Houston Astros Rumored to Be Nearing Deal with Edwin Encarnacion

The Houston Astros are rumored to be on the verge of signing slugging first baseman Edwin Encarnacion, which would put them in position to make a blockbuster deal with the Chicago White Sox for Chris Sale.

Late Tuesday evening, word spread that the Houston Astros were close to reaching a deal with free agent slugger Edwin Encarnacion, per multiple sources.

The Houston Astros have been plenty busy so far this offseason, and this deal would coincide with the thought that Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports expressed yesterday, that the Astros are looking to load up on offense in order to make a deal for a front-line starting pitcher.

Rosenthal mentioned Astros youngsters George Springer and Alex Bregman as two possible headliners heading to another club as part of a package that would bring the Astros another front-line starting pitcher.

That narrative directly relates to speculation that the Chicago White Sox would part with All-Star starting pitcher Chris Sale in return for a prospect package that included Houston Astros infielder Alex Bregman among others.

The possible signing of Encarnacion would show that the Astros are all-in for the 2017 season. They acquired veteran catcher Brian McCann in a trade with the New York Yankees earlier this month, sending back two low-A level arms in return. Later that same afternoon the Astros reached an agreement with free agent outfielder Josh Reddick on a four-year contract worth $52 million.

McCann, 32, hit .242 with 20 home runs and 58 RBI in 130 games for the Yankees in 2016. McCann is a career .266 hitter with 245 home runs and 888 RBI over the course of 12 seasons with the Atlanta Braves and Yankees. The left-handed hitting catcher saw significantly better results against right-handed pitching in 2016, posting a .249 batting average with 17 home runs and 39 RBI while hitting just .218 with three home runs and nine RBI versus left-handed pitching.

Reddick, 29, hit .281 with 10 home runs and 37 RBI in 115 games in 2016, splitting time between the Oakland Athletics and Los Angeles Dodgers. Reddick is a career .255 hitter with 96 home runs over the course of eight seasons with the Boston Red Sox, Oakland A’s and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Adding Edwin Encarnacion to the mix in Houston would give the Astros another solid right-handed power bat in the lineup, as well as an everyday first baseman. Encarnacion, 33, hit .263 with 42 home runs and an American League best 127 RBI in 2016 for the Toronto Blue Jays. Encarnacion has been one of the league’s best power hitters over the past five years, not having a season with fewer than 34 home runs since 2011. Encarnacion has posted a .272 batting average with 193 home runs and 550 RBI from 2012-2016 with the Blue Jays.

Could a potential Astros deal with Encarnacion set up a Chris Sale blockbuster with the White Sox?

The signing of Encarnacion would mean more for the Astros moving forward than just a sign that they are all-in for 2017. With the additions of McCann, Reddick and Encarnacion, it would also open up the ability to, as I touched on earlier, make a move for another starting pitcher to help boost their chances in 2017.

At this point, the thought is that the Astros would move Yulieski Gurriel from third base to first base to slot youngster Alex Bregman in at the hot corner next season. Bringing Encarnacion aboard gives the Astros an everyday first baseman, allowing them to leave Gurriel at third, with Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve up the middle of the infield. Making it more fathomable that they would include their 2015 number-one draft pick to headline a blockbuster trade that would bring Chris Sale to Houston to head up their rotation.

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The White Sox front office has made it no secret that they will not move Chris Sale unless they receive their desired cornerstone in a potential deal; in this case that would be Astros top prospect Alex Bregman. Bregman, 22, struggled early with the Astros in midseason 2016 when he was brought up to the major league level, but rebounded nicely after having a heart-to-heart with Astros manager A.J. Hinch.

Hinch called the struggling young Bregman to his office on July 31, to let him know that he was moving him into the number-two spot in the batting order. When Bregman questioned the move, due to his struggles since being called up, Hinch told him, “This move reflects what our organization thinks of you,” and that was the confidence boost that he needed.

Bregman finished up his 2016 campaign with a .264 batting average, eight home runs, and 34 RBI over the course of 49 games for the Astros. While Bregman exceeded his rookie limits during the 2016 season, he is still under club control for quite some time with the 2020 being his first arbitration eligible offseason, and 2023 being his earliest free agency eligible offseason.

A deal that would net the Astros Chris Sale would likely have to include a combination of Astros prospects in addition to Alex Bregman. A package including Alex Bregman, Kyle Tucker, Forrest Whitley, David Paulino, Daz Cameron and Franklin Perez or Riley Ferrell would probably work for both sides.

With the Astros being pretty deep behind those top prospects, the White Sox would receive a major league ready third baseman in Bregman, who they would control through the 2023 season, along with two outfielders and two pitchers. The White Sox would also add four of the Astros’ top ten prospects to their thin minor league system, all four of which currently reside on the MLB.com Top 100 Prospects list.

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With the CBA negotiations gaining positive steam over the last 24-48 hours, and the idea that a deal will be reached in the coming days, things will certainly begin to take shape across the league, If the Astros do in fact ink Encarnacion, they certainly become the favorites to land Chris Sale in a blockbuster deal with the White Sox.

If things play out that way, the Astros will surely be the preseason favorite to win the American League in 2017, and the White Sox will have greatly strengthened their farm system, while putting their rebuild plan into motion. The ingredients for a perfect deal between the two clubs could be coming to a boil in the very near future.