HOUSTON – The decision to tender contracts last week to outfielders Chas McCormick and Jake Meyers came as no surprise, considering both players will be working relatively cheap next season and the Astros don't have many options in center field beyond utility man Mauricio Dubón. Dubón's value is his ability to play all the over the field -- he started games at seven positions last season, including 18 in center field -- and top prospect Jacob Melton has yet to reach the big leagues. Melton should make his debut in 2025, but there are no guarantees he would become an everyday player right way. Thus, the club was motivated to keep McCormick and Meyers despite their down seasons at the plate in 2024. McCormick posted a .577 OPS in 94 games, hitting .211 with five home runs. Those numbers were a far cry from the .273/.353/.489 slash line he posted in '23, with 22 homers and 19 steals. Meyers, meanwhile, had a .646 OPS in 148 games in '24 and got most of the team's starts (126) in center field. He posted a .736 OPS in the first half of the season (.924 in May) before slumping in the second half with a .526 OPS. He was a Gold Glove finalist in center field in the American League and remains an elite defender at a premium position, which adds to his value. |
Astros general manager Dana Brown said at the General Managers Meetings in San Antonio earlier this month that he would like to add a left-handed bat he could put with Meyers and McCormick, but he remains bullish on both players. "McCormick is a good player," Brown said. "We expect him to come back and get to like at least a .750 OPS or better. The year before, he was over an .800 OPS with over 20 home runs. Of course, the defense is really good. We have to check that one off as a bad year. It was a down year. Hopefully, we can get him to bounce back, because we really need him. "Then maybe we can get him some help to where he doesn't have to face all of the right-handers as much by getting a left-handed-hitting outfielder. Those kind of things we're trying to do to improve this club. Maybe, at certain points, do some platooning if he's struggling. We're trying to do certain moves to reach more production in the offense." |
Melton split last season between Double-A Corpus Christi (58 games) and Triple-A Sugar Land (47 games) and slashed .253/.310/.426 with 15 homers and 30 stolen bases. His numbers were a tad better at Double-A, which is to be expected, posting a .748 OPS with Corpus Christi and .719 with Sugar Land. He spent time at all three outfield spots last season but played most in center field. "Melton's another guy that could be a big piece for us," Brown said last month. "He's a really good defensive outfielder with power. He has a chance to make an impact." The other players eligible for salary arbitration who were tendered contracts were Dubón, right-hander Luis Garcia, shortstop Jeremy Peña, outfielder Kyle Tucker and lefty Framber Valdez. Garcia missed the final four months of '23 following Tommy John surgery and all last season, when his comeback attempt was halted. The next key date in arbitration is Jan. 9, when players and teams exchange salary figures. Players and teams are free to reach a contract agreement until a decision is rendered in any hearing. (Hearings begin in February.) A panel of arbitrators listen to each side's case and then selects either the salary figure submitted by the player or the one by the team. |
MLB MORNING LINEUP PODCAST |
WHERE WILL BREGMAN WIND UP? |
The burning question of the Astros' offseason -- where will free agent third baseman Alex Bregman play next year? -- lingers nearly eight weeks after the Astros were eliminated by the Tigers in the AL Wild Card Series. Three potential fits for Bregman are, of course, the Astros, as well as the Phillies and the Tigers, where he would be reunited with former Astros manager A.J. Hinch. With that in mind, check out this roundtable discussion I had with Phillies beat writer Todd Zolecki and Tigers beat writer Jason Beck. Bregman's fits with each club were discussed. |
The Astros were interested in a reunion with Yusei Kikuchi and had made an offer to the left-hander, who instead is headed to the Angels on a three-year, $63 million deal, a source told MLB.com senior national reporter Mark Feinsand. He excelled after coming over from the Blue Jays, going 5-1 with a 2.70 ERA with 76 strikeouts in 60 innings across 10 starts after the Astros altered his pitch usage. The Astros' rotation, anchored by Valdez and Hunter Brown, Ronel Blanco and Spencer Arrighetti, should still be a strength next year, but they still could use more depth. It remains unclear when Garcia and Lance McCullers Jr. will return from injuries. Kikuchi would have filled a void, but the Astros believed the price was too high for the Japanese star. |
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THIS WEEK IN ASTROS HISTORY |
Nov. 24, 2006 The Astros made major news the day after Thanksgiving, when they signed outfielder Carlos Lee and starting pitcher Woody Williams. Lee, who was considered among the top three sluggers on the market, got the richest contract in Astros franchise history at the time -- a six-year, $100 million deal. Williams, who was 40 at the time of the signing, gave the Astros some security while they waited to see what free agent pitchers Roger Clemens and Andy Pettitte were going to do. (They both returned to the Yankees.) In his first five seasons with the Astros, Lee batted .286 and averaged 26 homers and 101 RBIs. He was traded to the Marlins in July 2012 in the midst of Houston's rebuild. Williams went 8-15 with a 5.27 ERA in 33 games (31 starts) in 2007 and was released the following spring. |
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