If we resign Verlander and Brantley as well as add Abreu, we will have the best shot of anyone in a long time to repeat as champions.
I so badly do not want to see a black hole at DH ever again, its amazing we won despite of that so this talk of abreu, rizzo, bell excites me I also like the idea of bringing brantley back. I know we pursued bell as trade candidate so I can see interest there, I also think benintendi would be an attractive OF option if we want to go that route. I thought chas was huge in the playoffs but a more dependable bat would add so much length to this lineup.
Yep I think this is the off-season result. Also Montero and Smith walk and you have Lee/Diaz given a shot to backup Maldy. I’d like to see Whitley go to the pen. CF is another competition again between Chas, Meyers, Leon, Dirden, etc. Would be interesting to see what they do if they resign JV and now you have 7 deserving SP.
Do you have a source on that? I'd love for him to become the new first baseman in 2024 while splitting time with Yuli in 2023.
Right now they have weaknesses at: 1B: Matijevic projects to be a league average bat and average defensive 1B. Other internal options are Hensley (slightly below average bat but good defender) and Yainer Diaz (above average bat and below average defender) CF/LF/DH: McCormick and Meyers project to be about average if used together in CF, and obviously wherever Alvarez is slotted will be a strength. But using Meyers as the everyday CF and McCormick as the everyday LF (with Alvarez as the everyday DH) would likely make for a below average offensive OF. If Diaz’s offensive projections are legit then making him the everyday DH while putting Alvarez in LF and McCormick/Meyers in CF would be good. C: There is a lot for debate in catcher valuations, but by the numbers Maldy projects to be weak and Lee/Diaz don’t project to be very good either. That said, it’s obvious the Astros like Maldonado as an everyday guy and so it wouldn’t make much sense for them spend resources on catching, especially if they view Lee or Diaz as viable long term starters. That said, adding a good hitting catcher is a good way to lengthen the lineup. The Astros do not have a weakness on their pitching staff. Of course it always makes sense to add an ace or elite reliever if the price is right, but if they enter the season with only players currently under contract, their pitching staff will still project to be very very good.
Yes, reported multiple times here by a trusted source with insider information. This is not a secret.
Estimated contract ranges for potential Astros free agent targets according to fangraphs: Verlander: $55M/2yrs-$80M/2yrs (I think he’ll get 3 yrs) Nimmo: $100M/5yrs-$110M/5yrs Contreras: $70M/4yrs-$80M/4yrs Abreu: $30M/2yrs-$38M/2yrs Rizzo: $32M/2yrs-$51M/3yrs Benintendi: $52M/4yrs-$56M/4yrs JD Martinez: $15M/1yr-$54M/3yrs Conforto: $12M/1yr-$20M/2yrs Mancini: $12M/1yr-$18M/2yrs Brantley: $10M/1yr-$28M/2yrs Profar: $20M/2yrs-$31M/3yrs Drury: $18M/2yrs-$30M/3yrs Bell: $18M/2yrs-$43M/3yrs (this would be a steal) Carpenter: $6M/1yr-$9M/1yr Narvaez: $14M/2yrs-$16M/2yrs Vazquez: $16M/2yrs-$18M/2yrs Haniger: $24M/3yrs-$24M/2yrs Pederson: $18M/2yrs-$23M/2yrs https://blogs.fangraphs.com/2023-top-50-free-agents/ Those prices seem deflated. But if they hold true Houston can probably afford to sign Verlander AND add 2-3 good hitting position players, which is exciting to think about.
Same reason the Phillies were a lock after game one. Verlander isn't going anywhere. Family has friends here. Money will be steep but it will be short.
If I were Click, I'd probably walk on my own terms. He can get another job pretty easily, and it's hard to do a job if neither your superior or your primary subordinate work well with you. If he doesn't leave on his own this year, it seems like a matter of time before he's let go not on his own terms.
Depends on the attitudes of all, some amount of tension is good for high performing teams as well as differing opinions. The results are clear; hopefully if Crane has actual dislike of Click, he has a good option lined up. Click isn't going to have a better organization to run that's for sure.
Is Luhnow the obvious choice to replace or untouchable? I honestly have no clue where Crane stands on the issue 5 years later.
The Stros have the luxury of shopping at the bat-first/crap glove end of the market. Paying anyone for defensive chops seems like a waste at this point (e.g. Benintendi). Devils advocate on the DH point: it was almost entirely an under performance issue at DH, not a talent issue. Mancini and Diaz are should have produced way more than they did. If you told me mid-season that Trey Mancini would be our DH in the WS I'd have been stoked.