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Which 15 Players Should The Astros Protect In An Expansion Draft?

By Tim Dierkes | May 19, 2020 at 6:30pm CDT

In a few weeks, we’ll be running a two-team mock expansion draft here at MLBTR.  Currently, we’re creating 15-player protected lists for each of the existing 30 teams.  You can catch up on the rules for player eligibility here.

So far, we’ve done the Twins, Royals, Tigers, Indians, White Sox, Rays, Yankees, Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Orioles.  The Astros are next.

We’ll start by removing free agents George Springer, Michael Brantley, Josh Reddick, Yuli Gurriel, and Brad Peacock from consideration.  Next, we’ll lock in Zack Greinke, Justin Verlander, and Jose Altuve due to their no-trade clauses.  We’ll also protect Forrest Whitley, as he’s a Baseball America Top 100 prospect with a 2020 ETA.  I’m also going to protect Alex Bregman, Yordan Alvarez, Carlos Correa, Roberto Osuna, Ryan Pressly, and Kyle Tucker.  So we’ll take up ten spots with this group:

Zack Greinke
Justin Verlander
Jose Altuve
Alex Bregman
Yordan Alvarez
Carlos Correa
Roberto Osuna
Ryan Pressly
Kyle Tucker
Forrest Whitley

That leaves five spots remaining for these 20 players:

Bryan Abreu
Rogelio Armenteros
Joe Biagini
Chris Devenski
Aledmys Diaz
Dustin Garneau
Josh James
Martin Maldonado
Francis Martes
Jack Mayfield
Lance McCullers Jr.
Cionel Perez
Austin Pruitt
Joe Smith
Cy Sneed
Myles Straw
Garrett Stubbs
Abraham Toro
Jose Urquidy
Framber Valdez

With that, we turn it over to the MLBTR readership! In the poll below (direct link here), select exactly five players you think the Astros should protect in our upcoming mock expansion draft. Click here to view the results.

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50 comments
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Comments

  1. acarneglia

    10 months ago

    They can hide whoever they can’t protect in the trash can

    11 Like
    Reply
  2. king beas

    10 months ago

    Need to protect the trash can at all costs

    7 Like
    Reply
    • hOsEbEeLiOn

      10 months ago

      And buzzers

      5 Like
      Reply
      • Eatdust666

        10 months ago

        And the camera men

        2 Like
        Reply
      • tward09

        10 months ago

        they never used buzzers

        1 Like
        Reply
        • hOsEbEeLiOn

          10 months ago

          Uh huh. Altuve really didnt want his jersey ripped off cause of a bad tattoo.

          Just like that Patriot employee who called himself the deflater really meant he was losing weight.

          I was born at night. Not last night.

          Seriously? You’ve got some blinders on if you think cheaters saying we didn’t cheat even more has merit.

          1 Like
          Reply
        • Redwood13

          9 months ago

          Altuve didn’t need to cheat either, 3 time batting champion 315 career batting average over 8 years. Like it or not he will be in the baseball hall of fame

          1 Like
          Reply
        • lsujedi

          9 months ago

          Only proof of buzzers ever given was a person posing as the relative of an Astros player. That person, obviously, was not actually related to the Astros player. I guess if you want to give credibility two other things they said, that’s on you.

          Like
          Reply
  3. jneumann

    10 months ago

    Garrett Stubbs,Lance McCullers for sure

    1 Like
    Reply
    • puhl

      10 months ago

      After the pitchers it came down to Stubbs and Straw for me. I chose Straw because of the speed and hit tool. He puts the ball in play. I’m not convinced yet the Stubbs is a big league catcher. You can always sign a catcher in free agency.

      1 Like
      Reply
      • tward09

        10 months ago

        straw also plays a ton of positions

        Like
        Reply
        • astros2017

          10 months ago

          Yea would definitely take Straw over Stubbs. Straw could be a regular next year if Springer and Brantley leave

          Like
          Reply
  4. mikevm3

    10 months ago

    Dustin Garneau five times

    Like
    Reply
  5. puhl

    10 months ago

    How in the hell could anyone vote to keep Devo over Abreu? Devo is almost done and Abreu has huge upside as a starter or a reliever. I’m keeping Abreu, James, LMJ, Urquidy and Straw.

    1 Like
    Reply
    • LaBalaDePlata

      10 months ago

      Those were the exact five I chose as well.

      Like
      Reply
      • boo rad

        10 months ago

        Dit. Keep the arms and add straw for his ridiculous, defense.

        Like
        Reply
      • itsgonnahappen

        10 months ago

        I chose Perez over Valdez but it’s a toss up IMO.

        Like
        Reply
  6. takeitback

    10 months ago

    I would leave Osuna unprotected. Due to his off field issues and the fact that he’s a closer, I doubt an expansion team would pick him up.

    Then I would protect Abreu, McCullers, James, Straw, Urquidy, and Toro.

    Like
    Reply
    • bluejays92

      10 months ago

      Why wouldn’t an expansion team pick him up if they could? At the very least they could immediately trade him and probably pick up a couple of decent prospects.

      Like
      Reply
      • kingcong95

        10 months ago

        Even if he was available via trade, who’d want him? Everyone knows what he did.

        1 Like
        Reply
        • Brandon Sans

          10 months ago

          The Astros traded for him.

          1 Like
          Reply
        • takeitback

          10 months ago

          When the Astros traded for him he had years of team control. He’s a FA after 2021 so that and his off-field issues are going to drive down the return. If there even is one.

          Like
          Reply
    • tward09

      10 months ago

      thats 6

      Like
      Reply
      • gibbs58

        10 months ago

        6 because he’s not keeping Osuna.

        Like
        Reply
  7. Phiilies2020

    10 months ago

    Urquidy, McCullers, Stubbs, Garneau, Abreu

    Like
    Reply
    • Phiilies2020

      10 months ago

      A lot of U’s in there

      1 Like
      Reply
      • DarkSide830

        10 months ago

        why on earth Garneau?

        Like
        Reply
        • tward09

          10 months ago

          why not straw?

          Like
          Reply
        • jungbongjovi

          10 months ago

          Dustin Garneau isn’t even a real player. That’s the unlicensed video game version of Justin Morneau.

          1 Like
          Reply
        • CalRipKincaide

          9 months ago

          Easily one of the funniest comments I’ve ever seen on this site.

          Like
          Reply
  8. jakeabbey05

    10 months ago

    Names I didn’t see on that list:
    Al Capone
    Jesse James
    John Dillinger
    John Gotti
    Vito Corleone
    Michael Corleone
    and Tony Soprano

    3 Like
    Reply
    • Eatdust666

      10 months ago

      Meanwhile, I did not see these names:
      Ted Bundy
      John Wick
      Richard Ramirez
      Adolf Hitler
      Attila the Hun
      El Chapo
      Pablo Escobar
      Gianni Nicchi
      Fred Flintstone
      Ricardo Diaz

      1 Like
      Reply
    • LouisianaAstros

      10 months ago

      Something that fits the region

      Jean Lafitte

      He was running things. Pirates over Gangsters.

      Houston to New Orleans always have a lot of gangsters anyway.
      Sam Maceo ran Galveston. Maceo played a huge part in creating Vegas

      Like
      Reply
  9. g4

    10 months ago

    This is the first time I’m 100% with the masses. Top 5 seem evident. Abreu, Toro, McCullers, Urquidy, James

    1 Like
    Reply
  10. DarkSide830

    10 months ago

    Armenteros, Perez, McCullers, and Urquidy for me. not sold on Abreu staying healthy and not being wild. Stubbs was a borderline one but his inconsistency also worries me.

    Like
    Reply
    • DarkSide830

      10 months ago

      oh its actually 5. guess i roll the dice on Abreu then

      Like
      Reply
    • hOsEbEeLiOn

      10 months ago

      You wanna be a gm man you gotta read the fine print.

      Like
      Reply
      • tward09

        10 months ago

        facts

        Like
        Reply
  11. Eatdust666

    10 months ago

    Abreu, James, McCullers, Stubbs, Urquidy

    Like
    Reply
  12. Peart of the game

    10 months ago

    Uruquidy, Sneed, Pruitt, Toro, and James for me.

    Like
    Reply
  13. AstrosWS20

    10 months ago

    I went with McCullers, James, Urquidy, Abreu and lastly Valdez. I considered Toro over Valdez and could easily have gone that way, but went with pitching. I truly don’t see how you can leave off any of the first four. Also Devenski doesn’t have many good years left so I have no idea why he has so many votes.

    Like
    Reply
  14. TJECK109

    10 months ago

    If the MLB really wanted a punishment they wouldn’t allow any protection by the team

    2 Like
    Reply
    • cecildawg

      10 months ago

      TJECK109? The whole team should be banned for life. Not one had courage to step outside the peer pressure and say ‘NO’. Gutless liars, cowards, and cheaters.
      Averaging 4million and wanting more. Wow. Explain that to the kids who adore those pigs.

      Like
      Reply
      • DarkSide830

        10 months ago

        “the kids” probably prefer watching good baseball to squabbling about how trustworthy certain players are.

        Like
        Reply
      • Redwood13

        10 months ago

        Guess your not a fan of all the steroid guys , even the one’s that weren’t caught that would cover almost every teams. Don’t throw stones in your glass house, every team has cheated at one tine. Astros may have cheated it was in home games (81 home games). The steroid guys cheated home and away games (162 games) for years. Players that wrote books admitting to steroid use and they’re in the hall of fame. Get off your high horse MLB players have been cheating for many years ALL TEAMS…

        1 Like
        Reply
  15. ndiamond2017

    10 months ago

    I think you have to weigh team control: I don’t think one season of Pressly is necessarily a slam dunk over multiple seasons of Abreu, James, etc. He’d probably still make my 15, though. Same goes for McCullers, although I think he’s more of a lock than Pressly, even coming back from TJ.

    I went with Abreu, James, McCullers, C. Perez, and Urquidy.

    Like
    Reply
  16. dylan

    10 months ago

    I picked 5, but in reality–it doesn’t matter. I wouldn’t lose sleep over any of them.

    Like
    Reply
  17. YakAttack

    10 months ago

    Toro

    Like
    Reply
  18. 13yearoldbaseballfanatic

    10 months ago

    McCullers, duh.
    James, duh.
    Urquidy, duh.
    Then it got tougher.
    I went with Toro, whom I think is a really solid piece and could slide in at first for Gurriel next year. I teetered between Straw and Abreu before finally selecting Straw. Abreu has control and health concerns and with Jake Marisnick shipped out the Trashtros need a fourth outfielder with speed and great defense.

    1 Like
    Reply
  19. asaw780

    10 months ago

    There are a lot of valuable assets, but to me 5 clearly stand out as easy keepers: Abreu, James, McCullers, Toro, and Urquidy.

    Like
    Reply

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