The Houston Astros entered the offseason with several needs on their roster after being eliminated in the Wild Card round by the Detroit Tigers, snapping their seven-year streak of advancing to the ALCS.
One of those holes was at first base, which the team looks to have successfully addressed by signing veteran free agent Christian Walker, formerly of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
There are certainly some concerns with the addition, as their last veteran first baseman was Jose Abreu, whose production fell off a cliff after joining the team. At the very least, Walker will provide elite defense at first base since he has won the Gold Glove Award for three years in a row.
However, that was the only impactful addition the team made, as more holes were created than filled this offseason.
The outfield, which was already a need, became even weaker when the team decided to trade star right fielder Kyle Tucker to the Chicago Cubs.
That decision, along with the impending departure of star third baseman Alex Bregman, has led to an unexpected amount of turnover on the roster this winter.
Future Hall of Famer Justin Verlander and deadline acquisition Yusei Kikuchi, both starting pitchers, also left in free agency, signing with the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Angels, respectively.
David Schoenfield of ESPN has given the team an underwhelming grade of “C” for their work this offseason as a result.
“That certainly didn’t go as planned, although the Astros shifted to Plan B and should remain competitive in 2025. But that will be harder to do after losing a combined 8.8 WAR in Tucker and Bregman (and Tucker played only 78 games).”
Once Juan Soto signed his megadeal, the biggest in sports history, Houston knew keeping Tucker long-term would be virtually impossible. Instead of playing out the string like they have with so many other homegrown stars, it was positive to see them pivot and make the most out of a tough situation.
Replacing a player of that caliber is not going to be possible in 2025, lowering the team’s ceiling, however, that deal could be a huge win for Houston down the road because of the inclusion of top prospect Cam Smith.
This is a deal that cannot truly be graded for at least one year.
Things will change drastically if Tucker doesn’t remain with the Cubs long-term, especially if Smith lives up to expectations.
It certainly hurts Houston fans right now seeing so much talent depart, but they could be in a better spot long-term to remain competitive in the American League.