At the Tuesday press conference where the Houston Astros introduced their biggest acquisition of the offseason so far, owner Jim Crane made it very clear that the addition of Jose Abreu was not the end of Houston’s offseason to-do list.
Houston Astros send warning shot to rest of MLB that their roster is far from final
Even after signing Abreu to a three-year deal and solidifying first base, Crane made it very clear that Houston is still looking to make themselves even stronger for a repeat run at the World Series next season. In the short clip below, Crane mentions that bringing back Yuli Gurriel and Justin Verlander are both “in the mix” as well as looking at other options, stating that the defending World Champions “aren’t finished” and that the Astros “think we can improve a little bit more.”
Jim Crane says Astros not finished pic.twitter.com/Q7LETspCw4
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) November 29, 2022
All of that would make a tall to-do list for Houston. However, the Astros seem very focused on winning in 2023 and making another deep postseason run, knowing that it could be the last on the bench for Dusty Baker, who will turn 74 next season and finally earned a World Series ring as a manager this past season.
One of the ways that Houston could improve their roster with another player from outside the organization is by inking free agent Cody Bellinger and giving him a shot to take over center field. Houston has been linked to Bellinger in recent days and center field was a revolving door for the Astros heading into the postseason. Chas McCormick took over the duties as the postseason went on, and had a pair of big home runs in Houston’s sweep of the New York Yankees in the American League Championship Series. However, he struggled to a .211/.318/.211 slash line in the World Series, striking out 10 times in 19 at-bats.
Bringing back Gurriel in a utility role may be the easiest path for the Astros to improve their roster. The 38-year-old would likely fall under the “one more run” mentality that Houston seems to be currently embracing. The same could be said for the 39-year-old Verlander, although the cost for his services is expected to be high (MLBTradeRumors.com is projecting $120 million over three years) and competition for his services is fierce with the Los Angeles Dodgers as well as the New York Mets and Yankees all linked to him in rumors.
The Houston Astros have made it clear they are still looking to add pieces this offseason, a scary thought for a team that is already well positioned to make another run at the Fall Classic in 2023.