Astros: What would it take to re-sign Gerrit Cole?

The Astros will have to pony up to bring back Gerrit Cole.

Now that Gerrit Cole has set a new Astros franchise record for strikeouts in a season, the obvious question becomes if he’ll get the chance to do it again in 2020. A free agent at the end of the season, Cole’s future with the team is a huge question mark heading into next season.

He’s certainly having one heck of a walk year. He leads the majors in strikeouts, just earned his 19th win on the season, and is battling teammate Justin Verlander for the AL Cy Young Award. The only thing that could raise his stock any higher would be a postseason series MVP award.

He also just recently turned 29 years old, meaning he’s still well within his prime years and should provide some dominant pitching for whichever club signs him. Astros fans are practically begging the team to park a fleet of Brinks trucks in Cole’s driveway, but there will be other suitors as well.

So what would it take for Cole to return to the Astros? There’s a lot to consider, and it’s not quite as simple as ownership needing to pay up. Here’s the current outlook on the chances of Cole returning next year.