Diaz trade could spell ‘post-Marwin world’
At the general manager meetings last week, Jeff Luhnow created the “post-Marwin world.”
The Astros’ president of baseball operations does not comment on specific free agents — neither those he is in peril of losing nor the ones he is interested in acquiring or resigning.
Retaining Marwin Gonzalez and his invaluable versatility remains an option for Houston. The team has prided itself on depth during this recent run of success, and Gonzalez is a one-man depth creator on a major league roster.
Still, there must be contingencies. The “post-Marwin world” remains a plausible reality. The Astros advanced it Saturday morning, acquiring Blue Jays infielder Aledmys Diaz in exchange for Class AAA right-handed pitcher Trent Thornton.
A 28-year-old who garnered AllStar honors in his 2016 rookie season with the Cardinals, Diaz has started 168 of his 174 major league games at shortstop. He had extensive work at third base as a minor leaguer, too, while seeing sporadic time in left field and second base.
“This is a guy about as versatile as any of the other guys on our roster,” Luhnow said Saturday. “In today’s game, versatility is becoming more and more important. It’s feasible to have three or four guys that can play three or four positions on your 25-man roster. It gives the manager flexibility — lineup and defensive flexibility.”
Diaz hit a career-high 18 home runs last season, producing a .756 OPS. He has 42 homers in three major league seasons and a career .458 slugging percentage.
“He’s a good hitter, and we think he can be better,” Luhnow said. “He’s still coming into his prime.”
Diaz and Yuli Gurriel now represent the two most versatile defenders on Houston’s 40-man roster. The two Cubans know each other well. Luhnow said Saturday he’d already spoken to Gurriel, who was “very excited” with the acquisition.
Last season, manager A.J. Hinch wanted to acclimate Gurriel to different infield spots during spring training. Gurriel’s hand surgery squashed the plan. Still, he has 24 major league starts at third base, including four last season to spell Alex Bregman.
Both Gurriel and Tony Kemp are possibilities at second base if Jose Altuve requires an off day.
“Between Diaz and Yuli and, really, Kemp, you start to envision a roster where you’ve got multiple guys who can play two or more positions, and that certainly helps lineup construction and defensive alignments,” Luhnow said.
Diaz’s addition augments the Astros’ 40-man roster to 35. The Astros faced a looming decision on whether to add Thornton to it.
Thornton was eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this season. Teams have until Tuesday to protect their eligible players by adding them to their 40-man rosters. Thornton had a career 4.23 ERA in four seasons in the Astros’ system. He spent this entire season with Class AAA.