Astros GM Jeff Luhnow hasn’t ruled out adding a starting pitcher to the rotation.
2018 is last year in contracts of Keuchel, Morton
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Improving their bullpen remains the Astros’ primary focus this offseason. But what if they could do so by acquiring a starter?
On the first day of baseball’s winter meetings, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow didn’t rule out the possibility of bolstering the team’s rotation. Signing or trading for an impact reliever or two remains the likelier course of action, but adding another arm to supplement Justin Verlander, Dallas Keuchel, Lance McCullers Jr. and Charlie Morton could push Brad Peacock and Collin McHugh to relief.
It’s an idea the reigning World Series champions have considered, to the point they internally discussed starters of interest Monday afternoon in their suite at Walt Disney World’s Swan and Dolphin Resort. But Luhnow also cautioned that the starters the Astros like “require much more significant commitments, and we’re not sure that’s the best path for us to take right now.”
Jake Arrieta and Yu Darvish are the best available starting pitchers on the free-agent market, and according to a report Monday by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Astros have “shown interest” in both. Alex Cobb and Lance Lynn represent the nextbest free-agent starting pitching options.
And while it would still be stunning to see the team that just landed Verlander on Aug. 31 also sign one of the winter’s top starters, the Astros must consider the future beyond 2018. Keuchel and Morton are in line to become free agents after next season. Verlander is under contract for 2018 and 2019.
Reliever still sought
“I think the reality is if we’re going to improve our rotation, it’s going to have to be somebody that’s better than what we have, and we’ve got a pretty good rotation penciled out for next year,” Luhnow said Monday. “So we’re not going to be looking at fourth and fifth starters. We’re probably looking at something north of that.
“There’s not a big population (of available starters who fit that criteria), but we’ll probably touch base with maybe not all of them but some of them.”
Still, it’s more likely the Astros address their bullpen needs externally rather than by taking from the back end of their rotation. Even with lefthander Mike Minor (Rangers) and righthander Brandon Morrow (Cubs) off the board, the free-agent market is flush with options.
Although the Astros aren’t expected to vie for top free-agent closers Wade Davis or Greg Holland, righthanders Bryan Shaw and Addison Reed and lefthander Jake McGee remain available. So do lefthander Tony Watson and righthanders Joe Smith and Tommy Hunter.
The Astros could also look to the trade market for a reliever, perhaps one of the caliber of righthander Kelvin Herrera of the Kansas City Royals or lefthander Brad Hand of the San Diego Padres.
They may, however, be less likely to part with top prospects this winter after dealing highly touted righthander Franklin Perez to the Detroit Tigers in the Verlander trade.
Industry wide, transactions were few Monday after a busier Sunday. Luhnow said for the Astros “it’s still early” in their offseason because they have yet to make any commitments.
“You need to have your options open,” he said. “If we’re going to pursue the reliever market; if something develops there that we’re happy with, we might even sign more than one reliever if it looks good. But if it doesn’t happen and we have some resources and we’d rather put it into starting pitching and then free up one of our starters to be a reliever, we could do that as well.
“And then we’re also looking at trades. Some of the trade discussions we’re having are regarding pitchers, and some are regarding position players. We’re not ruling anything out right now, but it does have to fit the Astros team for 2018 and give us a chance to repeat as division (champions).”
Feeling-out process
Luhnow added he would be surprised if the Astros “didn’t do something to get ourselves a reliever one way or another.”
No deals involving the Astros appeared imminent as of Monday, but the meetings will continue Tuesday and Wednesday before wrapping with Thursday morning’s Rule 5 Draft.
“At this point, it’s a lot of feeling each other out and trying to see where the market’s going on some of the players that we’re interested in,” Luhnow said. “I think it will be a productive three days. Even if we don’t get a deal done while we’re here, we’re certainly going to put ourselves in a spot where we’ll have an opportunity to potentially after(ward).”