Just for fun, I decided to use my brain freeze on writing to test out something I have been curious about for a while. How would AI do in answering questions about the Astros’ past, present and future?
Some time back I had tried this just for grins, but AI kept doing silly stuff like talking about how Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman would be doing in the 2025 Astros’ lineup after they were already gone. They have improved a bit from what I’ve seen.
So, here are a few questions answered by AI….
Why did the Astros fall short of the 2025 playoffs?
The Houston Astros fell short of the 2025 playoffs due to a combination of factors, including injuries to key players and a lack of internal improvements. The team’s injury situation was particularly severe, with 26 injured players averaging 92.5 days on the injured list. This led to significant losses in both the lineup and rotation, which ultimately impacted the team’s performance. Additionally, the Astros’ decision-making, particularly regarding injuries and personnel moves, was criticized as detrimental to their playoff chances.
Dan P: Some of these points, like the number of injuries, are pretty obvious. I don’t really criticize the team about their decision making with injuries and personnel moves. I felt like they did the best that they could facing a tsunami of problems.
What moves should the Astros make before the 2026 season?
The Houston Astros should consider the following moves before the 2026 season:
Starting Pitching Depth: The team needs to bolster their starting pitching lineup, especially with the potential departure of left-hander Framber Valdez. They may look to trade for a new starter or sign free agents.
Catching Position: There is a need to improve the catching position. The Astros could consider re-signing switch-hitting catcher Victor Caratini or exploring other options to enhance their defensive capabilities.
Bullpen Upgrades: The bullpen may require upgrades to improve overall performance. The team could look to trade for relievers or sign new pitchers to strengthen their bullpen.
Trade Deadline Targets: The Astros might consider acquiring left-handed hitters to complement their lineup, as they currently have limited left-handed options.
These moves will help the Astros prepare for a competitive 2026 season.
Dan P: Mr. AI is the Master of the Obvious with these suggested moves, but at least they are not saying we need to go get a Shortstop or a DH.
Who should the astros non-tender for 2026 from their arbitration eligible players?
Based on the latest arbitration projections and roster analysis, the Houston Astros are facing a tough financial crunch heading into the 2026 season, with 16 arbitration-eligible players and a projected arbitration bill of over $66 million. Given their hefty commitments to stars like Altuve, Alvarez, Correa, and others, the front office will likely need to make some non-tender decisions to stay under budget.
Likely Non-Tender Candidates for 2026
Here are the most probable players the Astros could non-tender:
High-Risk Non-Tender Candidates
These players have relatively high projected salaries and/or performance concerns:
Jesús Sánchez – Projected $6.5M
Batting line: .199/.269/.342, OPS+ of 69
Underperformed after mid-season acquisition.
Mauricio Dubón – Projected $5.8M
Versatile but expensive for a utility role.
Luis Garcia – Projected $2.2M
Recovering from Tommy John surgery; uncertain availability.
Ramon Urias – Projected $4.4M
Trade deadline pickup; not a lock to return.
Borderline Candidates
These players could be non-tendered depending on internal evaluations and trade possibilities:
Jake Meyers – Projected $3.5M
Solid defender, but inconsistent bat.
Hayden Wesneski – Projected $1.5M
Also recovering from injury; depth starter.
Taylor Trammell – Projected $900K
Low salary but limited impact.
Safe from Non-Tender
These players are expected to be tendered contracts due to performance and future value:
Jeremy Peña – $7.9M
Hunter Brown – $5.7M
Isaac Paredes – $9.3M
Yainer Diaz – $4.5M
Bryan Abreu – $5.9M
All are key contributors and part of the team’s core.
Dan P: One thing I noticed is that this list does not include all the arb eligible players. Missing are Steven Okert, Bennett Sousa, Chas McCormick and Enyel De Los Santos. C’mon AI you are better than this. Or maybe not.
Should the Astros re-sign Framber Valdez?
The Houston Astros are likely to not re-sign Framber Valdez this offseason due to several factors:
Valdez has recently faced controversy, including a grand slam and a cross-up incident, which has raised concerns about his reliability.
The Astros have limited financial resources and may not be willing to offer him a significant contract, especially considering his age and market value.
Predictions suggest that the team might let him walk rather than pursue a long-term deal, as they have historically been cautious with their free agent signings.
Overall, while Valdez is a talented pitcher, the Astros’ decision-making process may lead them to part ways with him.
Dan P: But Mr. AI we want your opinion (which of course does not exist) about this. OK – you did say they are likely not to re-sign him, but still….
What starting pitchers should the Astros pursue before the 2026 season?
The Houston Astros are entering the 2025-26 offseason with a pressing need for starting pitching, especially with Framber Valdez likely departing in free agency and multiple arms recovering from injuries. Here are some of the top free agent starting pitchers they should consider targeting:
Top Free Agent Starting Pitchers Astros Could Pursue
1. Dylan Cease (Age 30)
2025 Stats: 4.55 ERA, 168 IP, 29.8% K rate
Upside: Electric stuff, durable, high strikeout potential
Fit for Astros: Could slot in as a top-of-the-rotation arm if he rebounds from a down year
2. Zac Gallen (Age 30)
2025 Stats: 13-15, 4.83 ERA, 192 IP
Upside: Former All-Star Game starter, workhorse
Fit for Astros: MLB insiders link him to Houston as a potential Valdez replacement
3. Chris Bassitt (Age 37)
2025 Stats: 3.96 ERA, 170.1 IP
Upside: Reliable veteran, no qualifying offer attached
Fit for Astros: Affordable short-term option to stabilize the rotation
4. Merrill Kelly (Age 37)
2025 Stats: 3.52 ERA, 184 IP
Upside: Durable, playoff experience, solid mid-rotation arm
Fit for Astros: Veteran presence with postseason pedigree
5. Tatsuya Imai (Age 28, NPB)
Upside: Youngest top-tier pitcher available, ace-level performance in Japan
Fit for Astros: High-upside international signing if they want to make a splash
Other Options (Trade Market)
If the Astros miss out on top free agents, they could explore trades for:
Mitch Keller (Pirates) – Durable, under contract through 2028
Sandy Alcantara (Marlins) – Former Cy Young winner, under team control for two more years
Strategic Considerations
Budget: Valdez is expected to command ~$30M/year, so signing someone like Cease or Gallen might be more cost-effective.
Injury Depth: With multiple pitchers recovering from UCL surgeries, Houston needs at least one durable starter.
Timeline: Astros want to contend again in 2026, so short-term reliability and postseason experience are key.
Dan P: Interesting folks on the list. Like most free agent years you get younger guys coming off poor seasons (because if they were coming off good seasons, their teams might have already extended them) or really old guys who might be running on empty or foreign guys, who might or might not be worth out-bidding other folks to get.
Your turn… would your lives be enriched with AI columns while Dan P clears his head or do you want your old Dan P back as soon as possible.
ALL THINGS ASTROS 
17 responses to “Astros by AI: A Report From The Robo-Dugout”
I was thinking about how the Astros would match up against the World Series competitors. The gut feeling is the way they were playing down the stretch they would never have gotten this far, but if they had they would have been smashed.
What is interesting is that the Astros played these guys tough during the season – though better early in the season.
They were 4-2 vs. Toronto. This included a 3-0 sweep at home in April and 1-2 at Toronto in September.
They were famously 3-0 against the Dodgers sweeping them in LA back in July which was the zenith for the Astros in 2025 as they moved to 20 games above .500 at 55-35 and were just 2 games out of the best record in baseball and of the AL behind the Tigers on July 6th.
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Obviously, arguing with people on the internet about sports topics is one of my primary hobbies. I do wonder how often I’m arguing with a chatbot. Where I’ve found the tools useful is in pulling information, but there are lots of problems. As an example, I wanted the number of times two particular running backs had gone for more than 10 yards on a carry over the last two seasons. ChatGPT, Google, and Copilot (which is just ChatGPT) all initially balked at giving me the answer because “that data is not publicly available.” However, after insulting the robot a little and telling them how to retrieve/parse the data I was able to get it from Copilot and as a bonus it even formatted it in a nice little chart with references to where the carries occurred. This represents an area where I’ve been far more successful than in using it for actual, paying work as simple tasks like displaying something in a pie chart so often produce illegible results that end up wasting my time. So, my suggestion is to let the tools help save you time pulling the data, but keep your own opinions.
I think the way the team fell apart tells us the real story of what would have happened in the postseason. They just didn’t have any gas in the tank. I think if they’d miraculously made it to the WS it would have played out like 2005. Then again, perhaps playing the hated Dodgers would have brought out the best in them.
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The one thing I wondered with the team is if they might have done better in the playoffs, because of more days off for travel and TV. But really the only way they would have gone anywhere is if Framber was good Framber. With Hunter and Good Framber at the front of the rotation they had a chance. Bad Framber not only would deal them losses, but also would demoralize the troops especially if they thought he just did not care.
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Just read they laid off the complete staff of the Crawfish Boxes.
We lost power at 3:30 this afternoon when a transformer blew. They had some additional problems and have to cut down a tree – they tell us we won’t have power for 4 more hours.
Thank goodness the cool weather finally got here.
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Hopefully, y’all can open some windows to enjoy the cool weather until the power is restored. I need to purchase a small window unit to run off the generator in the future as needed myself. Get that power up now for my friend!
I saw, earlier, where the writers might have been laid off. I didn’t know if that was true or false.
Thankfully, the writers, at this site, are up to snuff in their musings.
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Are you insinuating the same group that laid off TCB writers knocked down a tree onto your power lines to stop you from writing about the Astros? Manfred is onto us! He knows the Astros need to be stopped now before they reload for another dynastic run!
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Dan, I’ve been a lurker at The Crawfish Boxes for many years, but never made an account for various reasons. It looks like the good folks over there are looking for a new place to hang out, particularly on gamedays.
To the best of my knowledge, this blog is respected over there and I reckon they’d be happy to hop on over here if you gave the word.
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HH – welcome and thank you for the kind words. We used to link back and forth with the Crawfish Boil when they would link to us, but that stopped.
I could consider adding a gameday post for every game. The truth is this is my non-paying side “job” while I still work full time – so I can only devote so much time to that – but it might be a good idea and those folks would always be welcome over here. We think we have a fairly kind and cerebral blog here without the need to be cussing our heads off.
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Confession. When AI started making its initial appearance, I thought it was some guy named AL. For baseball, I’m not sure I require its assistance, as I know where to find most real stats, and Big Al has not caught up fully yet.
I wonder if the Crawfish site will become a bit more friendly, without contributors that feel the need to call players and manager trash, bleeping worthless, etc. I honestly did not know there were a batch of guys getting paid over there. My guess is that they were the more neighborly regular’s on that site. Some others were really obnoxious and indeed did not really understand the game itself very well either.
I’ve really enjoyed this post season of baseball and the kicker would be to have Toronto win the prize at home. Before the series started, more than 80% of the experts picked LA. But the Jays have out pitched, out hit and definitely played better defense than the Dodgers. And gosh they’ve been resilient.
As far as our Astros go, I was more optimistic as we approached the 2025 season than I am now. I’ve been trying to balance an unbalanced team and I’m just not coming up with enough solutions. We need help and health. Do we get it?
Sorry about the lights going out guys. I understand.
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Lights went out around 3 PM – came on at 10:07 PM – went out again at 10:17 PM – tried to come on around midnight – actually came on at 3 AM.
But….it fried a couple of our circuit breakers – so about half the condo was still dark. Got that fixed and now we are back in good shape.
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I guess I’ve been working in the engineering field too long, but this article makes no logical sense to me.
Astros Promote Connor Huff To Assistant GM – MLB Trade Rumors
The VP gets PROMOTED to Assistant GM?
Like the VP in the bank is now moved up to the head teller?
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Blue Jays were robbed in the ninth tonight. The umpires allowed the Dodgers to steal the game.
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It was a riveting series. I thought the Jays were going to figure out a way, but Yamamoto throwing 2.2 innings the day after his game 6 start? We’ve never seen that before. In the end, Toronto didn’t have enough clean innings late and they could not put together enough hits when they needed them.
At least now we can get back to the business of baseball team building.
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Wow. The Dodgers have now been involved in the three most memorable WS, in my opinion, of my lifetime. This time it showed more than anything else just how much baseball is a game of inches. The Jays are going to spend all offseason thinking about their baserunning.
It wouldn’t be in character for me not to gripe. The Dodgers had a couple players who only they had a chance to sign among all the teams in baseball. Yamamoto just put together a performance for the ages, but their role players brought it home. Tommy Edman saved a game for them with his defense. He’s getting payed a ton of money…like $11M this year and $13M the next three to be Mauricio Dubon. Bieber got two really quick outs last night and then threw two uncompetitive pitches to Will Smith who you had to expect was taking at least the first one. He then grooves one and the rest is history.
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Yeah, I did not see the angle last night of Kiner-Falefa at third before the one out grounder to Rojas at second. He had a very short lead and he did not take off as soon as it was apparent the ball was a grounder. If asked, I think he’d say he should have scored. And obviously, there were other base running issues. The Jays played really good baseball all series long. Just a couple of lapses. They played about 60 innings in that series. And it came down to not executing a couple of plays.
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Texans’ football… I feel that if the club misses the playoffs, this season, then Nick Casario will be released. He should have drafted offensive linemen in the first round of the last two drafts. Oh! That’s right, the Texans did not have a first round choice the past two drafts.
I saw a “way to early” power ranking article today, ranking the Astros near the bottom.
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Good morning Sarge, and everyone else. I watched more post season baseball these past few weeks than I ever have, including when the Astros were in the mix.
It’s pretty clear to me that in comparison to most all the teams playing in October, we’re just not all that competitive right now. And the minor league system remains compromised. In 2020 the farm was rated at the bottom of the league by most all sources. We’re still there 2025. At the major league level, we’ve got too many guys that play the same position or don’t play any position. We’re unbalanced with too many righty hitters. This is an issue that has gone on for too long. And lot’s of pitching questions, especially with the rotation and in the pen too, if Hader can’t show up and be healthy.
I’m sure Dan will get us jump started today or tomorrow. How do we get younger and more athletic on what seems to be a pretty tight budget? My concern is that unless the club makes some difficult, even shocking decisions, we’re going to be looking at a challenged team indefinitely.
It’s also got to be a tough time for Dana Brown and Joe Espada. They are obviously on the clock. Dana has a new assistant GM. Was Huff his pick? Did Joe pick his replacement coaches?
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