LET'S MAKE A DEAL
With Benintendi off the market, here are 3 trade targets in Astros sights
Jul 28, 2022, 1:10 pm
This Astros have until August 2 to make a move. Composite image by Brandon Strange
JJ - Luis Castillo
With Major League Baseball’s trade deadline less than a week away, the Astros once again find themselves in playoff contention and will look to add pivotal pieces to make another World Series run.
On paper it seems as though Houston already has a complete team, but there is always room for improvement.
Sure, the Astros could add a few bullpen pieces and call it a day, similar to last season, but this year feels different. Houston has a winning record against arguably the two best teams in the league (4-0 against the Mets and 5-2 against the Yankees) and owns the second-best record in baseball.
Needless to say, this season is a World Series or bust year so it would behoove the club to make a blockbuster type trade to ensure their continued dominance over the rest of Major League Baseball.
The Astros have already been attached to a couple of big name players and look to be aggressive before Tuesday’s trade deadline.
Josh Bell
One trade candidate that makes sense for the Astros is Washington Nationals’ first baseman Josh Bell.
Sure Houston already has last year's batting champion at first base, but Yuli Guriel is having a down year by his standards. The 38-year-old is hitting a career low (excluding the 2020 partial season) .234/.286/.383. He has improved over the last month, but isn’t nearly as effective at the plate as he was in previous seasons.
Bell on the other hand is hitting .304/.388/.494 on a last place Nationals team and could be a potential upgrade compared to Gurriel.
The 29-year-old might just be a rental player as he is a free agent at the end of this season, so it shouldn’t cost the Astros too much in prospects for a trade to occur.
The former All-Star wouldn't outright replace, Gurriel, but could be used in a platoon role at first base.
Another way to look at Bell coming to Houston would be he could split time at first base and be a designated hitter to alleviate stress for both Gurriel and Yordan Alvarez.
Bell’s bat would be a welcome addition to the Astros lineup, and surely Dusty Baker could find a way for both Gurriel and Bell to split time at first base.
Willson Contreras
One player who has been on the mind of every Astros front office executive for a while now is Chicago Cubs’ catcher Willson Contreras.
Similar to the aforementioned Gurriel dilemma, Houston already has an everyday starting catcher in Martin Maldonado that everyone in the clubhouse seems to like.
The issue with the 35-year-old is an obvious one, he is not a good hitter and neither are the Astros' other catchers.
Maldonado’s .237 on-base percentage is the fifth-lowest mark among 260 hitters with 200+ plate appearances on the season.
The Astros have also been without Jason Castro for almost a month now, with no update on the severity of his knee injury.
Houston’s current backup catcher Korey Lee has shown flashes of success at the plate, but is still developing and may need more time before he is ready to become the club's everyday starting catcher.
Contreras on the other hand has always been an offense-first catcher, something the Astros have not had since the days of Evan Gattis and Brian McCann.
Assuming the Astros were to deal for the 3x All-Star, he could slot into a backup catcher/ designated hitter role. That way the pitchers could still work with Maldonado and the team can use Contreras off the bench in late game pitch hit situations or to give Maldy the day off occasionally.
Similarly to the Josh Bell scenario, trading for the 2022 All-Star starting catcher shouldn’t cost much, as he can walk at the end of the season via free agency. That’s not to say the Cubs won’t ask a lot for one of the last remaining core players from their 2016 World Series championship team, though.
The Astros might have to give up some better prospects for Contreras’ services, but it would be worth it to insure their catching position is in good hands.
Luis Castillo
One of the best elements of this Astros team has been their starting pitching. Justin Verlander is having another Cy Young caliber season coming off Tommy John sugary and Framber Valdez made his first All-Star team this year. Other pitchers such as Jose Urquidy, Luis Garcia and Cristian Javier are having good seasons as well.
With Jake Odorizzi as the sixth man in this rotation and Lance McCullers Jr currently undergoing a rehab assignment, it’s safe to say the Astros don’t need anymore starting pitching, right?
Yes, but Houston could make an exception for another potential ace in their rotation.
Cincinnati Reds’ pitcher Luis Castillo has a 2.77 ERA and 82 strikeouts this season despite pitching in a hitter-friendly home ballpark.
The 29-year-old could fit right in to this rotation, and the Astros could move someone such as Odorizzi or Garcia and prospects to make room for the Reds' ace.
Castillo has one more year of arbitration eligibility before he hits free agency in 2024, so the extra year of control may be enticing for Astros if they were to trade for him.
Although not a necessity, having another 2022 All-Star on this already loaded pitching staff would further solidify the Astros’ rotation as the best in baseball.
Houston may have one of the best teams as it currently stands, but adding a player like Bell, Contreras or Castillo could be just what the Astros need to make it back and potentially win the World Series.
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Vázquez homers off Hader to give Twins walk-off win over Astros
Jul 7, 2024, 7:22 pm
Jose Miranda matched a major league record with hits in 12 straight plate appearances and Byron Buxton and Brooks Lee homered leading the Minnesota Twins to a 9-3 win over the Houston Astros on Saturday.
Miranda, playing third base, entered the game with the team-record of hits in 10 straight at-bats. The 26-year-old singled in his first two official at-bats Saturday and tied the MLB record set by the Chicago Cubs’ Johnny Kling (1902) and matched by Boston’s Pinky Higgins (1938) and Detroit’s Walt Dropo (1952). His streak ended in the sixth inning on a routine flyout to left field.
Willi Castro added three hits for Minnesota, which raced to a five-run lead in the first two innings and led 7-1 after three.
Jon Singleton hit a two-run homer for the Astros, who lost for just the third time in 16 games.
Joe Ryan (6-5) allowed three earned runs in 5 2/3 innings, earning the win after three straight no-decisions.
The Twins jumped all over Hunter Brown (6-6), who had been one of the hottest pitchers in the majors. Over his previous five starts, he allowed just one earned run and struck out 34 in 31 innings pitched.
Brown did manage to complete six innings for the ninth straight outing, but gave up seven runs on a season-high 12 hits.
Every Twins starter had at least one hit by the fourth inning. Castro singled in the first, doubled in the second and singled in the third.
Lee's two-run homer in the third inning was the first of his career. The Twins' No. 2 prospect was called up on Wednesday and has seven hits in his first four games.
Buxton hit a two-run shot in the seventh to give the Twins some breathing room after Houston had the tying run at the plate in the sixth inning.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Astros: 2B Jose Altuve (left wrist contusion) was out of the lineup a day after he was hit on the wrist by a pitch. X-rays were negative on Friday and he’s still considered day-to-day. … OF Yordon Alvarez was hit by a pitch on his right knee in the sixth inning. He remained in the game, but was removed for a pinch hitter in the eighth inning.
UP NEXT
The series wraps up on Sunday with RHP Spencer Arrighetti (4-7, 6.13 ERA) of the Astros facing RHP Simeon Woods Richardson (3-1, 3.52) of the Twins. Arrighetti lasted just four innings in his last start, giving up six earned runs while waking four against the Blue Jays on Tuesday. Woods Richardson has given up at least three earned runs in four of his last six starts.