HOUSTON — General Manager Dana Brown stated on Saturday that while Houston has “cracked” up the door to re-signing free agent Alex Bregman, it may still be unlikely that the third baseman will stay with the Astros.
Brown spoke extensively on the potential of re-signing Bregman, who has played with the Astros for his entire nine-year career, during the team’s FanFest.
“The interesting thing is when we made some trades and some moves this offseason, we never realized that Bregman would still be on the market at this time,” Brown stated. “We’ve had some conversations and I could kind of leave it there, but we’ve had some conversations.”
He went on to say that the talks were “positive” before being questioned whether that meant Bregman’s re-signing was still possible.
Brown said, “I would say it’s cracked, right,” “The fact that he’s still available only adds attention to it. He’s a really excellent player who has accomplished a lot of amazing things here. We’ll continue to use the cracked door and see where our discussions take us.
Houston would have to deal with a congested infield if Bregman returned. They signed free agency first baseman Christian Walker this summer after trading outfielder Kyle Tucker to the Cubs for infielder Isaac Paredes.
“Our group is pretty set,” Brown stated. “We made some moves and some trades and solidified our top five in our lineup and so it’s a long shot, but the fact that (Bregman’s) a free agent, we’ll have discussions about him like we have discussions about every other free agent.”
Brown stated that Paredes would play third base and Walker would be the team’s first baseman on the day Walker was debuted in Houston. However, Brown stated on Saturday that Bregman would play third base if he were to re-sign.
“I love watching Bregman play third base, so I can’t imagine putting Bregman or having (manager) Joe (Espada) put Bregman in any other position other than third base,” Brown stated. “He lives there. I can’t imagine him playing anyplace else since he is as unique as everyone else and plays Gold Glove at third base, where he puts on clinics.
Bregman, a two-time All-Star, finished second in the AL MVP voting in 2019 and was awarded a Silver Slugger Award after winning a Gold Glove the previous season.
Throughout the winter, Espada said he has been in contact with the 30-year-old Bregman and, although he tries to give him space, he wants to make sure he knows that he hopes he would stay in Houston forever.
Espada remarked, “I tell him all the time… this is home,” “You sit down with your family and attempt to figure out what’s best for you, your family, and your children. I understand the process. However, this is his family and his home.
If Bregman were to re-sign with the Astros, he would stay at third base, but it’s uncertain if his return would require Jose Altuve to switch from second base, where he has spent his entire 14-year career.
Although Altuve made it clear at the close of the last campaign that he wanted Bregman to stay with the squad, Espada would not clarify whether he had spoken with him the prospect of switching roles to make that happen.
“If we get there, we’ll have that conversation with him, but his willingness to do whatever it takes to win — it’s important to us,” Espada stated. He is a vital member of this group. He is the organization’s beating heart. He is aware of it, but if we reach that stage, I’m confident we’ll talk about it and how it will manifest itself going ahead.”
Altuve stated that although those discussions have not yet taken place, he would be amenable to anything the team requires.
“Alex, he’s one of the best players in the whole league, but he’s definitely one of the best players on the team, so we want him to stay,” Altuve stated. “So whatever I have to do for him to stay, I’m willing to do it.”
