Astros’ worst offseason ‘failure’ now looks like a blessing in disguise

Houston Astros general manager Dana Brown has backed himself into a corner where the best move of the offseason was the move he didn't make. The expectation throughout the winter was that the Astros would be forced to trade one of Isaac Paredes or Christian Walker. A trade never surfaced, and it felt like that was an egregious error for Brown. In the aftermath of the Carlos Correa injury, the narrative has changed.

The infield logjam wasn't something the Astros were thinking about when they reunited with Correa last July. Paredes wasn't expected to return in 2025, and Correa was going to easily slide in at third base. Life wasn't going to be that easy for the Astros this season, considering they had more established veteran infielders than they did open spots in the starting lineup.

For now, that's a headache that the Astros won't have ot worry about for quite some time. Correa will miss the rest of the season, and Paredes will return to being the team's starting third baseman. Ending the versatility he was previously forced into, having to play across the infield except shortstop.

Shockingly, the Astros made the right decision with Isaac Paredes

The optics of the Astros losing Correa for the rest of the season would look dramatically different had the team traded Paredes this offseason. In a season where things have gone wrong for the Astros left and right, it would have been a special kind of disaster if someone from the group of Nick Allen, Zach Dezenzo, or Shay Whitcomb were forced to play innings of consequence at third base.

There's also going to be a benefit for Paredes simply being in the lineup for each game. He had a slow start to the season, but has since turned the corner. His wRC+ is up to 117 on the season, and his power is slowly returning to his approach. It's fair to expect his power numbers will return to form now that he is getting regular at-bats.

That doesn't mean Paredes' trade talk will go away. Now that he is going to be in the Astros' lineup every night, he will showcase the potential value he could provide for a contender. Assuming the Astros don't correct their losing ways, and they are forced to sell at the deadline.

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