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3 players the Astros Gave Up on Too Soon
Throughout the Houston Astros' storied franchise history, there have been a handful of players that were used as trade bait and went on to become stars for their new clubs.
Unfortunately, this is part of the game general managers must play. A trade is always going to be a massive leap of faith, sometimes they work out and sometimes they don't.
Even a team like the Astros is not immune to such a thing. Over the years, there have been quite a few players the club let go of too soon and paid the price for it by watching them succeed elsewhere.
Let's check out 3 players the Astros gave up on too soon.
No. 3: OF Kenny Lofton
This one is especially tough, as Lofton went on to have a Hall of Fame-caliber career. His successes were instantaneous after being traded to Cleveland, becoming a speed demon on the bases and in the outfield for the remainder of what turned out to be 17-year career for him.
In 1991, the Astros traded Lofton to Cleveland since Steve Finley was already occupying the club's center field position on a daily basis. In exchange, the Astros landed catcher Eddie Taubenesee and pitcher Willie Blair. At the time of the deal, Lofton told the media that he didn't know why the Astros gave up on him, "but I'm glad they did. One man's trash is another man's treasure."
In 1992. he stole 66 bases and posted an OPS+ of 107, finishing second in the AL Rookie of the Year voting. In six of the next seven seasons, he made the All-Star team and remained a threat to hit double-digit home run totals, steal at least 50 bases and consistently post OPS+ totals above 100. He went on to be a star while neither Taubenesee or Blair amounted to anything in Houston.
No. 2: LHP Cionel Pérez
Unlike the Lofton scenario, this one is still playing out right before our eyes. Pérez made a total of 20 appearances for the Astros between 2018, 2019 and 2020 and never displayed enough on the mound to warrant being kept around.
However, 20 appearances in three years may not have been enough for him. Maybe the Astros should've held out just a bit longer. He spent 2021 with the Reds and had a 6.38 ERA in 24 innings, but it's what he did with the Orioles last year that really make this one sting.
In 66 appearances, Pérez had a breakout season with the O's, going 7-1 with a sparkling 1.40 ERA and 2.80 FIP with a 287 ERA+, meaning he was 187 percent above league-average on the season. He struck out 55 batters in 57+ innings, functioning more as a groundball pitcher than anything else, but also allowed just two home runs all year.
In the upcoming season, Pérez figures to once again be an important part of this Orioles' bullpen as they look to be contenders for the second consecutive season.
No. 1: LHP Josh Hader
You likely do not need me to tell you what Hader turned into once he left the Astros organization. Upon joining the Milwaukee Brewers, he immediately blossomed into one of the most dominant relief pitchers of this generation. He made four All-Star Games and even finished seventh in the NL Cy Young Award race back in 2018.
Hader has become a super-closer who possesses the ability to go more than one inning and has emerged as one of the biggest strikeout threats in the game of baseball today. Back in his Astros days, he came up as a starting pitcher. It wasn't until he moved to the bullpen that his career took off.
Of course, he was dealt to the San Diego Padres at last year's trade deadline, which was when the wheels fell off for him, but it was his dominance prior to 2022 that make his absence from the Astros that much harder to deal with.