How a closer look at Alex Bregman's free agency could work in Houston Astros' favor
HOT STOVe
04 November 2024
What does the future hold for the Astros and Alex Bregman? Composite Getty Image.
With MLB free agency upon us, the Astros have some big decisions to make as they try to put the best possible roster together for the 2025 season.
We all know Alex Bregman's future is the big topic of conversation for Astros fans this offseason, but some other notable players are also free agents. That list includes Justin Verlander, Yusei Kikuchi, Kendall Graveman, Jason Heyward, Hector Neris, Ben Gammel, and Caleb Ferguson. (Houston also released Jose Urquidy on Monday, and he has already cleared waivers).
Full list of Astros moves:
Acquired Taylor Trammell for cash
Outrighted Oliver Ortega and José Urquidy, both of whom cleared waivers and are free agents
Lost Trey Cabbage (Pirates), Seth Martinez (DBacks), Penn Murfee (White Sox) on waivers.
The 40-man roster is full
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) November 4, 2024
And while it's hard to have confidence that the Astros will be willing to pay what Bregman will command on the open market (around 6-years, $150 million to 7-years, $185 million), one thing could be working in Houston's favor.
Demand for a top dollar third baseman may not be as high as Bregman and his agent Scott Boris were hoping for. SportsMap's Charlie Pallilo goes through all the team's with a need for a player like Bregman and only sees a few matches that make sense.
Especially if the Yankees spend big on Juan Soto. With them out of the picture, it could be tough for Breggy to find the type of contract he's looking for as a third baseman.
There are some teams that could definitely use his services, like the Seattle Mariners or Toronto Blue Jays for example. But the Mariners have been reluctant to commit that type of money to offense, and if winning is important, would Breggy go to Toronto?
Now, if Bregman is willing to move to second base, that could open up some more possibilities. We'll dive into that more in the video below.
Silver Slugger finalists
Could the Silver Slugger finalists influence owner Jim Crane's approach in free agency? Here's why we bring this up. The World Champion LA Dodgers have 5 finalists this year. The Astros have 4 (Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, Bregman, Yainer Diaz), and likely would have had 5 if not for the injury to Kyle Tucker.
Even if the Astros were to move on from Bregman, that would still leave them with 4 possible finalists once again in 2025. Considering how much money the Dodgers spend each year, the fact that the Astros roster is still comparable to the Dodgers might add to Crane's belief that this team doesn't need another splashy move to win a World Series.
They may just need to get a little better on the margins to get this team back in serious contention for a title.
This is one video you don't want to miss as we examine all the possible landing spots for Bregman, how that impacts Houston's chances at bringing him back, and what overall strategy we should expect from Dana Brown and the Astros this offseason.
*Catch our weekly Stone Cold ‘Stros podcasts. Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo discuss varied Astros topics. The post for the week generally goes up Monday afternoon. Find all via The SportsMap HOU YouTube channel or listen to episodes in their entirety at Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
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José Soriano and two relievers combined for a two-hitter and Oswald Peraza hit his first home run since a trade from the Yankees to lead the Los Angeles Angels to a 3-0 win over the Houston Astros on Sunday.
Soriano (10-9) allowed one hit and struck out eight in seven innings. Luis García allowed one hit in a scoreless eighth and Kenley Jansen threw a perfect ninth for his 25th save.
There were two outs in the fifth when Peraza connected off Hunter Brown (10-7) into the bullpen in right-center field to put the Angels up 1-0. His homer comes after his two-run single in the ninth inning Saturday helped Los Angeles to a 4-1 victory that snapped a three-game skid.
Yoan Moncada walked to start the eighth and scored on Mike Trout’s double that bounced off the wall in center field to make it 2-0. Taylor Ward walked before Luis Rengifo reached and Trout scored on an error by Lance McCullers Jr. when the pitcher overthrew first base.
Yordan Alvarez singled with no outs in the first and Soriano walked a batter in the second and sixth innings. The Astros didn’t get another hit until Ramón Urías doubled with one out in the eighth inning. Los Angeles outfielder Taylor Ward was injured trying to make a catch on that hit when he crashed face-first into the metal scoreboard in left field.
He was carted off the field holding a towel to the right side of his face. He was taken to a hospital by ambulance where interim manager Ray Montgomery said he would receive stitches to close the cut and be evaluated.
Brown allowed three hits and a run with five strikeouts in six innings. McCullers Jr. allowed three hits and two runs in his first relief appearance since 2018.
Key moment
The home run by Peraza.
Key stat
It’s the fifth time the Astros have been shut out this month.
Up next
LHP Yusei Kikuchi (6-9, 3.68 ERA) will start for Los Angeles in the series finale Monday against RHP Luis Garcia, who’ll make his return after sitting out since May 2023 recovering from Tommy John surgery.
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