Astros' hasty pursuit of Nolan Arenado trade blinded them to better offseason upgrade

With former Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman looking for a big payday that the organization was unwilling to match, general manager Dana Brown needed to upgrade the infield and set his sights on Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado. Ultimately, Houston's attempts came up short after Arenado famously invoked his no-trade clause, and the Astros settled for a trade package with the Cubs that brought back Isaac Paredes. However, it is fair to wonder if the Astros' infatuation with Arenado blinded them to another would-be trade target?

The Cleveland Guardians traded first baseman Josh Naylor to the Arizona Diamondbacks last winter, and the former All-Star has been tearing it up out in the desert. Naylor is hitting .333/.406/.548 with four home runs and 15 RBI for the D-backs. Arizona sacrificed their 2025 Competitive Balance draft pick and little known prospect Slade Cecconi in order to complete the trade.

The Diamondbacks' deal for Naylor came just two days before the Astros signed Christian Walker to a three-year, $60 million deal that—at the moment—looks like a complete and total disaster. The Astros may have overplayed their hand in their pursuit of Arenado, and it could cost them dearly.

Astros' pursuit of Nolan Arenado trade blinded them to a potential deal for Guardians' 1B Josh Naylor

Arenado's rejection of the Astros deal has been well-documented at this point. The 10-time Gold Glove Award-winner wanted to allow the offseason to play out before making the decision to leave St. Louis. Unfortunately, that's not the way these types of transactions work, and after Arenado got cold feet, Houston pivoted to the corner infield duo of Paredes and Walker.

While there's certainly hope that Walker can regain the stroke that saw him hit .250/.332/.481 during his final three seasons in Arizona, his early-season struggles don't indicate that at all. Walker is hitting .156/.253/.260 with 27 strikeouts through 21 games.

Trading for Naylor would've also been far less costly. The D-backs first baseman, who's also an above-average defender, is taking home almost 50% less than what Walker's $20 million salary this season. Just think about the upgrades to the Astros bullpen, rotation, or outfield Houston's front office could have made with an extra $10 million to spend.

Arenado's production this season (.288/.395/.452) reveals why Houston was so high on the eight-time All-Star, but settling on Walker over Naylor may prove to be an extremely foolhardy decision on the part of Brown and Co.

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