Astros will remain opportunistic with remaining free agents

A lefty reliever.

The team brought in Buddy Boshers and Anthony Gose to compete with Tony Sipp for the left-handed reliever on the team. As much as people say that they don’t really need a left-handed reliever, we saw them chasing Francisco Liriano in 2017 to fill that role. Sipp is in the final year of his deal, so he could potentially bounce back and perform like he did in 2014-15, but he has not pitched well the past two seasons.

Tony Watson is by far the best left-handed reliever on the market. Like other free agents, he is probably looking for a 3-4 year deal after a decent 2017. However, especially for the Astros, he is 32-years-old, which is not an age the team likes to invest in long-term. The Astros can do without Watson, so they are probably only looking for a 1-2 year deal. They could also only be willing to offer $8 million per year for a lefty reliever.

If he is desperate enough, he could accept a one-year deal to pitch with his friend Gerrit Cole and potentially go to the World Series. He has the advantage though. Most teams could use a left-handed reliever.

A real backup catcher.

No offense to Max Stassi, but he is penciled in as a backup catcher. Brian McTaggart made an interesting suggestion. He said that Evan Gattis could still be the backup catcher. But they would also carry Stassi as a defensive replacement. That is an interesting concept as Gattis serving as the designated hitter won’t limit his at-bats like last year. It would be similar to the role that Juan Centeno served as in the playoffs.

While this would free Gattis up for more playing time as the DH, it seems like a wasted roster spot. It could work out, but this would limit A.J. Hinch‘s options off the bench with 13 pitchers. Having a player like Marwin Gonzalez helps here. If Gattis were the full-time DH, Stassi as the backup catcher would make sense. It’s really the same thing, after all, just a different spin on it.

Jonathan Lucroy is still on the market coming off a down season. The 31-year-old catcher is two years removed from hitting 24 homers. Last year he batted .265 with six homers between the Rangers and Rockies. He does not appear to be getting the long-term deals that he may want to, so maybe he can sign a one-year deal to rebuild his value. If he bounces back, perhaps he could get a 2-3 year deal with someone next year. Could he sign a one-year contract with the Astros? Yes, but it would make playing time complicated.

A Fisher backup plan.

We saw what Derek Fisher was able to do when he first burst onto the big stage in 2017. His offensive ability gave you a brief glimpse of what he could offer long-term. While he did struggle down the road, he still made the postseason roster as a pinch runner specialist. Fisher is capable of hitting 15-20 homers with a decent batting average and 20-25 steals. The league adjusted to Fisher in the second half.

Now it’s his turn to adjust to the league. Fisher could go either direction this year. He could blossom into a young superstar, or he could become the latest Astro prospect to flame out. His adjustments this year could make or break his career, and the Astros drive for back-to-back championships. Should Fisher struggle in 2018, it may not be a bad idea to have a plan b option for left field.

The team would not want Margo as the full-time left-fielder, as it takes away his value. You could see Jake Marisnick get more playing time as well. However, Carlos Gonzalez is still a free agent. Like Lucroy, he is coming off a down season where his production decreased. Once an All-Star, Cargo is more of an afterthought at this moment. He could look to signing a one year deal with a team like the Astros to rebuild his value.

Despite this, I think the Astros will give Fisher a chance this year in left field.

In Conclusion (All is good).

As I stated earlier in the post, the Astros roster is pretty stacked. Many of you are probably wondering why I didn’t include Greg Holland. The Houston front office has never been one to buy saves. They try to get them via trade or in-house. If Holland is due anything similar to what Wade Davis received, that is too rich for the Astros blood.

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Jake Arrieta is still a free agent, but I see little interest in him signing a short-term deal out of desperation. If the Astros did not get Cole, I could have seen them going after Arrieta or Darvish, but they were more comfortable with the trade. Could there be a lesser name addition such as a Cameron Maybin or similar? Yes, but that player would have to be better than the 25th player on the team. In other words, no scrubs on this roster.

All three of the suggested free agent additions are not required but would be nice to have. Jeff Luhnow is in the desired position before camp opening, no sense of desperation to make another addition. This is why there are so many free agents out there. The competing teams have already bolstered their rosters while the rebuilding teams are not looking to add payroll. Everyone wants to follow in the Astros footsteps.

Next: The quandary of the slow free-agent market and the Astros’ role within it

One side note about Fisher. The Astros could be hesitant to trade Fisher because he could eventually become George Springer‘s replacement. He is hoping that Springer gets signed long-term, but could give the team the extra incentive to see what Fisher can offer in 2018.

***Stats from Baseball-Reference***