If you're in charge, do you let Gerrit Cole walk or pay him?

Those numbers I posted are for total contract value.

Wheeler is making a fraction of his market value as he is on an arbitration contract. $50M/3 years is easily his floor.

Miley took a 1 year make good deal and has far outperformed his salary. He’s going to get a 2-3 year deal for >$10M/yr.

Grandal was saddled with a QO so his market dried up. He can’t be QO’ed this offseason and will be the only star catcher available. $40M/3yrs is his absolute floor and I won’t be surprised to see him get double that.

 

They will not trade Greinke. They would not have given up all those prospects for him had they not expected to keep him thru his contract.

 

Who could be the next...

Cole: Jon Gray
Morton: Jordan Lyles
Miley: Homer Bailey

 

IMO, we didn't acquire Greinke on an extended year deal to try and trade him at the end of this season.

 

With our budget constraints, I'm not sure we can even afford these. 2 biggest priorities should be the 2 catchers. I really think we will try and attempt to retain Maldonado and/or Chirinos. Verlander will advocate strongly for Chirinos.

 

HA! How could I forget Yordan!?!

 

If (big IF) they win it all, AND they trade Reddick, and they non-tender Sanchez, they should have $20-35M to spend. When you figure Morton cost $8M/yr when Houston signed him, Miley $4.5, and Cole $8M on arb, they could afford 2 of those and still add catchers (say Chirinos for $7M, and Avila for $4M):

Springer
Bregman
Brantley
Altuve
Alvarez
Correa
Gurriel
Tucker
Chirinos
Diaz, Avila, Marisnick, Straw/Toro
Verlander, Greinke, McCullers, Bailey, Lyles
Peacock, TBD young arm x2, Biagini, Devenski, James, Pressly, Osuna

 

Well, now you found a spot for Alvarez, whom I left out. Pencil in another $600,000.

 

I think it’s more likely we keep Sanchez, assuming his arm didn’t fall off and he’s able to pitch next year.

I really don’t see the desire in switching catchers. We have found two catchers that work extremely well with our staff, are fairly affordable, and want to be in Houston.

 

I like Avila as part of a platoon because he’s left handed, hits for power, walks a lot, has experience catching both Verlander and Greinke, and is likely to be cheaper than Chirinos or Maldonado.

 

Good reasoning. I guess I would like to hear Verlander’s opinion on it.

 

Is he any good at catching, though? Honest question. He's caught JV about 150 games over several years and Greinke 9, so I'm not sure how much that would factor in.

This was an interesting read: https://www.azsnakepit.com/2019/6/17/18660746/alex-avila-year-diamondbacks

Who's the other half of your platoon? If you could swing Chirinos and Avila you're absolutely on to something.

 

Thank you, well explained.

 

Good to see that 8% of people are realistic.

Of the other 92% I would assume they mostly just don't understand baseball or don't follow it closely enough to know we can't just "pay the man" without tearing our team apart.

 

I think the Stros should either let him walk or pay him, depending on all of the other factors this offseason.

 

Could have just kept Dallas and Charlie. They will probably get shorter deals and combined make less that Cole. Paying an almost 30 year old pitcher a long term 30+ million dollar deal doesn't sound smart.

 

Profound observation Buck.

It really cuts to the heart of the matter.

 

Keuchel reportedly wanted 5 guaranteed years at over $100 million. Astros offered him one and two year deals that he turned down.

 

Keutchel has pitched relatively well for the Braves. He’s 8-6 with a 3.63 ERA in 101 innings and a WHIP of 1.33

I liked Keutchel and he’s probably established himself a solid market value contract, with his current production. I think he’s going to be just fine, it sucks his agent fed him a pie in the sky and probably why he isn’t on the Astros right now.

 

Would be pretty funny if Houston signed Keuchel this offseason once his market doesn’t deliver again (they don’t stand to gain a draft pick if he signs elsewhere this time).