What Did the Houston Astros Do Yesterday? Could the Atlanta Braves Benefit?

The Houston Astros made an uncharacteristically huge investment yesterday afternoon which would seem to open a huge door for the Atlanta Braves.  Even if so, don’t expect this to be an easy sell.

The Houston Astros just don’t spend a lot of money on players.  They were a bit shocked and having to scramble around a bit when Colby Rasmus opted to accept his $15 million Qualifying Offer over the winter.

So when it was announced that 32-year-old Cuban third baseman Yulieski Gurriel was to sign a 5 year contract for $47.5 million to play in Houston, that was noteworthy on multiple levels.

It was also confusing… even to seasoned Astro beat writers:

Braves’ fans knew exactly what to think… since (present company included) we’ll over-react to anything:  ballpark food fare, a subtle tweet from a player, handshakes in a Jimmy Johns store…anything.  We also want what we want:

Yeah, we’re kinda getting used to that.

Houston already has Carlos Correa at shortstop, Jose Altuve at second base – both positional studs.  So much so, that during the Futures Game last week, much of the broadcast discussion was spent in speculating that Houston’s #1 prospect Alex Bregman would soon move to third base in preparation for displacing Luis Valbuena in the majors.

The Gurriel signing would seem to throw an un-ironable wrinkle in than plan.

Plan B (for Bregman)

Once writer McTaggert got his bearings about him, he posited the opinion that Bregman would indeed be called up to the majors “within the next month or so”, giving A.J. Hinch another (needed) bat in their lineup.

He pointed out that Bregman is a “shortstop who can play third base, but don’t be surprised to see him in left field at some point as well.”

At the moment, the Astros depth chart shows the aforementioned Mr. Rasmus occupying that space.

Okay, McTaggert also suggested a DH possibility for Bregman.  Well, that’s even more odd, as that position is occupied by two large individuals:  Evan Gattis and A.J. Reed, the latter of whom is also playing 1st base on most nights.  Well, he could fill in here and there at second, short, third or… anywhere.  Seems a strange use for your best prospect, but okay.

The Astros do have an issue in Center Field – the center of their offensive need.  Carlos Gomez, 1 for his last 20 at the plate, is hitting just .214 on the year and striking out at a 31% rate.  Jake Marisnick is his backup, but he’s hitting .198…. but that’s one position Bregman cannot help them with.

Let me get back to that in a moment.

Territories Being Marked

Braves’ fans want to know this:  despite the chances of positional changes, does the Gurriel signing mean that Alex Bregman might be available?  Can he be the third baseman of the future for the Braves.

Short answer so far?  Nope.

Responses to that tweet from Astros fans suggest that they would bring the torches and pitchforks were that to happen.

There’s another factor to consider from the Astro point of view:  Left and Center Field.  Both Rasmus and Gomez will likely exit the club as free agents after this season.  Gomez because he wasn’t any good; Rasmus because they won’t want to pay him even half of that $15 million next year… even if he can return to his former position in Center Field (he’s been there increasingly sparingly since 2013).

So a Bregman-to-the-outfield scenario turns out to be more likely than you’d first imagine… even though he’s never played there in the minors.  Yes:  he’s hopelessly blocked in the infield, for Gurriel, Correa, and Altuve will be their skill players in the infield.  But after this season, the outfield does open up for him.

Anything Else?

Doubtful… but maybe.

Recall that a Center Fielder was needed in Houston for 2017.

Atlanta is still good with outfielders at the moment, but consider this for an off-season possibility:  could either Mallex Smith or Ender Inciarte be made available for a different bat that the Braves had once asked about?  That being RF George Springer?

Admittedly, it’s probably too late for this, as Springer has backed up up his solid 2015 with another good year and is becoming a stud in his own right (.262/.358/.479/.837 with 20 homers and a 3.0 fWAR).  He’s also producing the lion’s share of the OF offensive output.

So that ship may have already sailed.

The Astros are indeed looking for pitching help, but word is that they don’t believe there is anyone available that would justify flipping Bregman – not given what they believe Alex can bring them in terms of offensive firepower over the next six years.

Okay, that’s their prerogative.

I guess we’ll just have to settle for over-reacting to the inquiries of another Texas team instead:

Next: Not a Good Night

Just Saying.