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Alex Bregman update could end in absolute embarrassment for Astros

Eric Cole
Eric Cole

Climbing Tal's Hill

Wild Card Series - Detroit Tigers v Houston Astros - Game 2 / Alex Slitz/GettyImages

Houston Astros fans have been waiting, somewhat patiently, for news regarding the future of Alex Bregman. Most assumed that the door for a Bregman return closed once the Kyle Tucker trade happened and Houston signed Christian Walker, but the Astros have remained in the bidding somehow.

Despite the odds appearing low that a deal could get done, it's still pretty wild that Houston has hung around this long. The team is very conscious of the luxury tax threshold, and even after finding a trade partner for Ryan Pressly, the willingness to pay Bregman speaks well of the team's inclination to spend on the right player.

However, this optimistic Bregman trade chatter may be all for naught. USA Today's Bob Nightengale, during a recent appearance on the Area 45 with Bijani and Creighton podcast, said it sounds like the Blue Jays also have a six-year offer on the table for Bregman.

Alex Bregman choosing the Blue Jays' offer over the Astros would be truly embarrassing

To be clear, we don't know the exact terms of Toronto's offer to Bregman. It could be less or more guaranteed money and could include opt-outs. However, the Blue Jays are desperate to make another splash this offseason, and given that the terms the Astros offered are public knowledge, it is probably safe to assume that Toronto is offering more.

Even if we assume that the Blue Jays are offering more than the Astros' six-year, $156 million offer, it would have to be substantially more in order to not be a slap in the face to Houston. The Blue Jays are a mess as a franchise at the moment and are about to lose both Bo Bichette and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. If Bregman chose to latch on to that instead of return to the Astros, it would speak volumes to his priorities, as well as his potential concerns about Houston's viability going forward.

The most likely scenario here is that Bregman is using the Blue Jays' offer as leverage in negotiations right now with the Astros, and other teams interested in his services. The best guess here is that Bregman doesn't really want to play for Toronto and would just prefer Houston to match or exceed what they are offering. It remains to be seen whether or not the Astros will actually do so.

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Eric Cole

Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.