Astros Rumors: Yankees, 'Stros competing for second chance at 2024 free agent jewel

Before the 2024 season, the Houston Astros had some tough decisions to make. While they wanted to make impact moves to upgrade their roster, they also had finite room on their payroll to actually sign big names. Ultimately, the Astros landed on signing Josh Hader to mixed success, but there was a time where things could have ended much differently.

The free agent class last year was headlined by (other than Shohei Ohtani, who was in his own tier) several frontline starters, including NL Cy Young winner Blake Snell. Snell was tremendous with the Padres, but he walked a lot of batters and had some inconsistency in his big league track record that kept Houston (and everyone else) from meeting his Scott Boras-fueled asking price before he settled for a two-year deal with the Giants.

Unfortunately for San Francisco, their patience in waiting out free agents last offseason has not paid off in 2024, and they now appear poised to be sellers at the trade deadline. That includes making guys like Snell available for the right price.

While the Astros have already been mentioned as a landing spot for Snell, it appears as though they have some competition for his services from a familiar AL foe.

Astros Rumors: Houston among top contenders vying for a Blake Snell trade

One can understand the appeal of Snell for the Astros. Dana Brown has been clear that he would love for Houston to add an impact starting pitcher at the trade deadline. While Snell didn't get off to a great start with the Giants in 2024, he has pitched much better lately, including an absolute gem right before the deadline. Plus, the guy did just win a Cy Young in 2023.

Things get tricky when you actually try to formulate a trade that would work for both sides. By all accounts, the Astros have neither much payroll space, nor much in the way of prospect capital. If the Giants were willing to eat some of the money owed to Snell, the Astros may not be able/willing to put together a prospect package that would entice the Giants, and taking on all of his money (including a $38.5 million player option for 2025) could create some financial headaches. Some have floated a player to be named later, dependent on whether Snell is healthy and/or if he opts in for 2025, but that is a lot of hoops to jump through.

Complicating matters is that one of the teams that coveted Snell the most last offseason, the Yankees, are involved in the bidding as well. It does help somewhat that New York has already made a big trade with the acquisition of Jazz Chisholm which removed some of their prospect depth, but the Yankees have been in free fall for a month and a half now and may be more motivated than ever to try and bring Snell into the fold.

In short, the roster fit is there for a trade for Snell pretty clearly. However, the devil is in the details, and they aren't overly favorable for the Houston front office actually being able to close a deal on favorable terms.

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