[Splash!] Souza, Jr in Agreement w/ Astros

Yup. We are on the same wave length. We aren’t asking for an elite player either, just someone that can hit Yordan Alvarez’s weight and not embarrass us in centerfield. Maybe one of the slew of bargain relief arms still out there.

Instead we get Souza Jr.

 

I mean, are we not floating right under the tax line? Even the Yankees are shying away from it...they just gave Ottavino to Boston to get under the tax line. We have an expensive team. I’m okay with letting things play out a bit...I’d rather retain some flexibility. Devils advocate, but Straw was a 1 WAR player in 2019. 2020 was a nightmare offensively for most players with how out of sync last season was. He has a lot of controllable years yet and will be an important asset if he has modest improvements. We’re not in panic mode yet and the players on the market aren’t exactly must have commodities. Our team is still setting up well. Lets see where this team is in ST with some good competition. I understand the frustration but this is not a Drayton team.

As far as Souza is concerned, it’s a solid gamble. I don’t see how this deal is upsetting fans. Would y’all rather lose all flexibility for JBJ at like 2/30 or so? I’d rather let things play out, personally, I don’t mind where we are even if we have some question marks going into the season.

 

Souza is a good gamble on a minor league deal.

I expected Click to try to trade for a young up and coming MiLB like say Moniak. Oh well, color me very unimpressed so far this offseason with Click.

Baez/Castro/Souza LMAO but I'm sure there are some stats to backup these moves. With this roster if they make the playoffs they're the 3rd or 4th best team in the AL right now and that's if they stay healthy. Dont be expecting long playoff runs.

 

Astros and Yankees are the only elite teams in the AL and it’s not close.

 

Offseason isn't over and several really good player out there. If the White Sox or Blue Jays go land Bauer and Rosenthal either team would be projected to be better than the Astros.

Giolito, Bauer, Keuchel, and Lynn would be pretty solid and to go with Hendriks and Rosenthal... that's nasty

 

Why are y’all complaining about a player signing a minor league deal again. Some of y’all just hate Click no matter what he does.

 

This is not at all impressive...

I guess he’s probably fine as a low level gamble. He’s a couple years removed from a fairly decent season, but I doubt he ever does that again. Plus he’s never hit for average. Definitely not the answer for our outfield needs, but as a cheap minor league insurance policy I guess it’s okay.

 

I agree with you 100%. We all knew we weren’t getting Springer back. He got Brantley back and added some serviceable pieces to the bullpen. Straw has a chance to be decent as an on-base guy, Souza could pan out and Leon is in the wings. I wasn’t impressed with any of the available CF’s through FA. To those that think we aren’t WS contenders with what we have now, Altuve, Brantley, Correa, Bregman, Tucker, Yordan, Greinke, Valdez, McCullers, Javier, Urquidy say hello.

 

Who's complaining?

It's a good deal since it's a minor league deal.

Are you saying Click hasn't had a bad off-season?

I don't call re-signing Brantley and signing Baez/Castro/Souza anything but avg at best. That's if Click hits on say Baez/Souza. We already know what Castro is.

 

From this thread...

 

Here are my complaints.... Castro and Baez.

The Nationals signed Alex Avila for one year at 1.5 million. Astros are paying 3.5 million this year to Castro plus he could make up to 5.5 million in 2022 depending on how many games he spends behind the plate this season.

i would have preferred Alex Avila for 1.5 million and maybe Rosenthal or Colome for 8.25 million per year over Castro for 3.5 million plus incentives and Baez for 6.25 million plus incentives.

I would like to see the Astros add another pitcher whether it is a starter or a bullpen guy. Nobody in our rotation but Greinke has ever thrown 150 innings in a season. Our starting pitching depth is not great beyond the obvious 5. You have Garcia, Pruitt (injured), Bielak (melted down last season), and Whitley (head case) as your potential 6-9 starters. Maybe invite Aaron Sanchez on a minor league deal or Chris Archer on a low guarantee with some incentives. Rodon for 3 million would have been nice. If not a starter, then maybe another bullpen guy with closing experience like Jeffress, Kela, Melancon, or Shane Greene. I assume Rosenthal and Colome are probably out of Click's price range at this point after the Baez deal.

I would also like another outfielder with more of a chance to replace Reddick's production than Straw or Souza. Kevin Pillar or maybe Danny Santana for CF. If they think Tucker could handle CF, go get Puig on a 1 year deal.

So those are my gripes. I like the Brantley and Ryne Stanek moves, and don't have a problem handing out a minor league deal with a spring training invite to Souza, but as a whole I'm not thrilled with the moves and how the money has been spent thus far.

 

It's not just the cheapness, (Lets blame that on Crane.) It's how he spent the limited funds he had. He didn't really improve the team through FA unless Baez/Souza turn into steals. Do you think Luhnow would've spent those limited funds the way Click did?

 

Click sucks

 

So you are, in fact, complaining? It's weird that you said this earlier:

 

What if he extends Correa? Would you then love him. Brantley was a great signing and there was lots of competition for him. The Astros have always valued defense and may feel Straw is a more economic and flexible way to go than Bradley who is not guaranteed to be a better bat. We still have the best lineup in baseball and have a really good chance of a solid pitching staff. Saving your gunpowder and looking 2-3 years out does not make Click a bad GM. That is still to be seen. This team has a longer window of competing than you seem to think.

 

I'm not talking about spending money on JBJ or any other high priced CF. I'm talking about combining the Baez money and the 2 million you would save by signing Avila vs Castro and going out and finding a real CF or closer. If Click had saved that money and gotten say Rosenthal and then traded prospects for a young CF with potential would you be more happy with the Astros chances to win a championship. Luhnow gave his teams their best chance to win a championship each yr. Can you say the same for Click so far?

You only get so many chances to win a title and the Stros definitely can win another title if they make a few tweaks. So far they've done next to nothing to improve their team. Meanwhile teams like the Yankees, White Sox, Blue Jays have made significant moves to improve their teams. I can argue that they have passed up the Stros. Oh well maybe Crane/Click are just going to tread water until the trade deadline and then make a move. But as of right now the lineup is weaker, the defense is weaker and we dont know how the young pitching prospects will hold up over a full season. Whitley becoming the star P prospect he was supposed to be would go along way to solving this issue.

I'm also very worried about the depth on this team if injury hits, and it will hit. But hey, no need to try to win a championship, Click's got this 2-3 years down the road. My way of thinking is the same as Luhnow's the opportunity to win a WS is rare and you need to do everything you can to win a WS during your window. So far Click has failed to understand this.

 

I'm not complaing, questioning what Click's done so far this offseason or if Click can even carry Luhnow's jock isn't complaining. Click doesn't seem like the ruthless type GM that Luhnow was.

 

This offseason was weird for a lot of reasons, but at least it seems like they have a coherent strategy, imo. The season is likely going to make or break based on the young pitching they have. They can't count on a middle of the order bat from the farm, so signing Brantley was a huge boost to the lineup. Castro and Maldonado are going to combine for at least solid defense, and there's a non zero chance they hit enough HRs to not be a completely black hole. Straw is the most stable profile of their MLB ready prospects, where he might fall somewhere between an off brand Billy Hamilton to something like Ender Incinerate. The rest of the lineup is set.

I don't love Baez, as I'm not sure about a soft flyball pitcher moving to MMP, but he pitches in a very Astros style. He at least will provide security against having to put a young pitcher in a key inning if they don't think he's ready, and his track record is very good. Fangraphs pointed out that he held a spot in the Dodgers pen for a long time, given how talented their team has been.

The best thing that could happen to the 2021 Astros and beyond is the young pitching takes another step forward. They added an extra pitching coach, and have another talented group of arms that might debut next year. The payroll will free up more next year, so I don't think this will be typical. He's taken some pretty high upside guys in Leon, Santos, and Daniels in his limited opportunities to acquire amateur talent.

There's nothing really to feel confident that Click is some amazing GM or something, but they've shown a coherent strategy and have a good team, so I'm not worried yet.

 

It is fairly ridiculous to complain about Click so early on. It is reasonable to question the moves he makes and is part of being a fan. Luhow worship is at force here. He was a great GM that we were forced to fire. We don’t know what Luhow would be doing right now, other than trying to find the best deal from an immediate improvement or taking a cautious approach on timing (Verlander, Cole, and others). Click may be taking the same approach looking at both this year and future years, knowing we still need to pay Correa. Click may suck or he may end up being great. It is way too early to know.