Astros News: Josh Reddick announces he will not return to Houston

After four years in Houston, Josh Reddick announced Tuesday that he will not be returning to the Astros in 2021.

As expected, the Josh Reddick era has ended in Houston. The 33-year-old announced on Instagram late Tuesday night that he will not be returning to the Astros in 2021.

“Thank you to the Astros, my teammates, coaches, staff and of course the FANS,” Reddick wrote. “Houston will always be special to me. From winning a World Series, to getting engaged and starting a family here and everything in between, I loved playing here and look forward to doing it again.”

The Astros signed Reddick to a four-year, $52 million deal in 2016. The move filled a need for a left-handed hitting outfielder and since he primarily played right field, shifted George Springer to center, where he emerged as one of the games premiere outfielders.

In four years in Houston, Reddick hit .275/.331/.421 with 48 home runs and 208 RBI. He peaked in 2017 when the Astros reached the World Series, posting a career-high .847 OPS, but regressed in the remaining three years. Now, it appears likely that he will have to settle for a one-year deal in free agency.

It means that even after Reddick’s farewell announcement, the door remains open for a return. The Astros are looking for low-cost options to fill out the outfield and a cheap short-term deal makes sense for the team. But the odds of a deal are slim to none. The Astros appear focused on working toward retaining Michael Brantley, pursuing free-agent outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. and pursuing additional outfield depth while upgrading other parts of the roster.

The market for Reddick does not figure to be strong and with a record number of non-tenders expected on Wednesday, the market will become even more saturated with outfield options. It remains to be seen what the Astros will do, but it became clear on Tuesday that it will not include Reddick.