Are the Houston Astros Regretting the Evan Gattis Trade?

Are the Houston Astros already regretting the Evan Gattis trade? Back in January, when Houston traded top-rated prospects Rio Ruiz and Mike Foltynewicz for Evan Gattis, there was a split among fans: some were excited about the trade, while others were perplexed. Was Gattis really worth the price?

So far in Spring Training, Evan Gattis has struggled with injury issues (again) and trying to learn new positions.

El Oso Blanco has dealt with significant injuries over his two years in the Major Leagues and he has yet to play more than 108 games in a full season. A sore wrist has troubled him this spring, while with the Atlanta Braves, Gattis suffered with a bulging disk in his back last year and an oblique injury in 2013. He is relatively young at 28 years old, but his health sounds like it should be of some concern for the team. Thankfully there was some good news yesterday with Gattis pounding a two-run home run versus his old team.

Then there is problem of what his position should be. Though Gattis has primarily been a catcher for his career, there is no spot for him behind the dish. It was presumed that he’ll have to learn left field and he’s taken some reps out there this March, but at this point he’s a liability. It has been suggested that he could platoon with either Colby Rasmus or Jake Marisnick, so there’s that possibility. At first base and designated hitter, the incumbents, Jon Singleton and Chris Carter, don’t have to worry about Gattis edging them out for playing time.

If Gattis does not earn himself a clear cut role on this team, the question will remain: why did the Houston Astros trade for “The White Bear”? Jeff Luhnow is a patient man as you have seen from the past few seasons. He had to have a reason to pull off this deal. However, at this point the team paid a heavy price for a guy who has no position and may miss significant portions of the season with injury.

It is still really early to decide on this issue, but the fan base has its fingers crossed that Astros didn’t trade for a lemon. Hopefully the team knows how to make lemonade, just in case.

Sound off, Astros fans. Which camp are you in: glad to have Gattis on the team, or still scratching your head about the trade? Do you think the Astros regret making this trade?

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