RSS Astros Team Notes

Orioles To Claim Pedro León

The Orioles have claimed outfielder Pedro León off waivers from the Astros, reports Francys Romero of BeisbolFR. It was reported earlier this week that Houston had put several players on waivers, including León, as they looked to clear out some roster space. The O’s will need to make space on their 40-man roster to make the move official.

Baltimore is taking a flier on a post-hype prospect. León was a high-profile signing out of Cuba several years ago. In January of 2021, the Astros gave him a $4MM signing bonus. He was ranked as one of the top prospects in the system for the next few years. He’s now 27 years old, turning 28 in May, but hasn’t yet delivered on that hype. He has only appeared in seven big league games thus far. He struck out in 10 of his 21 plate appearances as he has produced a .100/.143/.100 line.

That’s obviously a tiny sample of work but his minor league track record also isn’t great. From 2021 to 2023, he hit .233/.350/.419 on the farm. That offense translates to a 104 wRC+, indicating he was above average but barely. He struck out in 29% of his plate appearances in that time.

In 2024, he had a monster .299/.372/.514 showing in Triple-A. He still struck out at a fairly high 27% clip but that offense was good enough for a 130 wRC+, even in the hitter-friendly context of the Pacific Coast League. Here in 2025, a sprained MCL in his left knee limited him to just 22 Triple-A contests. He hit .241/.312/.422 for a wRC+ of 89 in those.

Obviously, the Astros were hoping for more when they signed him. The Orioles are hoping that a late-bloomer breakout can come in their organization. León is still optionable, so they could keep him in the minors. He showed big potential in 2024 before the injury-marred 2025. Ideally, the O’s will get a healthy and productive season from León in 2026. If that comes to pass, he could push his way into their outfield mix as the season goes along. Currently, that group includes Colton Cowser, Tyler O’Neill, Dylan Beavers, Jeremiah Jackson, Leody Taveras and others.

Photo courtesy of Thomas Shea, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/orioles-to-claim-pedro-leon.html
 
Astros GM: “No Interest” In Trading Isaac Paredes

The Astros appear to have something of a corner infield logjam. They acquired Carlos Correa at the deadline, and Jeremy Peña’s presence meant Correa needed to move to third base. That made sense while Isaac Paredes was injured but is a tougher fit if everyone is healthy. The Astros have Christian Walker signed for two more seasons at first base. Yordan Alvarez remains the primary designated hitter, and the Astros would probably welcome the opportunity to get Jose Altuve more DH at-bats if they could find them.

Based on that glut of corner bats, there’s been speculation about the Astros trading an infielder this offseason. Most of that has revolved around Paredes or Walker, but general manager Dana Brown downplayed the idea that the Astros were looking to move either player. That’s particularly true of Paredes, who turned in a .254/.352/.458 line with 20 homers in 102 games during his first season in Houston.

“He was one of the best guys at seeing pitches and working counts and it’s one of the reasons why we went out and traded for him,” Brown told reporters at the GM Meetings on Wednesday (link via Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle). “We need that value in our lineup. It’s the exact direction we’re trying to take it. We feel like if we trade him it would be weakening our lineup. So right now, we have no interest in trading him.”

Paredes was the centerpiece of the Kyle Tucker return from the Cubs. He ranked fifth on the team in on-base percentage and tied for third in homers despite missing most of the second half with a significant strain of his right hamstring. Paredes returned late in the season but was limited to DH work. Brown said he’s currently at roughly 65% health and will “potentially” be available for Opening Day (via Brian McTaggart of MLB.com).

The 26-year-old’s swing is geared for pull-side pop that makes him an ideal fit in Houston’s Daikin Park, where the Crawford Boxes leave a short porch in left field. The two-time All-Star was an accomplished hitter with the Rays, so it’s not as if he’s only a product of the park, but he’s perfectly tailored even for a lineup that skews very heavily to the right side.

MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects Paredes for a $9.3MM arbitration salary. He’ll go through that process once more before hitting free agency during the 2027-28 offseason. There’d be significant interest if the Astros did decide to shop him, likely for starting pitching, but they’re clearly proceeding as if he’ll be in their lineup. Brown said the Astros are not considering him for a regular role at second base, so he’ll be back mostly in the corners.

While that’d seemingly point in the direction of a Walker trade, the GM indicated that’s not currently under consideration either. “We haven’t talked about Walker in a trade. Walker’s our everyday first baseman,” Brown said. He’s in a much different spot from Paredes. He’s signed for $20MM annually for his age 35-36 seasons. Walker had a team-leading 27 homers this year, but he hit .238 with a career-worst .297 on-base percentage. The three-time Gold Glove winner also posted uncharacteristically middling defensive grades. Baseball Reference felt he was right around replacement level overall, while FanGraphs had him at one WAR.

That’s not the kind of season that would net Walker $20MM per season on a multi-year deal if he were a free agent. The Astros might need to eat around half the money just to move him for a middling return. That would open first base for Paredes and reallocate a bit of payroll room for rotation adds, yet it’d leave them with more dead money on a first baseman right as the José Abreu contract finally comes off the books. The Astros could value Walker’s power and defensive reputation enough to hold him in hope that he rebuilds some value.

Trading Correa or Peña seems even more far-fetched. “We’re not really trying to pull from the infield in the trade market, simply because we feel like all those guys are going to be part of the top of our lineup,” Brown said generally. “I think they’re all going to hit somewhere between 1 and 6. So I wouldn’t try to make any moves from the infield standpoint.” That blanket statement probably doesn’t apply to utility players Ramón Urías or Mauricio Dubón, who are respectively projected for $4.4MM and $5.8MM in their final seasons of arbitration. The Astros could trade or non-tender either or both.

Brown spoke generally about the Astros bouncing players around the diamond to maximize rest opportunities for their veteran hitters. Correa has never played second base, though he’d presumably be capable of doing so. One speculative option would be to get Correa semi-regular second base work on days when Paredes is at the hot corner. They’ll have Altuve continue bouncing between second base, left field and DH with Alvarez splitting time between DH and left.

That carries into an outfield that should feature a couple changes. Houston traded for Jesús Sánchez to add a left-handed bat who could play right field down the stretch. Sánchez played terribly, batting .199/.269/.349 with multiple defensive lapses. He’s projected at a $6.5MM arbitration salary and under club control for two seasons. Chandler Rome of The Athletic writes that the Astros are open to trade inquiries on Sánchez, though it seems more likely they won’t find interest and will simply non-tender him at next Friday’s deadline.

That’ll likely leave the Astros in search of another left-handed hitting outfielder. Rookies Zach Cole and Jacob Melton could factor in but have limited track records. Taylor Trammell is probably on the roster bubble. Moving on from Sánchez and adding someone like Max Kepler, Cedric Mullins or Mike Yastrzemski in free agency would make sense.

Notably, Brown would not commit to second-year outfielder Cam Smith breaking camp in 2026. The former first-rounder, acquired alongside Paredes in the Tucker deal, hit .236/.312/.358 across 493 plate appearances as a rookie. It was hardly a disastrous showing for a player with such limited professional experience, and Smith played an excellent right field despite being drafted as a third baseman. Yet he struggled significantly in the second half (.154/.247/.242) and could be due for a look against Triple-A pitching.

“We saw glimpses of it last year, but we’re going to need him to be more consistent,” Brown said (via Rome). “I would think he comes back and tries to play with more consistency and makes the necessary adjustments, but we have to be open to sending him back to Triple-A if he hasn’t turned the corner. … There’s a lot to be said for guys that work hard in the offseason and then make the necessary adjustments. We’re hoping that Cam does that. If he does that, we’ll be excited.”

Optioning Smith would give the Astros the flexibility to pursue an everyday right fielder. Jake Meyers should be back as the primary center fielder, though Rome reports that Houston has received a fair bit of trade interest in the 29-year-old. That’s to be expected, as Meyers is a plus defender who is coming off a career year at the plate. He hit .292/.354/.373 over 381 plate appearances with dramatically improved strike zone discipline. He’s controllable for another two seasons and projected at a bargain $3.5MM rate. It’s difficult to envision a Houston team already looking for outfielders trading Meyers, but it’s possible another club tries to force their hand by putting a controllable starting pitcher on the table.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-gm-no-interest-in-trading-isaac-paredes.html
 
Astros Hire Anthony Iapoce As Assistant Hitting Coach

Coach Poce has a new gig. Houston general manager Dana Brown told reporters, including Brian McTaggart of MLB.com, that the club is hiring Anthony Iapoce as an assistant hitting coach. The former Tigers first base coach will assist Victor Rodriguez, who was hired as lead hitting coach in early November. Brown also mentioned that Dan Hennigan was promoted to director of hitting and offensive coordinator.

Iapoce was in the Tigers organization for the past three seasons. He had served as first base coach since 2024. Iapoce was well-regarded in Detroit, with players rocking “Coach Poce” t-shirts before games.

It’s not the first time Iapoce will work as a hitting coach. He got his coaching start with the Marlins as a minor league hitting coach from 2006 to 2009. He then moved on to Toronto as minor league hitting coordinator, a role he held for three seasons. Iapoce’s first six seasons on a big-league staff came as a hitting coach, first with the Rangers (2016-2018) and then with the Cubs (2019-2021).

Iapoce, Rodriguez, and Hennigan will be looking to revive an offense that uncharacteristically struggled last season. The Astros ranked 21st in scoring, the first time in over a decade they’d finished in the bottom 10 in runs. Houston severely lacked punch in the middle of the order after trading Kyle Tucker and losing Alex Bregman in free agency. Long-term injuries to Yordan Alvarez and Isaac Paredes further limited the lineup.

The Astros did get a breakout season from Jeremy Pena, who slashed .304/.363/.477 over 125 games. The shortstop stole 20 bases for the second straight season and added 17 home runs. Old friend Carlos Correa also provided nice production after coming over at the trade deadline, hitting .290 across 220 plate appearances. If the coaching staff can coax a bounce-back season from Christian Walker, plus decent campaigns from some of the younger hitters (Cam Smith, Zach Cole, Yainer Diaz), Houston should return to being a strong offensive unit.

Photo courtesy of Junfu Han, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-hire-anthony-iapoce-as-assistant-hitting-coach.html
 
Astros Interested In Brendan Donovan

The Astros are back in the mix for Brendan Donovan, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic. That’s not surprising, as Houston’s interest in the St. Louis utility player has dated back to at least the trade deadline.

Donovan is an obvious target. The Astros skew very right-handed. They tried to balance the lineup with the deadline trade for Jesús Sánchez from the Marlins. Sánchez was terrible down the stretch and is probably going to be traded or non-tendered within the next week. That leaves the Astros with only Yordan Alvarez as an everyday left-handed bat. Rookie outfielders Zach Cole or Jacob Melton could play their way into the mix, but it’s clear that adding a lefty hitter will be a priority.

There are few better ones known to be available in trade than Donovan. The 28-year-old (29 in January) is coming off a .287/.353/.422 slash across 515 plate appearances. He’s a career .282/.361/.411 hitter over four seasons. Donovan has enough power for 10-15 home runs and 30+ doubles, while he’s a safe bet to hit for average because of his excellent contact skills. Like most lefty hitters, he’s far better against right-handed pitching, but he has reached base at a reasonable .325 clip against southpaws in his career. He fits at the top of a lineup against righties and is playable if unspectacular against same-handed pitchers.

[Related: Top 40 Trade Candidates]

Donovan has the multi-positional versatility to fit any number of teams. He’s already been linked to the Guardians and Royals this offseason. The Yankees and Dodgers have shown interest in the past. MLBTR’s Mark Polishuk examined various other possibilities last month. Houston would use him mostly at his natural second base position, where they don’t really have an everyday player. They’re still planning to move Jose Altuve between second and left field, where he and Alvarez would divide time when the other isn’t at designated hitter. Donovan can play both corner outfield positions as well, and some teams could feel he’s capable of holding his own at either spot on the left side of the infield.

The Cardinals are committing to a retool under first-year president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom. Donovan is down to his last two seasons of club control. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for a $5.4MM salary. That’ll likely jump into the $8-10MM range for 2027. There’s no indication the Cards will seriously pursue an extension, so an offseason trade seems likely given the amount of interest they’ll receive from teams currently in contention windows. Among their realistic trade candidates (i.e. not including Masyn Winn), Donovan has the best chance of netting an impactful prospect return.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-interested-in-brendan-donovan.html
 
Astros Notes: Hader, Alvarez, Arrighetti

Astros general manager Dana Brown shared some injury updates earlier this week at the GM Meetings, including the rather troubling news that Isaac Paredes is no guarantee to be ready for Opening Day. Brown provided some more positive news with Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle (multiple links) on some of the many other Astros players who missed significant time during the club’s injury-plagued 2025 campaign, as all of Josh Hader, Yordan Alvarez, and Spencer Arrighetti are expected to be ready for Spring Training.

Hader’s season was ended in early August by a right capsule sprain in his right shoulder. There was some initial hope that Hader could potentially return during the playoffs, but he still hadn’t started throwing by season’s end, so it seemed unlikely that the closer would’ve been available even if Houston had reached the postseason.

Brown didn’t yet have a timetable on Hader’s recovery at his end-of-season press conference, but said this week that Hader has now thrown off a mound three times. The plan is for Hader to have his regular winter throwing program and “hopefully, we’ll get him ramped up sometime early to mid-February…he’s on course to come back and be there for Opening Day,” Brown said.

As Rome noted, losing Hader ended up devastating Houston’s relief corps. Hader had been the anchor of the bullpen, posting a 2.05 ERA, 36.9% strikeout rate, and 7.8% walk rate across 52 2/3 innings while closing down 28 of 29 save opportunities. While Bryan Abreu performed respectably well in Hader’s place, losing a star closer further thinned out a bullpen that was already missing other arms due to injury, and it added to Houston’s mountain of health woes.

Having Alvarez for only 48 games was perhaps the most impactful of all the Astros’ injuries. The three-time All-Star was sidelined mostly by a hand sprain that was eventually revealed as a finger fracture, and persistent hand discomfort kept Alvarez out of action from early May to late August. While he posted great numbers upon his returning, Alvarez was shut down again by a left ankle sprain in mid-September that left him unable to even resume basic running or hitting drills by the end of the season.

The good news is that Brown said Alvarez should have “a normal offseason,” and is back to running at around “65-70 percent” of his usual capability. Speed is not exactly a huge aspect of Alvarez’s game and he should continue to be Houston’s primary DH in 2026, but keeping an elite bat healthy is naturally a huge factor in the Astros’ hopes of future success.

Arrighetti was limited to seven starts and 35 1/3 innings in 2025, as he missed four months of action after his right thumb was fractured by a batted ball during batting practice. That fluky injury was followed up by a bout of elbow inflammation that shut Arrighetti down for good in early September. There was some concern raised when Arrighetti was set to go for a second opinion on his elbow, but it would appear as though he has gotten a clean bill of health for regular offseason prep.

For now, Arrighetti is penciled into a spot in Houston’s Opening Day rotation, though Brown has been open about the Astros’ desire to add to their pitching staff. With Framber Valdez potentially leaving in free agency and several other Astros pitchers besides Arrighetti also on the mend, acquiring another starter would help clear up some of the uncertainty surrounding the pitching staff.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-notes-hader-alvarez-arrighetti.html
 
Jose Altuve Undergoes Minor Foot Procedure

Jose Altuve underwent a minor procedure on his right foot this afternoon, reports Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. The aspiration drained fluid from an injury between his fourth and fifth toes. It should not impact his readiness for Spring Training.

Altuve played through foot discomfort in the waning weeks of the season. The pain cost him a game in the middle of September, but Altuve wouldn’t go on the injured list as the Astros battled for a playoff spot. It wasn’t until they were officially eliminated with two games remaining in the season that he shut it down. Altuve wasn’t particularly effective as he played through the injury, hitting .218/.295/.385 in the final month.

It was something of a down season overall for the nine-time All-Star. Altuve still managed 26 homers with a solid .265/.329/.442 batting line, but his average and on-base percentage were his lowest in a full season in more than a decade. Altuve hit .363 with five longballs during a monster July but was otherwise a middle-of-the-road contributor. He had a .745 OPS or lower in every other month.

It’s not surprising to see Altuve’s numbers begin to trend down as he gets into his mid-30s. He’s still a good hitter but no longer the MVP-caliber bat he was in his prime. The bigger question moving forward is how the Astros will minimize his defensive weaknesses. The Astros have increasingly soured on his second base work. They hoped to use him primarily in left field this past season, reasoning that the short porch with the Crawford Boxes at Daikin Park could compensate for mediocre range. Altuve didn’t take naturally to the position, though, and skipper Joe Espada used him mostly at second base again by the end of the season.

The Astros don’t have great alternatives at the keystone. Rookie Brice Matthews had decent overall numbers in Triple-A, but he struck out in 28% of his plate appearances against minor league pitching. He punched out 20 times in his first 13 big league games. Mauricio Dubón is a quality defender with a light bat whose escalating arbitration salaries could make him a trade or non-tender candidate. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects the switch-hitting utilityman to make $5.8MM in his final year of club control. Ramón Urías struggled after a deadline trade and is likely to be cut loose in lieu of a $4.4MM arbitration projection.

At the moment, that leaves Altuve as their primary option at second base. They could continue to get him some left field work and use him more frequently at designated hitter if they’re willing to play Yordan Alvarez semi-regularly in left (especially at home). An offseason acquisition could change the calculus. Their longstanding interest in Cardinals’ trade candidate Brendan Donovan continues. Tampa Bay’s Brandon Lowe could also be on the move, while Gleyber Torres and Willi Castro are free agent possibilities.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/jose-altuve-undergoes-minor-foot-procedure.html
 
Astros Designate Ramon Urias For Assignment

The Astros announced they’ve designated infielder Ramón Urías for assignment. His spot on the 40-man roster goes to pitching prospect Miguel Ullola, who has been selected to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. Their roster remains at capacity.

Houston acquired Urías from the Orioles at this past summer’s trade deadline. It initially seemed he’d be the fill-in third baseman after the Isaac Paredes injury. The Astros pulled off the shocking Carlos Correa deal a day later, pushing Urías into more of a second/third base hybrid role. He didn’t perform especially well. He hit .223/.267/.372 with 28 strikeouts in 101 trips to the plate after the trade.

That will end up being his only work in an Astros uniform. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Urías for a $4.4MM salary in his final year of arbitration. Houston wasn’t going to pay that amount coming off the rough finish. They can technically spend the next three days trying to find a trade partner, but it’s likelier they’ll simply non-tender him on Friday. He’d become a free agent at that point.

While his Astros tenure was a disappointment, Urías had been a capable role player for the Orioles for the past few seasons. He won a Gold Glove at third base in 2022, though his defensive grades in every other season have been right around average. Urías was also essentially an average hitter throughout his time in Baltimore. He batted .259/.324/.404 in a little more than 500 games over parts of six seasons with the Orioles. He’s been serviceable against pitchers of either handedness and can play any non-shortstop position on the dirt.

Urías should be able to command a major league contract if he’s non-tendered. It’d surely be a one-year deal but he could find a $3-4MM guarantee to work as a right-handed infielder off the bench. Houston will ideally find a lefty bat to fit that role, as their lineup already skews very heavily to the right side. They’ll need to decide whether to tender righty-hitting utilityman Mauricio Dubón (projected at $5.8MM) or start from scratch with their infield depth.

Ullola appears to be the only prospect whom the Astros were concerned would get taken in next month’s Rule 5 draft. The 23-year-old righty spent the entire ’25 season working out of the Triple-A rotation. He managed a solid 3.88 earned run average across 113 2/3 innings in the Pacific Coast League. Ullola fanned 27% of opponents but walked nearly 16% of batters faced. He has never thrown strikes at a tenable rate in the minors, which presumably points toward a long-term bullpen future. Ullola’s fastball sits around 94 MPH in his work as a starter, so he could be a solid power arm with significant bat-missing upside if the Astros move him to relief.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-designate-ramon-urias-for-assignment.html
 
Nine Players Reject Qualifying Offer

The deadline to accept the qualifying offer has passed. Four players — Trent Grisham, Gleyber Torres, Brandon Woodruff, and Shota Imanaga — chose to accept the one-year, $22.025MM deal and remain with their current clubs. The remaining nine players rejected the deal. They are: Cubs outfielder Kyle Tucker, Phillies DH Kyle Schwarber, Blue Jays infielder Bo Bichette, Astros lefty Framber Valdez, Padres righty Dylan Cease, Phillies lefty Ranger Suarez, Mets closer Edwin Diaz, Diamondbacks righty Zac Gallen, and Padres righty Michael King. All nine are now free agents.

There’s not much surprise in any of the nine players who rejected. Tucker, Schwarber, Bichette, Valdez, Cease, Suarez and Diaz were all locks. Gallen may have given some brief thought to accepting after a rough showing in 2025, but he finished strong and has a track record as a high-end starter who’s garnered multiple top-five finishes in NL Cy Young balloting. King was hobbled by nerve and knee injuries in an odd season but was dominant in 2023-24 and through the first two months of the current season. He was healthy late in the year and fanned three in his lone inning of postseason work. He’ll test the waters in search of a multi-year deal as well.

Now that this nonet has rejected qualifying offers, they’ll all be subject to draft compensation. Interested teams will need to surrender a draft pick (or multiple picks) and, in some cases, space from their bonus pool for international amateurs in order to sign any of this group. The extent of that draft compensation depends on the revenue-sharing and luxury tax status of the new team. MLBTR broke down which pick(s) each club would forfeit by signing a “qualified” free agent last month.

Similarly, the compensation for each player’s former club is dependent on revenue-sharing and luxury tax status — as well as the size of the contract signed by the player in question. MLBTR also ran through the compensation each team would receive if their qualified free agents turned down the offer and signed elsewhere.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/nine-players-reject-qualifying-offer.html
 
Braves, Astros Swap Mauricio Dubón For Nick Allen

The Astros and Braves announced a one-for-one swap of middle infielders. Utility player Mauricio Dubón is headed to Atlanta with defensive specialist Nick Allen on his way to Houston.

Atlanta takes on a few million dollars to upgrade their infield. Dubón, 31, spent nearly four seasons in Houston. The Astros acquired him from the Giants in a minor trade early in 2022. It was a nice pickup, as he developed into a versatile and generally reliable piece off the bench. Dubón won two utility Gold Glove awards while playing all three infield positions to the left of first base and a decent amount of center and left field.

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The righty-swinging Dubón was a league average hitter a couple seasons ago, batting .278/.309/.411 with 10 homers in nearly 500 trips to the dish. His offense has declined in each of the past two years. He’s coming off a .241/.289/.355 showing with seven longballs through 398 plate appearances and carries a .256/.293/.358 line over the past two seasons. He’s very difficult to strike out but rarely walks and has well below-average power.

Still, that light bat is a significant upgrade over what Allen brings to the table offensively. The 27-year-old Allen didn’t hit a single home run in 416 trips to the dish this year. He turned in a .211/.284/.251 line that made him easily the worst hitter to take 400+ plate appearances. Allen ranked in the bottom 20 hitters in on-base percentage, while his slugging mark was more than .040 points lower than the second-lowest in MLB (.296 by Victor Scott II). He owns a .213/.265/.272 slash in nearly 1200 plate appearances over parts of four seasons.

Allen has continued to get playing time because of his superlative glove. He has been touted as an excellent infielder dating back to his high school days. Allen has posted fantastic defensive marks in every season of his career. Defensive Runs Saved graded him as the third-best shortstop in MLB this year behind Mookie Betts and Zach Neto. Statcast’s Outs Above Average also had him third, albeit behind Bobby Witt Jr. and Masyn Winn.

Dubón is unlikely to be that caliber of defender if he were pressed into everyday shortstop work. Statcast has graded him as a plus defender in his 721 career innings at the position though. Defensive Runs Saved has him right around league average. Dubón should be capable of playing there every day, and he’s not a complete zero offensively. That’s particularly true in favorable platoon matchups, as he’s a .288/.329/.417 hitter versus left-handed pitching over the past three years.

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The Braves couldn’t afford to enter next season with Allen atop the shortstop depth chart. Dubón would be a low-end regular but provides a higher floor. This shouldn’t detract from Atlanta’s interest in re-signing Ha-Seong Kim. Dubón has the versatility to provide cover behind Ozzie Albies and Austin Riley at second and third base while complementing lefty-hitting Michael Harris II in center field. Still, he’s at least a reasonable one-year fallback if Kim signs elsewhere in a market devoid of shortstop alternatives in free agency or trade.

Dubón is entering his final season of arbitration eligibility. He’s projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a $5.8MM salary. Allen is eligible for arbitration for the first time as a Super Two player and under control for four years. He’s projected at $1.5MM. Houston cuts a little more than $4MM from the books while downgrading in the utility role.

Allen isn’t going to play shortstop barring an injury to Jeremy Peña, but he can offer a glove-only option at second base. Jose Altuve is the primary starter there for now, but the Astros hope to continue splitting his playing time between the keystone, left field, and designated hitter. They’ve been tied to Brendan Donovan in trade conversations and could consider other possibilities (e.g. a Brandon Lowe trade, Jorge Polanco in free agency) if the Cardinals deal Donovan elsewhere. They’ll ideally add a left-handed bat to balance a righty-heavy lineup. Allen is out of minor league options, so he’ll need to be on the active roster or designated for assignment.

Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported that Dubón had been traded to the Braves just before the announcements. Respective images courtesy of Jerome Miron and Brett Davis, Imagn Images.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/braves-astros-swap-mauricio-dubon-for-nick-allen.html
 
Astros Aiming To Stay Under Luxury Threshold

For a second straight offseason, Astros owner Jim Crane is “wary” of exceeding the luxury tax threshold, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports. Dipping under the tax line was a clear priority for Houston last offseason as well.

This year’s first-tier luxury threshold lands at $244MM. Per RosterResource, the Astros are currently about $25MM shy of that mark. Their DFA of Ramon Urias and last night’s trade of fellow utilityman Mauricio Dubón (for lower-priced utility option Nick Allen) trimmed a net $8.7MM off that payroll projection, which uses MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz’s projected arbitration salaries.

Houston’s current $218.9MM luxury tax projection could — and very likely will — dip further over the next 36 hours. The deadline to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players is tomorrow at 5pm ET. The ’Stros have several plausible non-tender candidates, including outfielder Jesus Sanchez ($6.5MM projected salary), reliever Enyel De Los Santos ($2.1MM projection) and outfielder Taylor Trammell ($900K projection). If the Astros move on from that trio, they’d trim a net $7.15MM from the current $218.9MM projection.

The Astros are known to be in the market for rotation help — they already took a cheap one-year flier on former top prospect Nate Pearson, guaranteeing him $1.35MM — and have been working to balance out a heavily right-handed lineup for the better part of the past calendar year. Framber Valdez is a free agent, leaving Hunter Brown atop a starting staff with more question marks than reliable contributors.

Cristian Javier is a quality mid-rotation arm when healthy, but 2026 will be his first full year back from Tommy John surgery. Lance McCullers Jr. returned from a two-year injury absence in 2025 but struggled badly. Spencer Arrighetti missed most of the season with a broken thumb. Jason Alexander was a surprise contributor in 2025, but he’s a journeyman 33-year-old with no prior MLB success who’d struggled in Triple-A from 2023-24. J.P. France pitched just four MLB frames and was hit hard in Triple-A after spending the first two-thirds of the season rehabbing from shoulder surgery. Left-hander Colton Gordon was tagged for a 5.34 ERA in 19 starts as a rookie. Righty AJ Blubaugh impressed in his first 32 big league innings but was tagged for a 5.27 ERA in a much larger Triple-A sample. Each of Ronel Blanco, Hayden Wesneski and Brandon Walter underwent Tommy John surgery. Prospect Miguel Ullola could factor in, but he’s yet to pitch in the majors and has poor command.

Suffice it to say, the need for starting pitching is acute, but the means to acquire it aren’t exactly plentiful. The Astros can certainly add one free agent starter at a notable salary, but that’d eat up a good chunk of the space they have between their current standing and the first luxury tier. Adding a left-handed bat to a lineup where Yordan Alvarez and rookie outfielder Zach Cole are the only current options (assuming Sanchez is non-tendered or traded) will also cut into the gap. Houston would presumably prefer to add another catcher, too; current backup Cesar Salazar hit just .213/.353/.353 in Triple-A this past season and has just 67 career plate appearances in the majors. He’ll turn 30 in March. And of course, most teams prefer to maintain at least a little financial wiggle-room for in-season dealings.

The trade market always presents alternative options, but Houston’s farm system is in dire straits. The Astros have long shown a knack for coaxing strong performances out of pitchers who weren’t considered top-tier talent throughout the industry (though the team clearly stalled in that regard this past season). However, that doesn’t mean other clubs will be lining up to surrender established talent in exchange for minor leaguers from what’s widely regarded as a bottom-five system in the game.

It’s feasible that further trades could be engineered to create more spending power, but GM Dana Brown has downplayed the possibility of moving first baseman Christian Walker (owed $40MM through 2027) and flatly said that he has “no interest” in trading infielder Isaac Paredes ($9.3MM projected salary). As things stand, the Astros have limited spending power to address their needs and an even more limited stock of minor league talent to peddle if they try to upgrade via trade. There are never any “easy” answers when trying to assemble a competitive roster with sufficient depth to navigate a 162-game season, but Brown & Co. are staring at their most complicated puzzle in recent memory.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-rumors-stay-under-luxury-tax.html
 
Astros Sign Anthony Maldonado To Minor League Deal

The Astros have signed right-hander Anthony Maldonado to a minor league deal, per Matt Eddy of Baseball America. The righty will presumably receive an invite to major league camp in spring training.

Maldonado, 28 in February, has a limited big league track record. He tossed 19 innings for the 2024 Marlins and then six innings for the Athletics this year. In the 25 combined innings, he has allowed 20 earned runs, leading to a 7.20 ERA. The A’s outrighted him off their 40-man roster at season’s end and he elected free agency.

Given the quality and quantity of that sample, the Astros are presumably more interested in his minor league numbers. Over multiple seasons, he has tossed 160 2/3 Triple-A innings with a 3.59 ERA. He has walked a worrisome 10.8% of batters faced at that level but has also punched out opponents at a strong 31.7% clip.

The Astros had a strong bullpen in 2025 but it leans to the left side, with Josh Hader, Bryan King, Steven Okert and Bennett Sousa all projected to be in there next year. Maldonado is a no-risk flier on a cheap righty arm. If he cracks the roster, he still has an option remaining and less than a year of service time.

Photo courtesy of John E. Sokolowski, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-sign-anthony-maldonado-to-minor-league-deal.html
 
American League Non-Tenders: 11/21/25

Every American League team has officially announced their non-tender decisions. It was a quiet evening in terms of subtractions, with only the Rangers parting with any marquee players. All players who were non-tendered are free agents without going on waivers. A few teams dropped pre-arbitration players from the back of the 40-man roster. It’s possible they preferred not to expose them to waivers and are hopeful of re-signing them to non-roster deals.

Here’s a full list of today’s activity in the AL, while the National League moves are available here. All projected salaries are courtesy of MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz.

  • The Angels announced they’ve non-tendered outfielder Gustavo Campero and catcher Sebastian Rivero. Campero is a depth outfielder who has hit .202/.272/.346 over the past two seasons. Rivero operated as the club’s third catcher for most of the season but spent the final few weeks on the active roster. Neither player had been eligible for arbitration. All their arb-eligible players were easy calls to retain.
  • The Astros technically made one non-tender, dropping infielder Ramón Urías after he was designated for assignment earlier in the week. He’d been projected at $4.4MM.
  • The Athletics officially non-tendered outfielder JJ Bleday, the club announced. He’d been designated for assignment on Tuesday, so this was inevitable unless they found a trade partner. Bleday had been projected at $2.2MM.
  • The only non-tenders for the Red Sox were first baseman Nathaniel Lowe and reliever Josh Winckowski, each of whom had been designated for assignment on Tuesday. Lowe was projected at $13.5MM, while Winckowski was at $800K.
  • The Guardians non-tendered outfielder Will Brennan and relievers Sam Hentges and Nic Enright. The latter had been designated for assignment on Tuesday. Hentges hasn’t pitched since undergoing shoulder surgery in September 2024. He underwent a right knee procedure a few months ago and will be delayed this offseason. Brennan only appeared in six MLB games this year and underwent Tommy John surgery while in the minors in June. He’d been projected at $900K.
  • The Mariners non-tendered reliever Gregory Santos, reports Francys Romero. He’d only been projected at $800K, narrowly above the MLB minimum, so the move was about dropping him from the 40-man roster. Seattle acquired the 26-year-old righty from the White Sox over the 2023-24 offseason. He has only made 16 MLB appearances with a 5.02 earned run average over the past two years because of lat and knee injuries. Seattle also non-tendered relievers Trent Thornton and Tayler Saucedo (the latter of whom was designated for assignment on Tuesday). Thornton had been projected at $2.5MM and is coming off a 4.68 ERA through 33 appearances. He suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in August.
  • The Orioles non-tendered swingman Albert Suárez, the team announced. Everyone else in their arbitration class was offered a contract, surprisingly including first baseman Ryan Mountcastle (as first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan). Suárez, 36, was a solid depth starter in 2024. He was limited to five MLB appearances this past season by a flexor strain but is not expected to require surgery.
  • The Rangers non-tendered each of Adolis García, Jonah Heim, Josh Sborz and Jacob Webb. MLBTR covered those moves in greater detail.
  • The Rays only non-tendered outfielders Christopher Morel and Jake Fraley, each of whom had been designated for assignment earlier in the week. Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times reported last night that the Rays were open to bringing back Fraley at a lower price than his $3.6MM arbitration projection.
  • The Royals non-tendered outfielder MJ Melendez and reliever Taylor Clarke, per a club announcement. Melendez, who’d been projected at $2.65MM, was an obvious decision. The former top prospect never developed as hoped and is a career .215/.297/.388 hitter over parts of four seasons. Clarke isn’t as big a name but comes as the more surprising cut. He’d been projected at just $1.9MM and is coming off a 3.25 ERA with a 21.4% strikeout rate over 55 1/3 innings out of the bullpen.
  • The Tigers are non-tendering utility player Andy Ibáñez, according to Romero. He’d been projected at $1.8MM. The righty-hitting Ibáñez had been a solid short-side platoon bat for Detroit between 2023-24. His production against southpaws dropped this year (.258/.311/.403), limiting his value. The Tigers optioned the 32-year-old to Triple-A in early June and kept him in the minors until shortly before the trade deadline. Detroit also dropped the six pitchers they’d designated for assignment earlier in the week: Tanner Rainey, Dugan Darnell, Tyler Mattison, Jason Foley, Jack Little and Sean Guenther.
  • The only Twins non-tender was outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr., who’d been designated for assignment this morning to make room for the Alex Jackson trade. Everyone in the arbitration class was brought back.
  • The White Sox non-tendered outfielder Mike Tauchman, as first reported by Bruce Levine of 670 The Score. The lefty hitter turned in a solid .263/.356/.400 line in 93 games this past season. Tauchman has gotten on base at plus rates in three straight years but was also non-tendered by the Cubs a year ago. The 34-year-old (35 next month) had been projected for a $3.4MM salary. The Sox also announced they’ve dropped lefty reliever Cam Booser and first baseman Tim Elko. Neither had been eligible for arbitration. The former posted a 5.52 ERA in 39 appearances after being acquired from the Red Sox last winter, while the latter hit .134 in his first 23 MLB games despite a 26-homer season in Triple-A.
  • The Yankees announced five non-tenders. Relievers Mark Leiter Jr., Scott Effross, Jake Cousins and Ian Hamilton were all cut loose, as was pre-arbitration righty Michael Arias. Leiter, who’d been projected at $3MM, never clicked in the Bronx after being acquired at the 2024 deadline. He posted a 4.89 ERA in 70 innings as a Yankee. Hamilton, Effross and Cousins were all projected just above the MLB minimum but are cut to clear roster space. Hamilton was on and off the active roster and posted a 4.28 ERA in 40 big league frames this year. Effross was limited to 11 appearances and has been plagued by various injuries for the past three and a half years, while Cousins is working back from Tommy John surgery. Arias has never pitched in the big leagues and could be brought back on a minor league deal.

The Blue Jays tendered contracts to all unsigned players on the 40-man roster.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/american-league-non-tenders-11-21-25.html
 
Players Avoiding Arbitration: 11/21/25

The deadline for teams to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players is this afternoon at 4pm CT. Throughout the day, we’ll surely see a handful of arb-eligible players agree to terms with their clubs to avoid a hearing.

These so-called “pre-tender deals” usually, although not always, involve players who were borderline non-tender candidates. Rather than run the risk of being cut loose, they can look to sign in the lead-up to the deadline. Those salaries often come in a little below projections, since these players tend to have less leverage because of the uncertainty about whether they’ll be offered a contract at all.

Under the 2022-26 collective bargaining agreement, players who sign to avoid an arbitration hearing are guaranteed full termination pay. That’s a change from prior CBAs, when teams could release an arb-eligible player before the season began and would only owe a prorated portion of the contract. This was done to incentivize teams and players to get deals done without going to a hearing.

All salary projections in this post come via MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. This post will be updated throughout the day as deals are announced and/or reported. Salary figures are from The Associated Press unless otherwise noted.


Photo courtesy of William Liang, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/players-avoiding-arbitration-11-21-25.html
 
Josh Hader “Back To Normal” After Season-Ending Shoulder Injury

The Astros played the final two months of the 2025 season without their star closer. Josh Hader suffered an ill-timed capsule sprain in his throwing shoulder a couple weeks into August. The injury came too late into the season for the front office to respond with an impact trade addition. Hader expressed hope that he could make a long shot return in the playoffs, but the Astros struggled down the stretch and found themselves on the outside looking in during the final weekend.

For many players, a capsule injury requires surgery and a potential year-plus absence. The Astros have maintained they expect Hader to be able to return without going under the knife. General manager Dana Brown said at the GM Meetings that the team was hopeful the six-time All-Star would be ready for Opening Day.

Hader offered similar sentiments this evening, saying he’s in a good spot after completing a throwing program a few weeks ago. “It should be normal. Obviously, intensity gets up (in Spring Training) and we’ll see how that goes and how I’m recovering, bouncing back from that,” the veteran lefty said (link via Matt Kawahara of The Houston Chronicle). “But as of now, everything is status quo, back to normal.”

Before the injury, Hader was amidst yet another excellent season. He carried a 2.05 ERA while striking out 37% of opponents across 52 2/3 innings. Hader locked down 28 of 29 save chances and was well on his way to what would have been his sixth straight full season with at least 30 saves. It was a strong rebound effort from a little less consistent first season in Houston. Hader posted a 3.80 ERA, the second-highest mark of his career, across 71 appearances in 2024.

Hader worked more than one inning in seven appearances this year. He completed two full frames four times, including in what wound up being his last outing of the season on August 8. Hader tossed a season-high 36 pitches in that appearance. That could certainly be coincidental — he twice threw 35 pitches in a game earlier in the year and didn’t get hurt — but the timing at least raises some questions about his workload. Hader didn’t throw more than one inning in any regular season game between 2021-23, seemingly out of concern about suffering an injury before he’d locked in a significant free agent contract.

Once the Astros signed him to a five-year, $95MM deal, Hader reversed course. He said tonight he remains open to pitching multiple innings despite the shoulder issue, though he added he hasn’t heard anything from the team regarding their usage plans. “For sure. They committed to me to be here for multiple years and gave me the opportunity to pitch. That’s all I can ever ask for. And my commitment to them is committing to be there and be available as much as possible,” Hader replied when asked about working more than one inning.

The Astros were forced to press Bryan Abreu into the closer role for the final six weeks of the season. Abreu had a rough patch between August 30 and September 9 when he allowed multiple runs in three out of four games. He was otherwise flawless, tossing scoreless appearances in his remaining 14 outings while securing seven saves. Abreu is one of the best setup arms in MLB and could certainly close if necessary, but the Astros felt the effects of losing Hader on the overall bullpen. Kaleb Ort and Enyel De Los Santos were their top right-handers to handle leverage spots that arose earlier in games. That’s not sufficient for a playoff hopeful.

It doesn’t seem Houston will know if they’re out of the woods with Hader’s shoulder until he fully builds up in March. The early returns are encouraging, though, which is pivotal for a team that’ll again face questions about the bullpen depth. The front office appears to be working under relatively tight payroll constraints from ownership and also needs to solidify the middle of the rotation while ideally adding a left-handed bat.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...rmal-after-season-ending-shoulder-injury.html
 
Astros Hire Ethan Katz As Assistant Pitching Coach

The Astros finalized their 2026 coaching staff. Ethan Katz has been hired as an assistant pitching coach, which was first reported by Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Houston also hired Tim Cossins as catching coach, a move that Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported last week.

The rest of Joe Espada’s staff had been previously reported. Victor Rodriguez comes over from the Padres as hitting coach, with Anthony Iapoce tabbed as his assistant. Dan Hennigan has officially been hired as director of hitting/offensive coordinator, which GM Dana Brown announced alongside the Iapoce hiring.

Josh Miller will be the team’s sole lead pitching coach after jointly holding that role with Bill Murphy for the past three seasons. Murphy left to take the same job with the Pirates last month. Bench coach Omar Lopez, base coaches Dave Clark (first) and Tony Perezchica (third), quality assurance coach Jason Bell, and game planning coach Tommy Kawamura are back in their previous positions.

Katz, 42, heads to Houston after five seasons as the top pitching coach with the White Sox. He’d previously worked in the minors with the Angels and Mariners and spent one year as an assistant pitching coach with the Giants. Chicago got excellent seasons from Dylan Cease and Lucas Giolito early in Katz’s tenure. They’ve predictably gone downhill since kicking off a rebuild in 2022. Only the Angels, Athletics, Nationals and Rockies have a higher ERA than the White Sox’s 4.61 mark over the past three seasons.

The Sox parted ways with Katz at the end of the ’25 campaign. Second-year manager Will Venable tabbed Royals assistant Zach Bove as their new pitching coach. Cossins, who’ll work with Yainer Diaz and quite likely an outside acquisition behind the plate, has spent the past seven seasons with the Orioles as catching instructor/field coordinator. He was dismissed in May 2025 when the Orioles fired manager Brandon Hyde.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/11/astros-hire-ethan-katz-as-assistant-pitching-coach.html
 
MLBTR Podcast: Some “Classic Baseball Trades,” Nimmo For Semien, And Ward For Rodriguez

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…


Check out our past episodes!

  • Offseason Preview Megapod: Top 50 Free Agents – listen here
  • Surprising Option Decisions, Qualifying Offers, And Paul DePodesta – listen here
  • Offseason Preview Megapod: Top Trade Candidates – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...-nimmo-for-semien-and-ward-for-rodriguez.html
 
Astros Open To Moving Jake Meyers In Search For Rotation Help

The Astros don’t have a ton of breathing room between their current payroll figures and the first tier of the luxury tax threshold — a line owner Jim Crane is once again reportedly loath to cross. With a prominent need in the rotation, they’ve been exploring both the free agent and trade markets. One scenario in play, per Ken Rosenthal and Chandler Rome of The Athletic, is to trade center fielder Jake Meyers for pitching help. Meyers is drawing plenty trade interest, per the report, and Houston brass is open to moving him if it’d mean adding a starter with multiple years of club control remaining.

The 29-year-old Meyers (30 next June) isn’t necessarily a household name, but the defensive standout is coming off a strong all-around season. In 381 trips to the plate, Meyers hit .292/.354/.373 with a career-best 8.1% walk rate and career-low 17.6% strikeout rate. He hit three home runs, 15 doubles and two triples and added 16 steals in 21 attempts.

Meyers’ power output in 2025 was a career-low, but he didn’t experience an especially alarming dip in his quality of contact. He averaged 88.1 mph off the bat, which is south of the league average but right in line with the 88.2 mph he averaged in 2024, when he hit a career-high 13 homers in 513 plate appearances. His 38.9% hard-hit rate was actually higher than the 37% mark he posted in ’24. Meyers hit more line drives and grounders in 2025, however. His 28.4% fly-ball rate was his lowest since 2022, and his percentage of fly-balls that left the yard — just 3.8% — was a career-low mark. A .353 average on balls in play boosted his production but also feels ripe for regression.

Even if there’s some regression in store, though, Meyers is a potentially impactful player when considering the totality of his skill set. He’s never posted a below-average (or even average) season in center in the eyes of Statcast, Defensive Runs Saved or Ultimate Zone Rating. In nearly 3500 career innings in center, Meyers has posted 22 DRS and 41 Outs Above Average.

Meyers has had elite sprint speed in the past, sitting as high as the 92nd percentile of big league position players as recently as 2023. His sprint speed wilted in a 2025 season that saw him endure a pair of IL stints due to calf injuries, though it still sat well above average (71st percentile). It’s feasible that with better health in his legs, his speed and defensive grades could trend upward. Notably, he’d already swiped 14 bags by the end of June but stole only twice more the rest of the way; his first IL placement due to a calf strain came in early July.

It seems fair to infer that Meyers wasn’t operating at full speed at any point down the stretch. He was out from early July through early September and hit just .204/.271/.204 in 59 plate appearances following his return from the IL. He was sporting a .308/.369/.405 batting line (buoyed by a .374 BABIP) at the time of his injury.

Meyers is controllable for another two seasons via arbitration. He’s also quite affordable, projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz to earn just $3.5MM in 2026. His availability comes at a time when the center field market is otherwise paper-thin. Trent Grisham accepted his qualifying offer from the Yankees. Cody Bellinger is a free agent but is more of a corner outfielder/first baseman and occasional center fielder than an everyday option in center. Harrison Bader is a free agent but has an inconsistent track record at the plate. Free agents Cedric Mullins and Lane Thomas are pure rebound candidates. The trade market offers names like Alek Thomas and Jarren Duran, but the former has never hit in the majors and the latter played primarily left field in 2025. Duran would also have a steeper acquisition cost than Meyers.

Of course, trading Meyers would create a center field void for the Astros themselves. They got some nice production out of 25-year-old Zach Cole in his 15-game debut late in the season, but it’s worth taking with a heavy grain of salt. Cole hit .255/.327/.553 with four homers in just 52 plate appearances, but he also fanned at a 38.5% clip. If that alarming strikeout rate were unique to his big league tenure, perhaps it could be chalked up to simple small-sample noise — but that’s not the case. Cole went down on strikes in a colossal 35.1% of his 416 minor league plate appearances in 2025 as well. He punched out in more than 38% of his Double-A plate appearances in 2024, too.

Impressive as Cole’s brief debut was, he’s not going to be able to cut it as a big league regular with such a glaringly deficient hit tool. Former top prospect Jacob Melton gives the ’Stros another potential option, but he was limited to just 67 games between Triple-A and the majors thanks to injuries this past season. He hit very well in 150 Triple-A plate appearances (.286/.389/.556) and quite poorly in 78 major league turns at the plate (.157/.234/.186, 37.7 K%). Taylor Trammell, an older and more traveled former top prospect, didn’t fare much better in 135 plate appearances (.197/.296/.333).

The Astros gave 2023 first-round pick Brice Matthews nine games in center field at the Triple-A level last season. He’s traditionally been a middle infielder, but with Carlos Correa joining an infield mix that also includes Jeremy Pena, Isaac Paredes and Jose Altuve, there’s no room in the middle infield. Matthews hit .260/.371/.458 (118 wRC+) in 498 Triple-A plate appearances last year but just .167/.222/.452 with a 42.6% strikeout rate in 47 MLB plate appearances.

If the Astros feel confident that some combination of Matthews, Melton and Cole can hold down the fort in center field next season, then trading Meyers becomes easier to stomach. However, it’s also fair to wonder what type of arm Houston could acquire in return for Meyers. He certainly has trade value, but two years of a slick-fielding, light-hitting center fielder isn’t likely to net a pitcher who can fill the shoes of the outgoing Framber Valdez. The Astros could likely bring in a back-of-the-rotation arm or perhaps some kind of rebound/upside play with multiple seasons of club control, but even if they deepen the rotation by way of a Meyers trade, they’ll be counting on Cristian Javier and/or Lance McCullers Jr. to return to their pre-injury form after shaky 2025 comebacks.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...-meyers-center-fielder-starting-pitching.html
 
Astros To Sign Ryan Weiss To Major League Deal

The Astros have reportedly agreed to a major league deal with right-hander Ryan Weiss, who has been pitching in Korea lately. Weiss is guaranteed $2.6MM and there’s a club option for 2027. He could potentially earn $10MM over the course of the pact. The Astros have a full 40-man roster and will need to make a corresponding move to make this official.

It’s a bit of an early birthday present for Weiss, who turns 29 next Wednesday. A fourth-round draft pick of the Diamondbacks back in 2018, he showed enough promise as a minor leaguer that the Snakes added him to their 40-man in November of 2021 to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He had just tossed 78 1/3 minor league innings in that 2021 season with a 4.60 earned run average and 9.5% walk rate but his 27% strikeout rate was quite good.

He struggled in the minors in 2022 and was placed on waivers, with the Royals placing a claim. Kansas City then passed him through waivers unclaimed in October of 2022. The Royals then released him in May of 2023. At that point, Weiss had tossed 76 1/3 innings on the farm, dating back to the start of 2022. In that time, he allowed 6.96 earned runs per nine.

That release kicked off a nomadic period for Weiss. He then landed with the High Point Rockers of the independent Atlantic League. After a few months there, with a 4.61 ERA, he signed with the Fubon Guardians of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League. He had a decent 2.32 ERA there, though in just 31 innings. He started 2024 back with the Rockers, posting a 4.61 ERA over nine starts.

In June of 2024, he signed with the Hanwha Eagles of the Korea Baseball Organization. It was with that club that he seemed to unlock a new gear. In 2024, he gave the Eagles 16 starts with a 3.73 ERA, 25.5% strikeout rate, 7.6% walk rate and 48.2% ground ball rate. He returned to the Eagles in 2025 and took the ball 30 more times. He logged 178 2/3 innings with a 2.87 ERA, 28.6% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 48.5% ground ball rate.

Weiss then pitched in relief for the Eagles in the playoffs but the Astros plan to utilize him as a starter. Houston has plenty of uncertainty in their rotation mix. They just lost Framber Valdez to free agency. Luis Garcia required another Tommy John surgery late in 2025 and has been jettisoned from the roster. Hayden Wesneski, Ronel Blanco and Brandon Walter also had TJS in 2025 and are slated to begin next year on the injured list.

That left the Astros going into 2026 with Hunter Brown and a heap of question marks behind him. Cristian Javier will be in the mix but he had a 4.62 ERA in 2025 after returning from his own lengthy surgery layoff. Lance McCullers Jr. has had all kind of injury troubles and put up a 6.51 ERA this year. Spencer Arrighetti was good in 2024 but spent most of 2025 on the IL and only made seven starts. Jason Alexander had some passable results this year but he’s a journeyman depth guy who’s about to turn 33. J.P. France spent most of 2025 recovering from shoulder surgery. Colton Gordon and AJ Blubaugh are on the 40-man but lacking in experience.

Upgrading the rotation for 2026 makes plenty of sense but it appears the club doesn’t have a ton of spending capacity. Reportedly, owner Jim Crane would prefer to avoid the competitive balance tax in 2026. RosterResource projects them for a $218MM CBT number next year. That’s more than $20MM below next year’s $244MM base threshold but the club also has other needs to address this winter. Trading someone like Christian Walker or Jake Meyers might free up some extra space but it’s somewhat tight for now.

So far, their rotation additions have been of the low-cost wild card variety. They took a flier on former top prospect Nate Pearson, signing him to a $1.35MM guarantee. Now they’ve added Weiss into the mix as well. Perhaps there’s a more surefire rotation upgrade over the horizon. For now, the Astros are making a modest bet that Weiss transfer some of his strong KBO results to the MLB level. For his part, Weiss gets a nice paycheck despite still having no major league experience.

Reporter Daniel Kim first reported that the two sides were close to a deal. Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reported that an agreement was in place for a major league pact and that Weiss will be a starter. Jesse Rogers of ESPN reported the guarantee, the presence of a ’27 option and the possibility for the deal to go beyond $10MM. Chandler Rome of The Athletic specified that the option is a club option.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/astros-to-sign-ryan-weiss-to-major-league-deal.html
 
Astros Have Received Interest In Jesus Sanchez

The Astros are losing Framber Valdez to free agency, leaving them in need of multiple starting pitchers behind ace Hunter Brown. Houston has taken cheap one-year fliers on former top prospect Nate Pearson and KBO returnee Ryan Weiss to compete for spots at the back of the staff. Those are fine dice rolls, but they’ll need to acquire someone whom they can comfortably slot alongside Cristian Javier in the middle of the rotation.

If owner Jim Crane remains loathe to cross the luxury tax line, the front office won’t have much flexibility to add free agent starting pitching. Chandler Rome of The Athletic writes that the club is indeed more likely to address the rotation via trade. One of the league’s weakest farm systems won’t do them any favors, so they might be looking at dealing from the MLB roster to accomplish that.

Houston is reportedly open to dealing standout defensive center fielder Jake Meyers for pitching. Meyers is coming off a career-best season at the plate and is controllable via arbitration for two seasons. He’s the best trade chip in the Houston outfield, but he’s not the only candidate to move this offseason. Rome reports that the Astros have gotten interest from other clubs in right fielder Jesús Sánchez as well.

That could explain why Sánchez remains on the roster at all. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for a $6.5MM salary in his third of four trips through the arbitration process. It came as a surprise that Houston tendered him a contract. Sánchez had a very poor finish to the 2025 season, batting .199/.269/.342 over 160 plate appearances after being acquired from Miami at the trade deadline. Combined with the escalating salaries and the payroll restrictions, it made him a non-tender candidate.

General manager Dana Brown acknowledged at last month’s GM Meetings that he was open to trade inquiries on Sánchez. Even if they’re not especially interested in paying him $6-7MM, it seems they found enough interest that they didn’t want to let him go for no return.

Sánchez isn’t going to net a mid-rotation arm, but it’s possible they swap him for a back-end starter. Teams like the Royals, Pirates, Guardians and Phillies could look to the trade market for a corner outfielder. While Sánchez has never lived up to his billing as a top prospect, he was an alright everyday player throughout his time with the Marlins. He was a league average hitter between 2021 and the ’25 deadline, hitting .246/.312/.432 in nearly 1900 plate appearances. He has plus bat speed and has typically posted strong exit velocities, though his batted ball metrics also collapsed in Houston.

Even if the Astros are unlikely to swap Sánchez for their biggest rotation pickup of the offseason, a change-of-scenery deal would create a bit of spending room. Trading both Sánchez and Meyers would leave them very thin in the outfield, and dealing the former would subtract one of their few left-handed bats. While Dana Brown has already said they’re not interested in moving Isaac Paredes, that might be something the front office needs to consider later in the offseason if they can’t find a mid-rotation arm in a different way.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/astros-have-received-interest-in-jesus-sanchez.html
 
Astros, Orioles Among Clubs Interested In Ranger Suárez

Left-hander Ranger Suárez is one of the top free agent starting pitchers still available. Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports that the Astros, Cubs and Orioles are the clubs most likely to pluck him away from the Philadelphia, though the Phillies remain in the mix. Feinsand adds that the Mets and Tigers are also involved in the southpaw’s market. Jeff Passan of ESPN adds that Suárez has long been a target of Houston and Baltimore.

Suárez, 30, has been pretty consistent in terms of his results in recent years. He’s generally been able to combine decent strikeout and walk rates with strong ground ball numbers. However, he also has some question marks since his velocity isn’t huge by modern standards and some injuries have prevented him from being a workhorse.

Over the past four seasons, Suárez has tossed 588 1/3 innings for the Phillies, allowing 3.59 earned runs per nine. He punched out 21.9% of batters faced in that time and gave out walks at a 7.5% pace, both marks being close to typical league averages. His 50.8% ground ball rate in that span was quite strong.

He has spent at least some time on the injured list in each of those campaigns. Back problems are a recurring issue but there was also an elbow strain and a hamstring strain mixed in. Due to those injury setbacks, he has never hit the 160-inning mark in any season of his career. As for the velocity, he was able to average in the 93-94 mile per hour range with his fastball a few years ago. However, over the past two seasons, he’s been in the 91-92 mph range.

It’s not a perfect profile but Suárez is still one of the better arms out there. At the beginning of the offseason, MLBTR predicted Suárez could secure a five-year, $115MM deal. He was the fourth starting pitcher on the list, behind Dylan Cease, Framber Valdez and Tatsuya Imai. Cease has signed with the Blue Jays but Valdez, Imai and Suárez remain three of the most attractive starting pitchers available. Suárez rejected a qualifying offer from the Phillies, meaning any other team that signs him would be subject to the associated penalties.

Valdez is a fairly similar pitcher, since he’s also a ground ball guy, but he edges past Suárez for a few reasons. Though he’s two years older, he’s been more durable. While Suárez has never got to 160 innings, Valdez got to at least 176 in each of the past four seasons, including three with at least 192 frames. His ground ball rate is usually in the 60% range, about 10 points ahead of Suárez. His velocity has also been a few ticks above Suárez of late. MLBTR predicted Valdez for $150MM over five years.

The Astros just lost Valdez to free agency and need help in the rotation due to a large number of injuries. They seem to have a tight budget, with an apparent desire to avoid the competitive balance tax. It therefore makes sense that they might look to pivot to Suárez as a way to effectively replace Valdez at a discount.

RosterResource has Houston’s CBT number around $220MM, putting them roughly $24MM below next year’s base threshold of the tax. Signing Suárez would likely put them right up against the line but they could also create some more room by trading someone like Jake Meyers, Jesús Sánchez or Christian Walker.

Orioles president of baseball operations Mike Elias has publicly admitted that the club is looking for a front-of-rotation starter to slot next to Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish. They have generally avoided big splashes on the pitching side. They also needed rotation help last year and ended up giving one-year deals to Charlie Morton and Tomoyuki Sugano, relatively older guys without much upside. It’s possible they make a bolder strike this offseason, having been connected to Imai, Valdez and others.

The Cubs are also known to be on the lookout for rotation upgrades. They have a number of decent arms already on the roster but clearly want to raise the ceiling by adding a playoff-caliber arm. They were interested in Cease before he came off the board and have also been connected to Imai, Michael King and others.

RosterResource has them less than $50MM away from the tax line, which they have generally tried not to cross in recent years. They could also consider a big offensive upgrade, such as going after Alex Bregman. Getting both a big-name starter and Bregman could push them close to that line.

The Tigers have a big ace in Tarik Skubal but could upgrade the group behind him. As of now, Reese Olson, Casey Mize and Jack Flaherty are his best supports but the club could get an external upgrade and bump each of those guys down a peg. They haven’t been signing top free agents for a while but the tier below seems possible. They have been connected to King and now Suárez this offseason.

The Mets dealt with a lot of rotation injuries in 2025, forcing them to rely on rookies Nolan McLean, Jonah Tong and Brandon Sproat. There’s talent there but the club clearly wants to make additions after a narrow playoff miss. They have been connected to Imai as well as Joe Ryan of the Twins.

They have a lot of moving parts in their offseason. Acquiring Marcus Semien might push Jeff McNeil to the trade block. They also might want to flip out Kodai Senga as they also add to the rotation. They may or may not re-sign Pete Alonso and Edwin Díaz. They also might be in the markets for Cody Bellinger and other free agents.

As for the Phillies, they could try to bring back Suárez but it might not be their priority right now. Zack Wheeler may miss the beginning of the season due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery but it’s possible he can rejoin the club fairly early in the campaign. Once back, he would slot into the rotation with Cristopher Sánchez, Jesús Luzardo, Aaron Nola, Taijuan Walker and Andrew Painter.

The Phils could bolster that group but they also have other things on the to-do list. They want to re-sign Kyle Schwarber and J.T. Realmuto while also remaking their outfield. Amid all of that, it’s possible one of these other clubs has a chance to lure Suárez away.

Photo courtesy of Bill Streicher, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/astros-orioles-among-clubs-interested-in-ranger-suarez.html
 
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