (6); available bullpen: Smith, Paredes, Pressly, Raley Valdez (5-6); likely available bullpen: Garcia, Pruitt, Raley, Taylor McCullers (5-6); likely available bullpen: Smith, Paredes, Pressly, Taylor Hendriks (2-3) > Javier (2-3) > Pruitt (2-3); likely available bullpen: Pressly, Paredes, Raley; as playoffs get closer, Javier can be stretched out and Hendriks can be used less so he can be fresh for the playoffs. Urquidy (5-6) > Garcia (2); likely available bullpen: Smith, Taylor Playoff rotation: Game 1: Greinke; bullpen: Smith, Javier, Paredes, Pressly Game 2: bullpen day: Hendriks/McCullers/Urquidy/Garcia/Taylor/Raley/Pruitt Game 3: Valdez; bullpen: Smith, Javier, Paredes, Pressly
