Houston Astros: Yasiel Puig interest, not in their best interest
In need of a new starting outfield, the Houston Astros have shown interest in Yasiel Puig.
The bad news is, the Houston Astros lost their entire starting outfield to free agency this year. The good news is, aside from Michael A. Taylor, Adam Eaton, and Hunter Renfroe, essentially every outfielder who entered free agency, is still there. A lot of options out there for the Astros to choose from. So why are they messing around with Yasiel Puig?
I understand the allure a player like Puig offers. Power potential, cannon for an arm, hits for a respectable average, and a lot of postseason experience. What’s not to like? His attitude. His big personality. His baggage.
There could be a lot of value with signing Puig cheap and maximizing his potential. Reports are he doesn’t want to sign cheap and doesn’t like incentive based clauses in his contract. He wants to be paid for what he has done in the past. Great. Good for him. With a lot of money tied up already, the Astros should not be doing anything other than kicking the tires with Yasiel Puig.
Yasiel Puig is drawing interest from multiple teams, per sources. Red Sox, Yankees, Astros, Marlins and Orioles appear to have varying levels of interest.
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) January 4, 2021
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With the trash can beating scandal, the Astros have enough distractions already. Even though some of the core pieces are gone from the team which made trips to the World Series in 2017 and 2019, this is still a tight knit team. Bringing in an outspoken, me-first-player, would do harm to the team’s chemistry. There is no room on the current roster for a hothead like Puig.
There are a handful of cheaper options on the market and the Astros should focus on other outfielders. The production they offer may not be the same as Puig, though the Astros are not going to find one player to replace George Springer’s numbers. A healthy Yordan Alvarez should make up for some of the lost power numbers.
Currently sitting with 38 men on the 40-man roster the Astros are only going to use one spot for an outfielder. Nomar Mazara, Jose Martinez, even a reunion with Jake Marisnick would all be ideal players to sign.
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As for Yasiel Puig, this move is not in the best interests of the Houston Astros.