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Astros Notes: Correa, Tucker

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Before Carlos Correa signed with the Twins, there was some increased buzz that Correa could be staying with the Astros, as Houston was reportedly working on a new contract offer and owner Jim Crane was getting involved in talks.  However, in the aftermath of Correa’s departure, The Houston Chronicle’s Chandler Rome hears from two sources that “the Astros were not close to reuniting with their shortstop.”

In fact, the Astros didn’t even make a new offer.  According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, the Astros “did not budge from” the five-year, $160MM deal the club offered Correa just prior to the opening of the free agent market in November.  The exact level of these latest talks between Correa and the Astros aren’t known, but Rome wonders why the team didn’t explore a contract similar to the three-year, $105.3MM pact (with two player opt-outs) that Correa landed from Minnesota, or if such a deal simply wasn’t of interest to the Astros.

  • In other Astros news, Kyle Tucker told Chandler Rome (Twitter link) that the team had yet to start any talks about a contract extension.  There isn’t necessarily any rush for the Astros, as Tucker is still a pre-arbitration player and isn’t eligible for free agency until the 2025-26 offseason.  Still, Tucker has been excellent over his two full seasons as an everyday player, and extending him now could help Houston get some cost-certainty over what projects to be some pricey arbitration-eligible seasons for the outfielder.

Latest On Trevor Story

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The Rangers are one of the latest clubs to be linked with free agent shortstop Trevor Story, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. On the surface, it might seem rather absurd that either the Rangers or Story would entertain a union. The Rangers, after all, have already signed two of the top free agent shortstops on the market in Corey Seager and Marcus Semien.

But the Rangers have a hole at third base right now, and if Story is indeed willing to entertain a position change and/or a short-term contract, which is the latest, then Story’s fit with in Texas is actually much smoother than it seems at first glance. Even if Story isn’t the target, the Rangers are known to be on the lookout for a third baseman, going so far as to approach the recently-retired Kyle Seager about the possibility of playing along his younger brother in Texas. Seager the elder kindly declined, the offer, however, per Jon Heyman of the MLB Network (via Twitter).

Beyond Story, there aren’t a lot of options left in free agency for the Rangers to add a third baseman. The players available – Jed Lowrie, Asdrubal Cabrera, Starlin Castro, Todd Frazier – are veterans who don’t necessarily upgrade on Texas’ in-house options. Right now, the Rangers would field a third base by committee approach while awaiting the arrival and good health of prospect Josh Jung. Even though he’s injured, Jung’s presence means that the Rangers might only be interested in securing Story if they can do so with a very short-term deal.

Without Story, Andy Ibanez, Nick Solak, and Brad Miller are all candidates to get regular playing time at the hot corner. The Rangers also recently signed Matt Carpenter and Charlie Culberson to minor league deals.

If the Rangers were to end up signing Story, it would be a fairly remarkable sequence events, not only because it would mean a 102-loss team signing three of the top free agent shortstops in a single offseason, but because of the sequence of events that have led the Rangers and Story to a place where this could even be possible.

It wasn’t long ago that the Rangers had Isiah Kiner-Falefa ready to return to the hot corner to be their regular third baseman. But when the Rangers traded Kiner-Falefa to the Twins for catcher Mitch Garver, the machinations of the offseason really kicked into high gear. Kiner-Falefa ended up as the Yankees’ pick at shortstop (at least for now), which opened up shortstop again in Minnesota, improbably, for a short-term pact with Carlos Correa. If Story is willing to take a deal similar in style to Correa’s, the Rangers could swoop in and be the beneficiary.

Of course, they’re not the only team with interest. The Yankees themselves have recently been tied to Story as well, despite their recent acquisition of Kiner-Falefa and Josh Donaldson. The Red Sox are also lurking, though like the Rangers, they’d ask Story to move off his preferred position.

Heyman suggests that the Yankees and Astros “likely have an edge” to sign Story because they would allow him to remain at shortstop. The Yankees had reportedly discussed a four-year contract with Correa that included opt-outs before he signed with Minnesota, per Andy Martino of SNY (via Twitter). A similar contract structure might be enough to reel in Story, assuming a more modest AAV. Story won’t come cheap, but he’ll be cheaper than Correa, which seems to be fueling the Yankees’ interest. All that said, it’s a bit of an overcrowded fit, with Anthony Rizzo now penciled in at first base, Giancarlo Stanton locking down the DH spot, and Gleyber Torres, Kiner-Falefa, and Donaldson already potentially cutting into DJ LeMahieu’s playing time.

The Rockies made one last call to Story before inking Kris Bryant, per The Athletic’s Nick Groke, but that door appears to be closed. From the same division, the Giants are the other team that have been mentioned as a potential suitor for Story. The Giants have Brandon Crawford at short, Evan Longoria at third, and Tommy La Stella at second, a trio that would certainly make room for Story, should that be his ultimate landing spot.

Latest On Carlos Correa’s Market

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Carlos Correa remains on the free agent market, as possible suitors like the Yankees, Phillies, Tigers and Rangers have all seemingly decided not to make a serious run at him this offseason. With less than three weeks to go before Opening Day, a resolution on the Correa front seems likely to arrive sooner than later.

The incumbent Astros haven’t abandoned their pursuit. Houston’s initial five-year, $160MM offer to Correa early in the offseason never seemed especially tempting for the star shortstop. Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic tweeted earlier this week the Astros were preparing a new offer, noting that players in Houston camp were palpably excited about the possibility the team could bring him back.

Asked about the chances of re-upping Correa this morning, Astros GM James Click demurred (video link from Jason Bristol of KHOU). “It’s not something we’re going to comment on one way or the other,” he said before noting that the recent signing of Niko Goodrum strengthened the club’s overall infield depth. Houston also has veteran Aledmys Díaz and top prospect Jeremy Peña as possible options if Correa heads elsewhere. Skipper Dusty Baker called Peña “the frontrunner” among the in-house players at the position this week (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle).

Former Astros scouting director Mike Elias — an instrumental factor in Houston’s decision to select Correa first overall in the 2012 draft — is now running baseball operations with the Orioles. That has led to some speculation the rebuilding O’s could get into the mix for the two-time All-Star. There hadn’t previously been any firm indication Baltimore was considering such a move, but Rosenthal wrote last night the O’s could contemplate a run at Correa “if his price dropped to a level the club deemed appropriate.”

That’d require a change in tone from Elias’ comments earlier this week, when he said he didn’t anticipate the Orioles signing any players to multi-year contracts. Making an exception for Correa, though, makes some sense. Beyond Elias’ personal familiarity with the shortstop, Correa’s young enough to anchor whatever core with which the O’s emerge from their rebuild. He’s only 27 years old, and while Correa wouldn’t single-handedly make Baltimore a contender this year, he’d presumably remain an excellent player during 2023-24 campaigns when the O’s expect to be competitive.

Correa to Baltimore remains a long shot, and the caveat that it may require his asking price falling is a notable one. Still, Raul Ramos of Con Las Bases Llenas linked the O’s with Correa before Rosenthal’s report, writing the club may even had put an offer on the table. There’ll certainly be more clarity on Correa’s eventual destination fairly soon, particularly with the other star free agent option at the position, Trevor Story, reportedly nearing a decision.

Lance McCullers Jr. To Miss Start Of 2022 Season

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Astros pitcher Lance McCullers Jr. is set to start the 2022 season on the IL, he told reporters (including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart). The right-handed pitcher continues to rehab the flexor tendon in his pitching arm that was injured during last year’s playoffs. Surgery does not appear to be in the cards at this time, and McCullers stressed he’s not dealing with a UCL issue (via Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle).

While it’s still uncertain when McCullers will be able to return atop Houston’s rotation— currently he’s not even cleared to throw— Astros brass and fans should be encouraged by the news that their pitcher has not been recommended to head down the surgical route. The 28-year-old was already known to be behind in his recovery, with MLB’s lockout disrupting that recovery process, but there was still some ambiguity about the status of the player’s health.

Fortunately, several doctors have confirmed that the 2018 Tommy John recipient has not re-injured his UCL and instead have advised non-surgical PRP injections and stem cell therapy to treat the ailing tendon. This course of action is certainly preferable to a season-derailing surgery, though it still serves as an inauspicious beginning to the $85MM extension agreed upon by player and team early last year. Even with continued rehab progress and no further setbacks, McTaggart writes that McCullers figures to be out of commission “well into April,” owing to a need to build up the starter’s pitch count.

Houston will be hard-pressed to fill the shoes of their #2 pitcher behind veteran ace Justin Verlander, as the righty posted a stout 3.16 ERA and 27.1 K% across 162 plus innings last year. Difficult as that production may be to replace however, the Astros have a stable of arms who showed ample promise in the big leagues last year. Assuming good health, each of José Urquidy, Framber Valdez, Luis Garcia, Cristian Javier and veteran Jake Odorizzi should do an adequate job holding down the fort until the homegrown McCullers is ready to take the hill again.

Should Houston’s top decision-makers go the way of other teams in recent days and add to their rotation depth, they will likely have the means to do so. Thanks to the new CBA, the Astros have more than $33MM to spend before hitting the first luxury tax threshold in the eyes of RosterResource, and none of the remaining pitchers on the free agent market figure to be too cost prohibitive. It remains to be seen if a deal with more Major League pitching is even on Houston’s radar, particularly if rumblings of a Carlos Correa reunion add another large salary to the books, but the Astros appear capable of weathering McCullers’ absence regardless of how the next few weeks unfold.

Astros Sign Zac Rosscup To Minors Deal

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The Astros have announced that they have signed left-hander Zac Rosscup to a minor league deal with an invitation to Major League Spring Training.

Rosscup, 34 in June, has seen sporadic MLB action in seven of the last nine MLB seasons. Though he has 86 2/3 career innings on his ledger, he’s never gone as high as 27 in any individual season and only logged three total MLB innings over the past two years. His career ERA of 5.09 comes with an excellent 29.3% strikeout rate but frightening 14% walk rate. In 29 Triple-A innings for the Rockies last year, he put up an ERA of 2.48, 33.1% strikeout rate and 11.3% walk rate.

As a southpaw, Rosscup is generally more effective against lefties, holding them to a paltry line of .155/.296/.297 in his MLB career. Righties, however, have produced a much more robust sample of .330/.413/.607. Given that wide split, the Astros will surely try to deploy him strategically in a way where he faces as few righties as possible. However, with the recent implementation of the three-batter minimum, that might not always be possible.

Houston’s roster is quite strong overall but the lack of lefty hurlers is one weak element of it. Framber Valdez will be in the starting rotation. Jonathan Bermudez was added to the 40-man roster a few months ago but has no MLB experience and will likely be in the minors. That leaves Blake Taylor as the only southpaw projected to be in the club’s Opening Day bullpen. If they don’t make any further additions in the next few weeks, there could be a path for Rosscup to earn his way back to the show.

Astros Step Up Efforts To Re-Sign Carlos Correa

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MARCH 15: Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic says that the Astros plan on making Correa a new offer “shortly.” He adds that the rumors are “creating buzz in camp” and quotes a source as saying “Players can’t stop talking about it.”

MARCH 14: The Astros “have stepped up efforts to bring back Correa to the point where owner team owner Jim Crane is involved,” according to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman.  Late Sunday, the door seemingly closed on the Yankees (if it was ever open), as they acquired Isiah Kiner-Falefa from the Twins.  Late Sunday, Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic speculated about whether Correa could choose to sign a record AAV one-year deal this month, concluding “the idea is not necessarily far-fetched.”

MARCH 13: In another update, Crane tells Mark Berman that the Astros are “in discussions” with Correa’s representatives.

MARCH 11: Free agency is back, and the still-unsigned Carlos Correa will return to the forefront of the market as he angles for a contract north of the 10-year, $325MM deal Corey Seager signed in Texas prior to the lockout. Correa’s former team, the Astros, has yet to completely move on from the possibility of keeping him in Houston. Owner Jim Crane told Mark Berman of FOX 26 in Houston last night that the team plans to circle back to Correa now that the market has reopened (Twitter link).

“I’m sure we’ll engage one more time and we’ll see what happens,” says Crane. “Carlos is a great player. He’s a one-of-a-kind player. I thought we made a good offer before. We’ll see where they’re at on their side. I’m sure we’ll talk to them shortly.”

The prior offer referenced by Crane was reported by Berman back in November to be five years and $160MM — a hefty sum but one that always felt well shy of where Correa’s eventual payday would land. Correa has already reportedly received and rejected a 10-year, $275MM offer from the Tigers, which only serves to underscore the manner in which the ’Stros would need to substantially alter their own proposal in order to keep him in the fold.

On the subject of that Tigers offer, which came prior to Detroit’s eventual signing of Javier Baez, MLB.com’s Jon Morosi adds some additional context. Detroit not only put forth a guaranteed $275MM sum but also included three opt-out clauses over the life of the deal, in addition to an annual bonus of $10MM for finishing in the top five of MVP voting. Correa’s sights have been more focused on topping Seager and possibly on topping Francisco Lindor’s $341MM guarantee with the Mets, however. He reportedly sought $330MM or more prior to the lockout.

There’s been some speculation that, in light of a sizable offer from the Tigers, perhaps Detroit could follow the Rangers’ lead and ultimately sign two of the market’s top shortstops this winter. Baez has plenty of experience at second base and third base, and the Tigers’ payroll is largely free and clear once Miguel Cabrera plays out the final two years of his current deal. Baez and fellow offseason signee Eduardo Rodriguez are the only players on the books in 2024 and beyond, and it’s possible that even Baez won’t be around by that point. His contract contains an opt-out clause after the 2023 season.

However, The Athletic’s Jim Bowden reports that Tigers owner Chris Ilitch is not comfortable with another contract of that magnitude hitting the books, which throws some cold water on the possibility of a Baez/Correa double-play tandem. That’s a particularly unsurprising revelation in light of this week’s report that Ilitch was one of four owners who initially voted against even raising the league’s proposed luxury-tax threshold to $220MM. (It eventually landed at $230MM in 2022, and it should be noted that the new CBA was ultimately unanimously approved among the 30 owners.)

Morosi indicates within his column that the Cubs are expected to be among the prominent players for Correa, as they already had plenty of dialogue with his camp prior to the lockout. Of course, Correa switched representation and enlisted the Boras Corporation to represent him during the lockout, so much of that groundwork may need to be redone. The Cubs, like the Tigers, have ample payroll space and could stand to upgrade at shortstop.

Signing Correa, though, wouldn’t really mesh with president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer’s early comments on Chicago’s offseason trajectory. Hoyer dubbed pitching to be the team’s primary focus — the Cubs have since added Wade Miley and Marcus Stroman — and also preached the importance of “spending intelligently.” Generally, Hoyer struck a measured tone when discussing offseason spending. The Stroman contract illustrates that this isn’t a Cubs team looking to completely tear down and tank for multiple years as it did in the run-up to 2016’s World Series crown, but there’s a pronounced difference between signing Stroman on a three-year term and shelling out the decade-long deal and $33MM+ annual salary that Correa is hoping to command.

Astros Sign Lewis Brinson To Minors Deal

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Outfielder Lewis Brinson signed a minor league contract with the Astros, and he has joined the club in camp as a non-roster invitee, per Michael Schwab of The Schwabcast (via Twitter). GM James Click confirmed the signing to a number of reporters this morning, including Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle (via Twitter).

Brinson has long been a tantalizing talent because of his off-the-page athleticism, but the potential has not translated to on-field results for the 27-year-old outfielder. Brinson slashed just .226/.263/.376 over 290 plate appearances with the Marlins last season. It was his fourth year in Miami since being one of the premier pieces in the deal that sent Christian Yelich to Milwaukee.

Over his four seasons with the Marlins, Brinson posed an overall triple-slash line of .203/.248/.325 over a not-insignificant 1,056 plate appearance. Brinson appeared in no less than 75 games for a full-length season over that time with Miami, appearing in 47 of the 60 games in 2020 as well. He will now have to fight for a roster spot with the Astros.

Houston has the relatively unproven Chas McCormick in center, though he performed well enough last year to all but guarantee himself the starting role this year. Jose Siri is also on hand as a spare outfielder, and infielders Aledmys Diaz and Niko Goodrum can also man the grass. Jake Meyers had a productive season last year and would be in the running for playing time were it not for the torn labrum suffered at the end of last season.

Astros Sign Niko Goodrum

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The Astros are signing Niko Goodrum to a one-year, $2.1MM deal, reports Jon Heyman of the MLB Network (Twitter link). The deal also contains possible incentives. Goodrum is a client of Roc Nation Sports.

Goodrum, who turned 30 last month, has spent the past four seasons with the Tigers. He actually debuted as a September call-up with the Twins in 2017, but he was quickly outrighted off Minnesota’s roster and elected minor league free agency. He hooked on with Detroit that offseason, and he almost immediately played his way into a regular role there.

The lefty-hitting utilityman bounced around the diamond in 2018, seeing a fair bit of action at both middle infield positions, third base and in the corner outfield. Goodrum earned a career-high 492 plate appearances that year with a league average .245/.315/.432 showing at the plate. He hit 16 home runs and stole 12 bags. The Georgia native mostly that backed that solid showing up the following year, hitting .248/.322/.421 in 472 trips to the dish.

Goodrum at least looked to be emerging as a high-end utility option for Detroit, and it seemed he might carve out a role as the long-term answer at shortstop. Even during his two best seasons, he had an alarming strikeout rate though, and swing-and-miss concerns have particularly mounted over the past couple years. Goodrum punched out in an untenable 38.5% of his trips to the plate during the shortened 2020 season, stumbling to a .184/.263/.335 line. His 2021 numbers were a bit better, but a .214/.292/.359 line with a 32.9% strikeout rate marked his second consecutive below-average campaign.

On the heels of the down seasons, the Tigers non-tendered Goodrum in November. He’d been projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a $2.9MM arbitration salary that Detroit felt a bit lofty. Goodrum’s deal with the Astros won’t guarantee him quite as much, but he’ll land a roster spot with an immediate contender. He might have a path to regular playing time at shortstop, at least early in the season.

The Astros have seen Carlos Correa hit free agency, leaving Aledmys Díaz as the top in-house option at shortstop. Díaz has a superior offensive track record to Goodrum, but he’s rated as a below-average defender at shortstop throughout his career. Top prospect Jeremy Peña figures to take the position over at some point soon, but he was limited to 133 Triple-A plate appearances by injury last season. Peña should immediately be a strong defensive option when he’s big league ready, but the presence of Díaz and Goodrum give the win-now Astros some cover in the event he doesn’t hit the ground running at the plate.

Goodrum has four-plus years of big league service time. The Astros could keep him around via arbitration in 2023 if he turns things around offensively and the club feels he warrants a raise via that process.

West Notes: Alvarez, Fulmer, Dodgers, Pint, Rockies, Perez, Astros

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Right-hander Yadier Alvarez is in camp with the Dodgers, tweets Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register. Alvarez was once a highly-touted prospect, with the Dodgers giving him a $16MM signing bonus in 2015 and Baseball America ranking him as the 26th prospect across the league in 2017. Despite being selected to the team’s 40-man roster prior to the 2019 season, there were concerns with his lack of control. In 2018, he pitched 48 1/3 innings at Double-A with an excellent 30% strikeout rate but a ghastly 20% walk rate.

In 2019, injuries limited him to just 3 2/3 Double-A innings and he was designated for assignment in March of 2020, eventually clearing waivers and being outrighted to the minors. Of course, the pandemic wiped out the minor leagues that year and Alvarez was only able to throw 3 2/3 Arizona Complex League innings in 2021. Despite all of those ups and downs, Alvarez is still relatively young, turning 26 on Tuesday. One silver lining of losing his roster spot two years ago is that he is not affected by the ongoing lockout, giving him a chance to show the Dodgers’ brass that he still has something to offer.

Another hurler looking for a bounceback with the Dodgers is Carson Fulmer, whom the club selected from the Reds in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 draft in December. Originally selected 8th overall by the White Sox in the 2015 draft, Fulmer also cracked Baseball America’s Top 100, coming in at #70 in 2016. However, he has struggled to establish himself in the majors, putting up a walk rate above 10% in each of the past six seasons. After bouncing around the waiver wire multiple times in recent years, he eventually cleared waivers in May of 2021. Plunkett spoke to the 28-year-old, who credits his former Vanderbilt teammate Walker Buehler with his current opportunity. “I think that he had chirped at the front office a little bit and tried to get me over here,” Fulmer joked. “He was excited (when the Dodgers acquired Fulmer). At the end of the day, he knows what I’m capable of. He just wanted me to be in the right place, the right situation.” Much like Alvarez, the loss of his roster spot gives Fulmer the benefit of participating in Spring Training and the upcoming minor league season, despite the lockout.

More news from teams in the west…

  • Much like Alvarez and Fulmer, Riley Pint was a highly-touted youngster who dealt with control issues. Selected by the Rockies with the fourth overall pick in the 2016 draft, Pint eventually cracked Baseball America’s Top 100 list at #46 in 2017. But from that point on, his stock continued dropping due to the aforementioned control problems. In 2021, he pitched 10 2/3 innings at High-A with an incredible 34.7% strikeout rate but and inflated 20.4% walk rate. That’s a small sample, of course, but largely indicative of his body of work in the minors. Pint retired in June of last year but has now un-retired, as reported by Thomas Harding of MLB.com. “Everybody is on his own time frame. I always love seeing the kid,” says Rockies player development director Chris Forbes “He’s a fantastic kid. I’m glad to see him back.” Pint just turned 24 in November, meaning there’s plenty of time for him to rebuild his stock in the game if he can get back on track and improve his control.
  • The ongoing lockout carries negative consequences for every player in the union, but among those with the potential to be most affected are those who have earned 40-man roster spots but were likely to spend this year in the minors. With Spring Training and the regular season both now delayed, they are losing crucial development time, along with losing access to team trainers and development staff. Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle spoke to some Astros’ prospects who were recently added to the team’s roster but were then locked out almost immediately after. This includes a surreal story of an absent-minded coach texting infielder Joe Perez, looking for a status update, with Perez having to politely remind the team employee that he’s not allowed to respond. “It’s definitely been something extraordinary,” Perez said.

The Astros' "Position Addition" Experiments

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  • “Position addition” is the name for the Astros’ process of experimenting with its most athletic prospects at various other positions, The Houston Chronicle’s Chandler Rome writes.  Naturally, the more versatile a player is, the better his chances at reaching the majors in some kind of role.  “It always depends on what the major league roster is going to look like in the future, but I think it just raises a lot of those guys’ floors,” Astros field coordinator Jason Bell said.  “I think our guys have been fairly open to it…and I think a lot of times they think it’s fun.”  Of the 23 position players in Houston’s minicamp, 12 are designated as part of an “infielder/outfielder” defensive grouping, working at positions both in the grass and on the dirt.
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