Okay, friends. It may not be time to panic, but it’s time to take action.
In real life, I help people eliminate urgent things by dealing with them when they are important. In other words, if you take care of things when you should take care of them, nothing will be urgent. And, nothing will be on fire.
Right now, there’s a lot of smoke around the Astros’ season and the flames are starting to burn brightly.
Sure, the Astros are still holding on to first place in the AL West, but I’ve got to be honest: the cracks are showing. This team has fought like crazy to stay in contention, but we can’t ignore what’s happening.
From the front office to the dugout to the field, everyone has done an admirable job navigating a season full of injuries and unknowns. The coaching staff, the young players, and especially Joe Espada deserve credit for keeping the ship afloat.
But we’ve reached a critical moment.
Yes, help might be on the way — but while hope may be tremendous, it is not a strategy. And we can’t afford to waste what this roster has done to stay alive.
Who Might Return soon?
Here’s a look at who could be back before September 1:
| Player | Injury | Potential Return |
| Jeremy Peña | Hamstring | Could return soon |
| Isaac Paredes | Undisclosed | Timeline uncertain, likely weeks/months |
| Cristian Javier | Tommy John | Rehabbing; late August possible |
| J.P. France | Shoulder | Could return mid-to-late August |
| Luis Garcia | Tommy John. | Rehabbing in Corpus Christi |
| Jake Meyers | Calf strain | Possible return by early August |
| Lance McCullers Jr. | Multiple injuries | Who knows… |
| Shawn Dubin | Elbow | Could return mid-August |
| Luis Guillorme | Hamstring | Nearing return |
| Yordan Alvarez | Right hand | Nearing return (maybe) |
| Spencer Arrighetti | Thumb | Nearing return. |
That’s a lot of names (and there are more). A lot of maybes. And that’s the point.
My Take: This Is a Dangerous Place to Be
I’ve watched this team closely over the past few weeks. And I know how tempting it is to believe we’re close to full strength. But you can’t count on players coming back from long-term injuries to be saviors—especially when some haven’t pitched or played meaningful games in months.
What if two or three of these guys suffer setbacks? What if their timing is off? What if they can’t go deep into games?
What if the magic runs out?
Standing pat would be a vote of confidence, but it could also be a gamble that costs us the season. And it could be the worst case of malpractice.
What Should the Astros Do? (My Trade Strategy)
I’ve always said, don’t complain if you can’t provide a solution. So here goes. To me, the path forward is clear. We don’t need a dozen moves. We need two really smart, bold ones. Here’s where we should focus:
| Target Area | Why It Matters |
| Starting Pitching | Even if Javier, France, and/or Garcia return, they’ll be on tight pitch counts. We need a horse. |
| Corner Infield Bat | With Paredes out, and lineup inconsistency, Houston needs a middle-order bat to stabilize the offense. |
| Outfield Depth | With Meyers out, Chas just returning, and no clear timeline on Yordan’s role, the Astros need a glove and a bat. |
| Bullpen Reinforcement | Never a bad idea. The pen has been solid but overworked. A fresh, high-leverage arm would matter. |
This isn’t about overreacting. It’s about staying alive, and then getting dangerous.
Eugenio Suarez should not be off the table. Seth Lugo apparently is off the table, though, as it appears the Royals are extending him. Maybe consider Ryan O’Hearn too. Is Nolan Arenado available now? Would Houston want him? Sandy Alcantara? Mitch Keller? Zac Gallen? Some of these make more sense than others, but it’s time to consider all options and make the best deal possible.
I come from a world that teaches you not to mortgage the future for the present, but it’s time for Dana Brown to earn his paycheck.
This Team Deserves More Than “Wait and See”
Espada has done a phenomenal job. Manager of the Year level. The young guys have stepped in and delivered big moments. The front office has patched holes as best they can.
But if we sit back now, cross our fingers, and hope everything works out… we’re asking too much of the players who’ve already given so much.
Let’s reward that effort.
Don’t just survive the storm…use it as a reason to upgrade the ship.
The Time Is Now
The AL playoff picture is crowded. The Mariners are gaining. Even the Rangers are closer than they should be. The Red Sox, Yankees, and Rays are no joke. We can’t assume the division is ours and we certainly can’t assume a wild card is guaranteed.
As I said, hope is not a strategy. And health is not a guarantee.
My Bottom Line
As a fan and a believer in this team, I’m not calling for chaos. I’m calling for commitment.
Make the bold move. Or two.
Back up the belief this clubhouse has already shown.
Don’t ask them to carry the load and bet on the return of the cavalry.
Give them what they need to finish what they started.
Let’s win now.
Let’s protect what we’ve built.
Let’s go all in.
ALL THINGS ASTROS 
64 responses to “The case for a major move at the trade deadline”
Good morning!
Chip, at this point, looking at your list of 11 guys, it’s hard to even guess at which ones might be able to help in 2025. Yordan is a toss up. I think Issac is done. Jake in early August sounds a bit optimistic. Hard to say if any of the pitchers will help, as they will be trying to cram an entire Spring Training into a short time frame after coming off varying but significant injuries. Can we hold on until September 1? Maybe we’ll have enough reinforcements to make a difference by then.
But I’d sure try to get a couple of things done if I’m Dana Brown. I keep looking at Jesús Sánchez, and his .812 OPS against righties. No, he won’t hit lefties at all, but he’s not bad in the outfield and has a solid arm. He does hit much better at home, so maybe that’s a concern, but it’s not a Colorado problem. He’s making 4.5 a year and is under team control until 2029. That’s both good and bad for the Astros. But Dana could probably swing that deal.
Alimber Santa has allowed one hit and one run in the month of July down in Corpus. ERA on the season is 1.26 and the WHIP 1.02. Are they hiding him down there? Maybe he’s the pen guy needed right now.
The tough asks are the third baseman and the starting pitcher obviously. And these guys would likely be rentals. And to get guys that will really make a difference, names like Matthews, Melton, Santa and Ullola and a few others, maybe even a Diaz (personally I’d hate to see Yanier go) would have to be part of the conversation. And not just one of them. So it’s a tough tough call that I’d not want to make.
The Astros could probably also fix multiple problems by trading Framber. But then we’re giving up the one guy playing at the top of his game right now.
What we need right now is a win tonight.
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This is a very timely post, Chip. As I’ve said before, I am very torn on how the team should approach this trade deadline. Some thoughts:
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Of interest?
Astros Interested In Willi Castro – MLB Trade Rumors
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A couple commenter questions:
Steven – are you OK – it has been more than a week since we’ve heard from you and you always have interesting takes
Old pro – I know you are having to go with shorter comments – how are things going with you?
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Oi Dan! Thanks for the complement! Sorry, been out of town, reading on phone, but I hate typing on phones. Fingers are too fat and I’m too old.
I’m back now! Vacations are swell, if only I could have afforded to take them when I was young and had energy for them.
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Good to have you back – extremely true statement about vacations and age
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And this has me wondering if the Texans and Astros are sharing their medical staffs….
Texans RB Joe Mixon To Miss Extended Time Due To Foot Injury – NFLTradeRumors.co
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Dan, they have to make a move. Whether it’s a Kikuchi-type move (is that Charlie Morton) that comes alive (again) in Houston or a go for the jugular move like Suarez, I dunno.
Yes, there are too many guys out (coming back) and you have to figure that at least a couple of them will make a difference. The question is: WHICH one(s)? And how much a factor can they be, since some of them are still in their version of “spring training”?
All said, Dana Brown can’t stand pat. It’s baseball malpractice in my book. Especially with the season the famous out-of-nowhere kids have brung ’em.
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It is an interesting situation Chip. Since the team rose like a Phoenix after the depths of the crash – since 2015 – the team has only really sat pat in 2016 and 2020.
The 2016 stand pat was disturbing as the team had finally reached the playoffs in 2015 and had regressed a little (maybe found their true level in 2016) and everyone was frustrated they didn’t make a splash. Who knows, they might have made a move and might have sent away someone who ended up being important in the 2017 championship push.
The 2020 stand pat was in the Covid season. The Astros were not quite as unhealthy as 2025, but it was an awful regular season as so many folks were out due to injury (Verlander, Yordan. Osuna, Peacock, Devenski, etc.) plus Joe Smith opting out due to family health issues (I think his wife was pregnant). The team somehow made the expanded playoffs with a losing record and got to the cusp of another World Series, which they made in 2021 and won in 2022.
I don’t think they will stand pat, but if they did it would be an interesting poker move.
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Dan, if you look at the critical deadline deal trades the Astros have made over the past 10 years, they haven’t given up anyone who made a huge difference to get Ryan Pressly, JV, Greinke and others over the years. None of the players (including first rounders) amounted to much.
Yes, it’s a gamble, but the team has won most every time. Of course, for the most part, we’re talking Luhnow era.
And, as for 2016, there was one trade, though it doesn’t push the Astros out of the “stand pat” category. That was the summer that a guy named Yordan traded uniforms with a guy named Josh Fields.
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I agree on it not costing us much. The Fields / Yordan fleecing was not at the deadline (though neither was my Cole trade).
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Yes the Fields/Yordan deal wasn’t at the deadline (August 1) necessarily, but it was in that standing pat period you referred to in 2016.
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I see a lot of guys on Crawfish Boxes saying if we want to get an arm or a bat that would upgrade the team significantly, we should trade Yainer or Chas (or both) and not trade away any of our top prospects. I don’t think I would trade either of them and I don’t think Dana will get anyone that would put us over the tax limit.
Also, there is no guarantee that anyone we get in a trade would stay healthy the rest of the year. If we could get Willi Castro for a few mid-tier or lower prospects, I’d go for that.
A
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I have no idea what the Astros might do, but after years of Crane being involved in some real splashy deadline deals, nothing would really shock me. That’s what’s cool about the deadline.
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I think we just need the team to hit better. You have to get on base to score runs. It’s very tough to score runs in an AB where you strike out as well. Arenado has a .664 OPS and $47M of salary owed after this year. Castro is cheap, but his bat is roughly equivalent to Dubon’s. Either might be preferable to Matthews, Short, etc., for the remainder of the year…but it feels like throwing good money after bad. Realistically, I think the returns of Pena and Alvarez are your only chance.
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News and updates.
Cam Smith not in today’s lineup again.
Jon Singleton joined the DFA list.
Jacob Melton activated off the IL.
Luis Guillorme cleared waivers, outrighted, elected free agency.
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I’m so glad Meltons’ back . I’ve gotten a bit tired of seeing Hummel flounder trying to work left field. In Meltons’ time here before his sprain, he was a plus outfielder and he’d his own with the bat.
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If not for the Astro injury situation I’d be the first to say ‘go for it’ at the deadline. As stated in a previous post our wounded warriors on the mend and some soon returning is a crapshoot not knowing how effective they will or will not be. I’m optimistic though. Again, unless the brass have plans to make a serious offer to Framber (I’m not optimistic), then given how tight the playoff race is shaping up currently, trading Framber (rental status notwithstanding), Dana would have a great opportunity to net a nice return for a P of Frambers caliber. I think tms would be salivating at the mouth and might bend some to obtain him. But what do I know. Pls do not allow Framber to walk away for nothing.
I’m willing to run with our returnees and any pickups at the deadline.
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I’m right with you there AG. DB and company need to know if we can sign Framber. If it looks like we can then go for it. If not you’re going to have to trade him and you might get a pretty good haul for him. Since he’s a free agent after the season we might be able to sign him after the season given we trade him at the deadline. What a coup that would be. A big haul and a long term deal with Framber.
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Good morning. The Astros are in bad shape. No doubt about that. But they are in first place by three games. There are only two teams in the American League with better records. The Detroit Tigers just got done losing 12 of 13. They’re still in first place. If we were 5 or 7 games out right now, I’d be 100% in favor of moving Framber. And I would have done it a year or two ago too, along with Bregman. That might have made things easier today. But again, I don’t think Jim Crane is going to let Framber go as long as the Astros remain atop their division. They’re in a pennant race! The job is to get into the post season. And that’s what our club will try to do.
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Thoughts
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I read this too fast. You listed the players at AAA and then immediately wrote Lance. My brain thought, well, if Lance Berkman is ramping up at AAA for the stretch run it’s worth a try.
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The case for doing nothing https://search.app/tmTJy
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The case for doing nothing https://search.app/tmTJy
An interesting take?
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Andre, there is some truth there. And well-reasoned minds can disagree.
Indeed, it is a narrow line to walk and there is a critical offseason ahead.
The front office already likely knows if it will be able to re-sign Framber. Or at least they should have a good idea by now.
And, it seems that the Astros have no intention of entertaining an extension. His agent says he has not had any conversations about an extension and the price for a new Framber contract will likely surpass $200 million.
Tucker traded. Bregman allowed to walk. What makes a player who will be 32 at the start of next season any different?
What has made this situation untenable is the injuries to Arrighetti, Blanco, Wisneski et al. It makes Framber even more valuable this season. Is it possible he would have been traded by now if those injuries had taken place? Not saying it’s so, just wondering out loud.
Framber would bring a haul and would instantly be the top pitcher on the trade market, but at what short-term cost?
That is the dilemma!
It’s a pivotal trade deadline, and that precedes a pivotal offseason in Houston.
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I was disappointed to read that Framber spouted off last night in the post game interview, upset that the right fielder was poorly positioned on the double that that Bell scored from first on, tying the game.
I’ll say this:
To my recollection, the club nor any players have ever called Framber out publicly. No doubt he’s the most talented guy on the club. But especially now, as the club struggles so much, he should have everyone’s backs just as they’ve all had his.
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Heck of a time for a vacation. But hey, the Dodgers lost 7 in a row and they are fine. We just gotta get back on the horse tonight and try win game 2.
I’m glad I’m not on the hook with this team. Brown is at a crossroads. He can take one of 3 courses – go all in and be willing to move Ullola, Brito, Blubaugh, Fleury, even guys we’ve seen like Gordon or Matthews or Melton, no names off the list, and go get Suarez, Lowe, O’Hearn, someone of that caliber, and hope coupled with a returning Yordan and Jake, can get this offense over the 1 run per game hump? Do you go all in on a pitcher?
Course 2 – just sit pat. Don’t put yourself over the cap, reset that number, and with Framber and Montero and Abreu off the books you should be able to handle escalating salaries to a few people and still find you an everyday LFer that bats from the other side without killing yourself.
Course 3 – BECOME SELLERS. Oof, hard to type that out because I believe in going for it. I think Crane does too.
I’m guessing course 1. We are going to see a trade, even if it’s just 1, that we think might hurt in 2027 but puts us in a spot to score a few runs now. I’m thinking someone like O’Hearn. I would think Baltimore would be very interested in Ullola’s arm, but may think (like I do) that Jose Fleury is actually our best pitching prospect and want that guy. If I can get O’Hearn for Ullola, Blubaugh and Melton, I would think it’s pretty much like last years Kikuchi trade, where an impactful guy is going to show up and do something we need and its very possible none of those 3, for as much press as they have gotten, are really worth a darn anyway.
The bad part is almost any move puts us over the tax threshold, and comes with a 30% penalty. Now, O’Hearn is a perfect fit because he makes 5.75M, and for a third of a season, may not actually put us over. If you can convince Baltimore to also take Chas off your hands in that deal, just to get us below the cap, even better.
Crossing the penalty may not be in fans minds right now, but maybe it should. The penalty for a third year offender is 50% over the threshold. Without resetting it now, not only are your hands tied with at least trying to make Framber a competitive offer, you really aren’t going to use the market to fix LF/2B next year either.
WWSD – make my best offer for O’Hearn that doesn’t include Brito or Fleury. If it doesn’t work, with Brandon Lowe currently injured, I would stand pat. I would hope Pena, Arrighetti, Yordan, Javier, Meyers, France, Garcia, I would hope that at least some of these guys are making an impact by 1 September for a stretch run. If most of them are not, Suarez is not fixing this team anyway.
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Welcome back from vacation Steven. I figured that’s where you were.
I just noticed that Framber (or his associates) just opened a Framber Valdez X account yesterday afternoon, posting mostly Framber accomplishments. So Andre, maybe you’re right, maybe Framber wants to move on and get out of Houston quick and we should help him!
Steven, how about a real blockbuster on Thursday that includes Framber and a couple of other Astros/prospects for all the stuff we need right now including a starter? Guys that would translate into an improved (more balanced roster) for 2026 as much as it would help in the next couple of months. That would mean less rentals or no rentals and more of our guys leaving town.
It’s been a crazy season so far. I’m up for it. Who knows, maybe Framber pissed off the boss last night.
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Dave, after I settled back and let my BP lower, this may have merit. Trade Framber for a haul that would include positives for 2025 and 2026-2030.
Of course, this philosophy must include the soon return of some key players like Arrighetti, Pena and Yordan. And you’d probably want to get a MLB-ready starter in your return for the rotation.
Tucker gave you three players that you could plug in immediately. If Framber had a similar return and you get some guys back, hmmm.
Crane probably won’t green-light that deal, but there may be some legitimacy to the consideration.
Trade to the Yankees? Would the Cubs take Framber at this point? Dodgers?
It’s the fun of being an arm-chair general manager.
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Chip, a whole lot of good things will have to happen for the Astros to correct and go deep into October. I also don’t think Crane would sell, but I guess we never know until the deadline hits. And Framber’s little out burst last night may have offended someone. I also wonder why he or his associates would put up an X page just yesterday noting his accomplishments. Was Framber’s own team sending a message?
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I’m not convinced a lot of things have to go right. This team swept the Dodgers in LA less than a month ago. We have some really good arms at the back of the bullpen. The key at this point is getting to the postseason and then seeing what happens. I love the idea of trading Framber since he’s going to be playing elsewhere next season, but I think doing so both waves the white flag for 2025 and tells every prospective FA not to sign with us going forward.
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I would absolutely move Framber for the right deal.
But I don’t think Crane will. He likes high attendance numbers. I can’t blame him. The signal he would send to the casual fan who cares about right this second is don’t bother coming to the park for the rest of 2025.
My confidence has wavered in this franchises ability to be smarter than their competition. They did, afterall, still offer Bregman a 5 year deal (maybe it was like the Correa offer, one they knew he wasn’t taking, but did it anyway to save face). Then they tried to trade for Arenado, which has a disaster contract left. They were saved by Arenado’s hubris.
The clock may have struck midnight on Gordon. Walter joins the walking wounded. Hunter Brown has suddenly given up his super powers. Framber is the most likely quality start you have your rotation.
If the return is 3 prospects, one of which is a franchises top or number 2 prospect, I would be down. He would be the most sought after player in all of baseball at the deadline if the Astros sent signals that he was available. The return from the Red Sox or Yankees alone would be tremendous.
What I haven’t figured out is why the Astros have not went and gotten Mike Tauchman at this point. The White Sox can’t ask for much, he is 34 and coming off injury. He is the exact thing you need – a lefty bat that can hit for decent average, work a walk, and play LF. His salary for the remainder of the year is less than 1M, so no cap hit. He immediately takes over LF, bats 2nd, and pushes everyone down. And you have him for 2026.
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Well, if Dana really wants to make it fun, he can always make it a three or four team deal. It shouldn’t be so hard to get Tauchman involved, but he’s having a career year which might not even last until the end of 2025. The lefty bat outfield bat I want is Jesus Sanchez. But he would be strictly a platoon bat. He has not and will not ever hit left handed pitching.
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Astros, Mets Among Teams In The Mix For Brandon Lowe – MLB Trade Rumors
FWIW
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A rental second baseman.
Also..interestingly…Joey Loperfido and Will Wagner are apparently being dangled by the Blue Jays. “…available in trade…”
If those two names ring a bell, the Astros traded them (and Jake Bloss) last summer for Kikuchi.
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I get that Lowe has a lefty infield bat that we sure need. But he might be worse at second base than Jose. I hope that particular rumor is wrong.
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Earlier today I read an article where Dana Brown discussed potential timelines of returns for our wounded warriors, both P and position players. Of all the players he mentioned, discounting I Parades, there was one name in particular Brown failed to mention at all. Jake Meyers. Figured there had to be a reason for that.
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Also – in an act of Deja vu from the last few trade deadlines – the Astros are “interested” in Dylan Cease again.
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Dan, I always wonder how much of this is media trying to create a story and how much of it is real. If you’d believed every story leading up to the recent NFL draft, you’d have had 10 teams trading first-round picks and Shedeur Sanders would’ve been in New York instead of Cleveland.
Someone should post a media scorecard after the deadline so we’ll know who to believe next year? 🙂
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Good morning! The Astros have stretched out their division lead in the West, picking up a game on both our arch-enemies. The sun is shining.
Gosh, the deadline really is conundrum for this baseball fan. Dylan Cease might come in and give us a Randy Johnson boost. Or he might not. It might all be just a rumor. But having followed Yanier Diaz (another part of the various Cease rumors) since his A ball days with KC, I hate the thought of losing him. He’s a 26 year old hitter having a bad year after two solid ones. There has to be some wise old sage that can help him control the zone better. And when that happens, he’ll really become a hitter. So for today, I think Dylan Cease would be a plus, but not if Yanier has to go.
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True, Dave. The Astros need to bolster their lineup and the best way to guarantee an upgrade (from this guy’s perspective) is to add through trade. But don’t trade for trade’s sake. And I would agree not to give up Yainer. 26! I hadn’t remembered that in all the conversation. He plays “older”. Wow, he’s as much a future piece as Paredes, Smith, Pena.
Then again, he will be due a decent raise in his first Arb year this offseason.
Wonder what the pitchers would think of trading Yainer?
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His OPS is down to .674. That’s a far cry from 2023. But still, the system is barren behind the plate. Collin Price is having a career year at Sugar Land with a .232 average. Cesar Salazar, when he isn’t hanging out in Houston as a peanut vendor is his backup. Walker Janek hasn’t taken a swing past A ball. Corpus has given John Garcia the most innings back there this year. Yes, I had to go look him up too. Janek has shared time with Will Bush, a guy I actually like, but not as a catcher. He has thrown out 11% of baserunners this year, and that number isn’t a one-off, he has been consistently pretty bad at it. But he has offensive potential.
You have no one that can catch in 2026 unless you give Caratini 10-12M a year for 2 or 3 years. Why do that when you have a 26 year old under team control not even arby eligible until the end of next year, who by the way, in a bad year will hit .250 with 20 HR? Makes no sense. I like Victor, but he sits in a role that is perfect for him. I don’t know what happens when he catches 130 times and bats 500 times in 2026.
Ideally, I would like one of two things for Yainer – either name Caratini the starter and move him from behind the plate or get him out of the middle of the order. If you are going to ask Yainer to catch, bat him 7th or 8th. To me, it’s been difficult for him to grow as a hitter when he is so focused on the other teams hitters and working with each pitcher on how to get them out. He probably reports to the park on a normal night game around 2pm, how much of his time is split between preparing for each piece? I assume way more time is used figuring out what to do against 9 guys, and icing his knees, and baserunners, and positioning, and all the things a catcher has to worry about, while Christian Walker is doing one thing – studying the pitcher he is facing and taking batting practice.
I would rather either see him focus on becoming a better hitter or being a full time catcher and not have middle of the order expectations. I’ve never been a fan of Dusty, but he knows baseball better than I do, and he obviously doubted Yainer’s ability to do all of it. It may not all be accurate, but there may be at least a little smoke there.
But for goodness sakes, don’t trade the guy.
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OPS at .691 today. I keep hoping both Yanier and Walker can it over .700 and then steadily work towards .750 by the end of the season. That would be a real help.
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Really?
Astros Interested In Carlos Correa Reunion – MLB Trade Rumors
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Reunions are the theme of the day. Not only Correa, but Charlie Morton’s name continues to ride just under the radar. Morton might make some sense. Correa? $93 million over the next 3 years? Not so much.
What would next year look like? Paredes at 2B, Pena at SS, Correa at 3B? Or does Correa DH the rest of the season until Yordan makes it back?
For so many reasons, can’t see it happening. For what it’s worth, Correa has never played anywhere else — not an inning — other than SS or DH (7 games) in the majors, OR minors.
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What a terrible idea. Correa is done. Injuries have robbed him of superstardom. He lost 2 contracts from failing physicals. He has become almost as big a defensive liability in the field as Altuve this year.
There is a world where Correa overcomes these injuries and meets at least some of that potential. He is 30, not 37. But given every metric you can find, from offense to defense, is trending downwards, I would guess that won’t be this Earth.
Isaac Paredes may have been a 2B in a different life as well, but he is no longer 200 lbs. He is listed at 213. That might be generous. How many 225 lbs second baseman are in the league? My guess is that idea of positional flexibility using Paredes is a thing of the past. He hasn’t played an inning at 2B in 2 years for a reason.
Nah, this just seems like Correa’s agent made a comment to someone that he would be willing to do it. I can’t imagine the Astros would have any interest in that contract. But this is the same franchise that tried to trade for Arenado.
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Look, I’ve been wrong before, but can’t see any scenario where the interest is in doing anything other than making everyone think that the Astros have another target other than Eugenio Suarez. Unless Minnesota wants to send Correa to Houston for nothing in return just to dump salary I can’t see it…and even then we might be asking for a lot of salary relief.
Correa played 3B in the WBC a few years back. I have no concerns about whether he could do that and even approach being a gold glover there. I have concerns about whether he can stay on the field and greater concerns about why you would give him that money and not a guy like Framber. Of course, this all assumes Framber would want to stay if they offered him such a contract.
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I’m hopeful and at least fairly confident Crane will not let sentiment cloud his vision. Paredes, even if done for the year is our third baseman going forward. He’s earned that job. The arrival of Correa would only serve to further muddle the 26 man roster for the next three years. We’d get older when we want to be getting younger. And he would not be the most tradable guy either. This particular rumor goes back a week or more on X. There are plenty of knuckleheads posting all kinds of crap right now. If Pena is coming back this weekend, I’d rather just leave Dubon at the corner and find a lefty bat or two rather than giving up prospects to put a declining guy over there out of position. And that goes for Arenado too.
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2025 Arenado – OPS+ of 86
2025 Dubon – OPS+ of 101
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Who would the Astros make available to trade for what they need? Not in order!
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Who would they want?
Correa
Above average LH hitting outfielder.
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I don’t want Correa. How do we know the Astros want him?
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Dave, apparently the Astros approached the Twins about Correa. They have discussed parameters of a deal, but they aren’t close. If you believe “sources”, Houston is the only team Correa would consider waiving his no-trade for.
It is said that Correa has talked to some Astros’ players about the possibility.
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Hi Chip, when I first saw that report from Rome, I thought about the possibility of Correa and Altuve conversing which might have led to Altuve reaching out to Crane or Dana or any number of any other scenarios.
I personally can’t image a defense next season that would include Altuve playing left full time, Paredes at second and Correa at third.
For right now, I don’t think any of us can guess at what the Astros might want based on what has been said and written.
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Never trade just to say we traded.I just don’t see too much advantage in doing so. I just wish we knew what Framber’s intentions were.
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Zanuda, everything I’ve seen recently says that there have been absolutely no discussions between the Astros and Framber regarding an extension. To keep him, the Astros would likely have to ante up $200 million for a 32-year-old pitcher.
He’d likely want Max Fried-type money, which is a 8 year/$218 million deal. Fried is 31, so he’s similar age, etc.
Can’t see Crane doing that, especially with how well Houston takes no-name pitchers and turns them into something polished.
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https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/07/astros-talked-with-mets-about-jeff-mcneil-brett-baty-ronny-mauricio.html
And a few more names – McNeil being the best known
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The temp replacement for Paredes. with an extra year of control. Gave up a pitcher playing at low A Fayetteville. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/07/astros-to-acquire-ramon-urias.html
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A shift away from Cease to this guy! https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/07/astros-interested-in-sandy-alcantara.html
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Good morning. Seems to me the Astros had a pretty good day yesterday.
We took a series from an old NL rival. Some important guys hit. Yanier got his OPS over .700 for the first time in moons. Christian Walker has a .780 over the past month. Altuve is streaking again.
While the enemy lurks, we’ve still got a five game lead over both protagonists.
Jeremy Peña hit a homer last night and will likely be at shortstop in Boston tomorrow night.
The Reptil got in 64 pitches at Sugar Land. While not sharp, he looked comfortable and reached 95 a couple of times and averaged 93.5 with the four seamer, which is where he pretty much works.
Ramón Urías has joined the club and at least until 6:00 PM central when we’ll know for sure, looks to be a solid third base choice until we get Issac back next year. Excellent range. And he might like the Crawford Boxes after Camden Yards.
We’ll see what else happens on Deadline Day!
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Urias was the kind of deal I was expecting. It still keeps them under the cap this year as they will have just over 1M to pay him. I’m surprised that Baltimore dumped him for a 20 year old 19th rounder that no one heard of, but he hasn’t exactly torn the house down. He is definitely an upgrade over writing Zach Short’s name in the lineup card though.
Roughly 10 hours to go. I don’t know what the Astros could do. The targets in rumors are just other teams bad contracts in Alcantara and Correa. In a vacuum they are probably upgrades over Dubon playing every day and Jason Alexander making starts, but Alcantara makes 17M for another after this and Correa 31M a year for 3 after this. I can’t believe any GM would take those contracts. If I thought that Alcantara’s woes were just some bad luck and a few bad pitches, that would be one thing, but his fastball is down 2 ticks, his K rate was never great but has disappeared, the way he is walking people tells me he doesn’t trust his stuff anymore, all of this sounds familiar. We don’t need a second of those. Going over the cap for either of these, as nostalgic and fun Correa would be, seems like a poor decision. But it’s not my money, and Correa is not a terrible player to write in 3B everyday for the rest of the year.
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why would anyone want to take on Correa at this point and obligate yourself for all that $ for 3 years. What do you do when Paredes returns. Looks like somebody’s blowing smoke up our $&@?
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Palmer is one of those guys where if the walk rate comes down he could be pretty good. I think it’s a good move for Baltimore given how strong their system is and the fact that Urias goes to arbitration this winter where he’s going to end up getting, probably, $5M or more. I don’t hate the move for us, but it’s likely his production is around what I expected to get from Brendan Rodgers. He probably inspires more confidence in the pitching staff than a lot of our young guys would at least.
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Yeah interesting stuff overnight OP.
And the Mariners went and picked up Suarez.
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