Headlines

  • Rangers Option Josh Jung
  • Kevin Pillar Announces Retirement
  • Braves Place Spencer Schwellenbach On IL With Elbow Fracture
  • Braves Designate Alex Verdugo For Assignment
  • Giants Exercise 2026 Option On Manager Bob Melvin
  • Yordan Alvarez Shut Down Due To Setback With Hand Injury
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Rumors

MLB Trade Rumors

Remove Ads
  • Home
  • Teams
    • AL East
      • Baltimore Orioles
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Yankees
      • Tampa Bay Rays
      • Toronto Blue Jays
    • AL Central
      • Chicago White Sox
      • Cleveland Guardians
      • Detroit Tigers
      • Kansas City Royals
      • Minnesota Twins
    • AL West
      • Houston Astros
      • Los Angeles Angels
      • Oakland Athletics
      • Seattle Mariners
      • Texas Rangers
    • NL East
      • Atlanta Braves
      • Miami Marlins
      • New York Mets
      • Philadelphia Phillies
      • Washington Nationals
    • NL Central
      • Chicago Cubs
      • Cincinnati Reds
      • Milwaukee Brewers
      • Pittsburgh Pirates
      • St. Louis Cardinals
    • NL West
      • Arizona Diamondbacks
      • Colorado Rockies
      • Los Angeles Dodgers
      • San Diego Padres
      • San Francisco Giants
  • About
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Tim Dierkes
    • Writing team
    • Advertise
    • Archives
  • Contact
  • Tools
    • 2025 Trade Deadline Outlook Series
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Agency Database
  • NBA/NFL/NHL
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • App
  • Chats
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Let’s Talk Astros Fire Sale

By Tim Dierkes | June 28, 2007 at 11:05pm CDT

A reader pointed out to me that the Astros are out of contention, and can’t possibly think they’re just a player or two away.  I hadn’t noticed how far back Houston has already fallen.  Every simulation I can find gives the Astros less than a 1% chance of making the playoffs.

The big three – Carlos Lee, Lance Berkman, and Roy Oswalt – those guys are obviously staying put.  That’s about $40 mil on the books for ’08 right there.

Next we get to Woody Williams, who is unfortunately signed through 2008.  Williams and his 4.67 K/9 won’t help any American League team.  With a 5.58 ERA, durability questions, and a home run problem, Williams has very little trade value.  And he’s making $6.25MM in ’08, at which point he will be 41.  Yikes.

Then there’s Jason Jennings, earning $5.5MM this year.  The Rockies clearly got the better end of that trade, but it was a "win now" move by Tim Purpura.  Jennings needs to prove his health over the next couple of weeks, and then he’ll become the Astros’ best trading chip.  He’s dealt with shoulder and elbow tendinitis this year, but Jennings is a bulldog.  Could Purpura pry away an Andy LaRoche for him?  Maybe not, as Ned Colletti wouldn’t want to get burned by an injury again so quickly.  Not sure what the Phillies would spare, and the Astros don’t really have a spot for Mariner right field prospect Wladimir Balentien.  But this is a situation to monitor.

Perhaps Jennings could be packaged with Brad Lidge and sent to the Phillies for one truly good prospect.  Lidge is recovering from an oblique issue, but was on a nice run prior to that.  Despite his struggles over the last couple of years, Lidge’s skills will put him in high demand.  He’s got the name value that Dan Wheeler and Chad Qualls don’t, and he should be the one to go.  I could rattle off ten teams that could use a guy like Lidge.

Morgan Ensberg is expendable; his bat has been anemic this year.  Maybe a fresh start and regular playing time would help him return to his 25 HR days.  He’s controlled through 2008.  The Twins, Phillies, and Giants seem like options, and Ensberg shouldn’t cost much.

Brad Ausmus will be a free agent after this year; his .335 OBP isn’t terrible for a catcher.  I’d suggest the Cubs but I think they really want to try Rob Bowen.

Mike Lamb is a free agent after the season, and he’s quietly hit pretty well for the past couple of years.  Again, the Twins or Phillies could snag him.  It’d be a very Twins-esque move.  The Yankees could jump in and get him for first base; he’d be better than Shea Hillenbrand.

Mark Loretta is hitting .322 and would be a nice versatile guy to bring along to the playoffs.  Maybe the Braves would have a look if Yunel Escobar tails off in July and Kelly Johnson doesn’t recover.

Dan Wheeler could turn out to be a nice buy low; he’s had a a run of success prior to this year and his peripherals still aren’t bad.  Plus he’s controlled through ’08.  Trever Miller’s been awful as the lefty specialist, but maybe a new team could fix his control problem and get something out of him.   

Jason Lane is another good low-risk type acquisition.  He’s trying to recover his stroke in Triple A currently. The White Sox should go after him.

Share 0 Retweet 0 Send via email0

Houston Astros

Forgotten Trade Candidates
Main
Gagne/Otsuka Suitors
View Comments (0)
Post a Comment

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Rangers Option Josh Jung

    Kevin Pillar Announces Retirement

    Braves Place Spencer Schwellenbach On IL With Elbow Fracture

    Braves Designate Alex Verdugo For Assignment

    Giants Exercise 2026 Option On Manager Bob Melvin

    Yordan Alvarez Shut Down Due To Setback With Hand Injury

    Astros Place Jeremy Peña On Injured List With Fractured Rib

    Tucker Barnhart To Retire

    Tyler Mahle To Be Sidelined Beyond Trade Deadline

    Reds Release Jeimer Candelario

    Dave Parker Passes Away

    Griffin Canning Diagnosed With Ruptured Achilles

    Pirates Reportedly Have Very Few Untouchable Players At Trade Deadline

    Griffin Canning Believed To Have Suffered Achilles Injury

    Mariners Looking For Corner Infield Bats; Ownership Willing To Bump Payroll

    Wander Franco Found Guilty Of Sexual Abuse

    Mariners Place Rowdy Tellez On Release Waivers

    Max Meyer To Undergo Season-Ending Hip Surgery

    Whit Merrifield Announces Retirement

    White Sox Sign Noah Syndergaard To Minor League Deal

    Recent

    D-Backs, Seth Brown Agree To Deal

    D-Backs GM Mike Hazen Discusses Deadline Possibilities

    Orioles Sign Jose Barrero To Minor League Deal

    Zach Pop Elects Free Agency

    MLB Announces 2025 All-Star Starting Hitters

    MLB Mailbag: Braves, Cubs, Sasaki, Angels, Volpe

    Diamondbacks Designate Kyle Nelson For Assignment

    Trade Deadline Outlook: Washington Nationals

    Astros Select Zack Short

    Rangers Option Josh Jung

    MLBTR Newsletter - Hot stove highlights in your inbox, five days a week

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • Sandy Alcantara Rumors
    • Luis Robert Rumors
    • Alex Bregman Rumors

     

    Trade Rumors App for iOS and Android App Store Google Play

    MLBTR Features

    MLBTR Features

    • Remove Ads, Support Our Writers
    • Front Office Originals
    • Front Office Fantasy Baseball
    • MLBTR Podcast
    • Trade Deadline Outlook Series
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Agency Database
    • MLBTR On Twitter
    • MLBTR On Facebook
    • Team Facebook Pages
    • How To Set Up Notifications For Breaking News
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors

    Rumors By Team

    • Angels Rumors
    • Astros Rumors
    • Athletics Rumors
    • Blue Jays Rumors
    • Braves Rumors
    • Brewers Rumors
    • Cardinals Rumors
    • Cubs Rumors
    • Diamondbacks Rumors
    • Dodgers Rumors
    • Giants Rumors
    • Guardians Rumors
    • Mariners Rumors
    • Marlins Rumors
    • Mets Rumors
    • Nationals Rumors
    • Orioles Rumors
    • Padres Rumors
    • Phillies Rumors
    • Pirates Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Rays Rumors
    • Red Sox Rumors
    • Reds Rumors
    • Rockies Rumors
    • Royals Rumors
    • Tigers Rumors
    • Twins Rumors
    • White Sox Rumors
    • Yankees Rumors

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives
    • RSS/Twitter Feeds By Team

    MLBTR INFO

    • Advertise
    • About
    • Commenting Policy
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

    Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

    hide arrows scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version