Please forgive me for putting this out there, but with the elimination of extreme shifts, would we consider Swanson and move him to 2B and move Altuve to DH? It's sort of a roundabout way of doing the same thing as what I proposed with a high prospect in a proposed trade for Bryant. Moving Altuve to DH retains his bat and eliminates his -1.2 dWAR. Swanson both hit and had a 2.0 dWAR at SS, is 29, and should be even better at 2B after acclimating to the new position. It adds depth to the lineup and defense at 2B and we still stay under cap if we can get the deal at a reasonable AAV. We might even have enough room for Brantley without going over. Altuve R DH -1.2 dWAR, 5.1 WAR Pena R SS 2.5 dWAR, 4.8 WAR Alvarez L LF -0.4 dWAR, 6.8 WAR Bregman R 3B 0.0 dWAR, 4.5 WAR Tucker L RF 0.8 dWAR, 5.2 WAR Abreu R 1B -0.9 dWAR, 4.2 WAR Swanson R 2B 2.0 dWAR, 5.7 WAR McCormick CF -0.4 dWAR, 1.3 WAR Maldonado C 0.9 dWAR, 0.3 WAR
Highly doubt that happens Marshall, for many reasons (he will want to play SS, we don't like long deals and he has a QO attached), but I would not be surprised if (especially if Yordan shows he can play LF for 110 games), Altuve does more DH'ing in the future, and, say, Will Wagner takes over 2B if he continues to develop well. Altuve has good instincts but doesn't seem to have the range he once did.
I remember being so impressed by Crane after he brought in Grineke during that stretch run. He absorbed an awful contract and went all in on winning right away. Since then he's actually generated a profit and won a championship yet has gone more conservative. Normally the complete opposite would occur for most owners but it seems he probably has more going on his personal life than we know and he's over leveraged. Alot of folks are fear mongering about this "upcoming fed induced recession" and are taking risk off the table. He's not spending more don't get your hopes up.
I certainly expected more action after his comments at the Abreu press conference, but I feel like he isn't happy with how the market has been shaping. Nook said that as soon as the Astros heard Rizzo got the QO (they did not expect him to), that instantly told them that the market would be more expensive all-around. As we saw with Contreras, they don't like going more than 4 years. Maybe he's waiting to see if the prospect price on a few trade targets will come down (trading for controllable players = less payroll money, though it does cost prospects). As far as pitching, he said "you can never have enough," and perhaps will see if a solid veteran starter is still unsigned in about a month and then see if he can get him at a bargain.
I have mixed feelings with Altuve's defense. I don't know how much it is affected by the extreme shifts he plays. It will be interesting to see how the defensive numbers change in the infield.
• The Rangers, seeking a corner outfielder, are among the clubs interested in free agent Michael Conforto, who also is on the radar of the Mets, Astros and, according to the New York Post, the Marlins. Conforto, who turns 30 on March 1, did not play at all last season because of a shoulder injury that required surgery. Boras, his agent, told reporters at Brandon Nimmo’s news conference Thursday that the outfielder is seeking a deal that is, “short-term, probably a couple of years with an opt-out.” The Astros, as first reported by USA Today, explored a trade for Diamondbacks’ Daulton Varsho, but believe the price is too high. The return of Michael Brantley remains possible.
The people paying crazy money seem to have their SS for now. Some rumor about the Yankees (isn't it always the Yankees, Mets, Rangers and LA? The Yankees still have the primo SS prospect, so they may not want to do a long term contract.
I have a feeling player option’s without some kind of PA/innings requirement is a red line for Crane. Don’t think Conforto is an option for us.
Hopefully they sign Swanson, and trade the SS for a high end reliever that we will shell in the playoffs.
He just did it with Verlander last year and it kind of worked out. I wonder if Crane is considering Conforto AND Brantley. It would give us some shoulder insurance.
In 2-3 years, half the guys that just signed mega contracts will be on the “least trade value” side of that ledger.
I didn’t really want Benintiendi, especially on those terms. But him leaving NYY does make them weaker.
Quite the contrary in my opinion. The Astros have shown they can scout/develop talent at an elite level. I actually respect Crane more for not throwing duffle bags of money at FA’s specifically looking for 10+ years and 9 figure salaries. Most of these contracts are albatross at minimum. The Yankees have spent billions trying to buy a ring, so have several other teams. The reality is, and it’s human nature, you work and earn championships. You don’t buy them, regardless of what people say. A player trying to become one of these guys getting 9 figure salaries over decades want to win more than the guys that already got there.
Well said. The problem these teams face is that you need about 17 good/great players in the playoffs to win it all, and another solid 17-23 guys to get you there. You can buy 5-10 players, but it’s very difficult to buy that many solid/good/great players.
