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The honeymoon stage of the Houston Astros bringing back Carlos Correa seems to be fading as the Astros' offense struggles to score runs in the midst of the team slumping as a whole. That has forced Correa to resume his role as the clubhouse voice of the Astros, but that has led some fans to begin to wonder what the roster construction may look like after this season.
The injury to Isaac Paredes has allowed Correa to seamlessly be inserted as the Astros' starting third baseman. After this season, the fit doesn't seem so clear. It seems that Correa is going to remain at third base, considering what it has done for his ability to stay on the field, but that leaves Paredes without a position.
The conundrum was brought up in Chandler Rome's latest mailbag for The Athletic, and he suggests that a trade would likely be the only way to solve the situation.
"It’s hard to imagine the Astros will threaten that by asking Correa to move positions again. It leaves an uncertain future for third baseman Isaac Paredes and, perhaps, shortstop Jeremy Peña and first baseman Christian Walker. A case could be made to dangle any of them in offseason trade talks."
Offseason trade rumors surrounding Astros stars are getting harder to ignore
Finding a trade partner for Walker feels like the obvious call for the Astros. Of course, at the deadline, the Twins were believed to have asked for Walker as part of the Correa trade, but Houston turned down that idea. It makes sense why the Astros weren't ready to part with Walker at the deadline, considering that would leave a void in their already run-deprived offense. While Walker's offensive profile has lacked power this season, the Astros don't have a first baseman ready to take over, especially with Paredes injured.
Turning 35 before next season, Walker likely would be the preferred trade chip for the Astros. Paredes was an All-Star this season, and as long as he is playing half his games with the Crawford Boxes in left field, he has tremendous value to the Astros. While Peñ has been slumping since his return from injury, trading him this offseason feels like a risk, considering he has flashed playing at an MVP pace earlier this season.