He has been pretty adamant that he will not waive his no trade, he really seems to like it in Minnesota
If I knew there was a high chance I was getting brought back if I missed the playoffs, I’d absolutely trade those two for Ryan and Buxton.
Agree I do think this is the toughest "one month away" from the deadline to figure out who will and won't be available in a long long time Kansas City and the Angels are the only two teams in the AL more than 5 games out of a playoff spot right now. AND, the Yanks and Tampa are the only two teams with any kind of playoff spot security right now, every other team who would be in if the playoffs started today are within 2.5 games of being out of the playoffs In the NL the Mets, SF and Colorado are the only three teams more than 5 games out of a playoff spot. The Dodgers, Milwaukee, Atlanta and Philly all are looking pretty solid though, meaning it will be easier for some of the teams in the middle to fall out of it, cause just getting to .500 isn't going to make you feel clearly in the race in the NL So as of right now you only have 5 teams that clearly should be sellers, and two of those teams (Angels and Rockies) have owners that almost never let them sell. BUT outside of the Yankees and Rays, every team in the AL could be in a position to sell by the deadline. They are ALL a really bad two week stretch from being sellers. Heck, even the Rays have been know to both sell and buy at the deadline when they are in the race This has the potential to be a wild deadline this year. The other thing that could possibly be a factor is the CBA. I know most fans feel like there will be a work stoppage next year. I am in the much smaller group that doesn't think there will be. BUT the owners have a MUCH better idea of whether there will be or not, and obviously that will play into some owners directives and/or willingness to buy or sell I hope we continue to play well and are buyers. I really think we are 1 bat away from being a top tier AL offense. We are middle of the pack as it is and are always running at least one OF out there who really shouldn't be starting a game in MLB, just putting an average hitter in their spot would be a big upgrade. If the recent output from Imai is legit, we could have as good of a 1-2 at the top of a playoff rotation as there is in the AL. We can't trade ourselves into having the pitching depth of the Yankees, but in a playoff series we don't have to The team I hope falls out of it is Baltimore, you mentioned Rogers the other day and I think he would be a good target if they fall out. I also like Taylor Ward, I know everyone wants a LHH, but our team OPS is actually 10 points higher vs RHP than LHP, and Ward has consistently had a .700 OPS vs RHP which would be a big upgrade for us. Dude gives a very professional at bat also which this team could use
Agree with all that. To your point about the owners having insight into the CBA outcome, if Jim Crane expects a lockout and lost/shortened 2027 season, he could be very motivated to maximize the odds of winning in 2026, damn the cost. Firstly, he’s 72 and his involvement in the team seems like it might be waning. He hasn’t spoken to the media since January. So he could be on a year-to-year basis of being the owner or at least being an involved owner that really cares about his team winning. Secondly, I would imagine Crane has a heavy affinity for Jose Altuve. Crane could be watching Altuve this season, and thinking of not having a 2027 season, and logically come to the conclusion that this is the last season in which Altuve is a quality major league player; that could motivate Crane to do whatever it takes to maximize the odds of getting Altuve another ring.
Another all-in deadline hypothetical: Astros get: CF Jung-Hoo Lee $33M ($7M 2026, $13M 2027, $13M 2028) Giants get: OF/2B Brice Matthews P Ethan Pecko 3B Xavier Neyens Astros get: RP Devin Williams $25M ($5M 2026, $10M 2027, $10M 2027) Mets get: P Bryce Mayer C/1B Jason Schiavone OF Lucas Spence Astros get: OF Mickey Moniak $1M Rockies get: P Jackson Nezuh OF Anthony Huezo OF Taylor Trammell IF Braden Shewmake Astros get: P Kris Bubic $1M Royals get: OF Joseph Sullivan P Nick Potter Rays get: RP Bryan Abreu RP Enyel De Los Santos RP Nate Pearson Astros get: OF Brendan Summerhill OF Dean Moss Resulting roster: CF Lee SS Pena DH Alvarez 3B Paredes 1B Walker LF Moniak 2B Altuve C Diaz RF Smith Bench: Allen, Vazquez, Wade, Meyers SP: Brown, Imai, Bubic, Lambert, Arrighetti, Javier RP: Hader, Williams, King, Okert, Blubaugh, Blanco, McCullers Optioned: Alexander, Burrows, Gordon, Teng, Santa, Ullola, VanWey, Price, Delgado, Whitcomb, Dezenzo, Cole, Loperfido IL: Sousa, Walter, Wesneski, Correa This would be a world series contending roster imho. Losing Neyens is the main blow to the farm system. There would be no major payroll implications.
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/73...unlocked_article_code=1.t1A.UKGI.WkHlqhpD1jTu Needs: 1. OF who can hit in the top 5 of the lineup 2. RH leverage RP 3. Stabilizing MoR SP Tradeable assets: 1. ~$10M in payroll flexibility 2. Upper level 2nd/3rd tier OF and C prospects (Cole, Sullivan, Spence, Dezenzo, Brutcher, Janek, Bush, Schiavone) 3. Upper level 2nd/3rd tier P prospects (Pecko, Ullola, Santa, Mayer, Hertzler, Nezuh) 4. Excess big leaguers after trades are made (Abreu, De Los Santos, Pearson, Blubaugh, Teng, Burrows, Matthews, Loperfido, Meyers, Trammell) Finding a RP is totally doable, but might not happen because it won’t be a priority until after the OF need is filled. The OF need is very unlikely to be filled by a star player; there aren’t any that are certain to be available, and Houston doesn’t have the prospects to beat out other teams for star players. Most likely the player will be either a 2nd tier rental (like Taylor Ward) or a combination of 2 platoon players (like Mickey Moniak and Jo Adell). There’s possibly a lot of SP available but I would imagine if Houston completes a trade there it’ll be a last minute deal for a guy whose value is down (Bubic, Ray, etc.). Gonna be an exciting next 5 weeks.
One interesting thing about the search for an OF is that there are like 6 teams who project as sellers that have more than one OF they could shop: Twins: Buxton and Larnach Reds: Bleday and Steer Orioles: Ward and Cowser Rockies: Moniak and McCarthy Red Sox: Abreu and Duran Royals: Thomas and Marte Not sure how that will affect the market but you’d think Houston will be able to find a match in there somewhere.
Trading Lee is very complicated because of his opt out. My hypothetical is probably not very realistic because the Giants throwing in money after 2027 would need to be contingent on him not opting out. If he traded, it will be far more likely that it’s a straight deal with no money attached and the team that trades for him will assume the risk associated with his opt out. AAV is calculated based on guaranteed money (which includes years after a player opt out). If Houston were to trade for Lee it would mean Crane approved going way over the tax. In that case you could probably take Pecko out of the deal and it would just be Matthews and Neyens for Lee. It’s Cranes money not mine so I’d prefer that to adding Pecko but like I said it’s very unlikely to happen. The more I think about Potter the less I want him traded for somebody like Bubic (a rental with major injury risk)
