Close to the vest in Las Vegas
GM Luhnow looking for pitching, but that doesn’t mean he will deal at winter meetings
When the baseball world convenes in Las Vegas on Monday afternoon, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow will tote his reshuffled front office and reinforcing the middle of his starting rotation atop a list of foremost concerns.
Baseball’s annual winter meetings offer a fertile ground for wheeling and dealing. Aptly, this edition will unfold beneath the backdrop of a city which built its reputation upon the sort of moneymaking — and spending — in which the sport’s elite will be tempted to engage.
Whether Luhnow and his twotime defending American League West champion club will indulge during the four-day summit is unknown. The 51-year-old does not publicly discuss specific free agents he is targeting or trade chips he covets.
The signing of free-agent starters Patrick Corbin and Nate Eovaldi, coupled with the Cardinals’ acquisition of six-time All-Star first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, have accelerated the market in advance of a later-than-usual winter meetings.
The Astros, meanwhile, have made both a trade and a freeagent signing; acquiring versatile bench bat Aledmys Diaz from the Blue Jays and inking catcher Robinson Chirinos to a one-year deal on Thursday.
“We’re keeping tabs on everything,” Luhnow said. “We’ve been involved in some of the conversations on the deals that were done, I’m not going to get into specifics on those, but we’re going to continue to assess our needs relative to our options and make the best possible decisions.”
Asked if the Astros were involved in discussions for the centerpieces of those high-profile transactions this week — all three players would satisfy needs Luhnow is exploring — the general manager offered a wry laugh.
“It’s very possible” he said Thursday, minutes after Chirinos’ signing was made official.
Chirinos, for the moment, clears one offseason concern. The respected veteran will afford an offensive upgrade at the team’s most unproductive position and, in Luhnow’s estimation, thrive in an Astros’ system with a track record of improving defensive catching metrics.
Chirinos arrives relatively cheap — $5.75 million, according to multiple reports — and on a one-year deal. Pairing him with Max Stassi, an elite pitch framer who showed flashes of offensive brilliance last year in his first full major league season, could be how the club proceeds into spring training.
Luhnow did not discount possibly adding another catcher some time this offseason, but did reiterate he is “comfortable” proceeding into the regular season with that aforementioned duo.
How the Astros addressed their catching situation suggests there is more urgency in addressing their starting rotation, one which must replace 500 innings from last season, and a veteran bat to accompany competition in left field.
Former 19-game winner Collin McHugh — sent to the bullpen last season because of a starter surplus — is almost assured to re-enter the rotation.
Josh James and Framber Valdez represent internal options to fill another spot.
Who may slot ahead of those two, behind Justin Verlander and Gerrit Cole, is of utmost concern.
“Adding another experienced pitcher into the middle of the rotation, I think that would be a goal of ours,” Luhnow said.
Neither of the Houston’s two free agent starters — Dallas Keuchel or Charlie Morton — has found a new home.
Corbin’s deal makes Keuchel the most proven starting pitcher on the free agent market. Morton, who openly pondered retirement last season, is believed to want a two-year deal.
The Astros declined to extend Morton a $17.9, one-year qualifying offer earlier in the offseason — Keuchel unsurprisingly declined the one Houston gave him — but that does not preclude the club from negotiating with either of them.
In November at the general manager meetings, Luhnow acknowledged there is “more comfort” in executing a long-term deal with a starter due to Verlander and Cole’s free agency following 2019.
Cole, it must be remembered, arrived via a trade last January — more than a month after the winter meetings concluded.
Two years before that, in the offseason which preceded a World Series title, Houston acquired Brian McCann and signed Josh Reddick on the same November day, again without the whirlwind of the winter meetings.
“We’re going to continue to assess our needs relative to our options and make the best possible decisions,” Luhnow said. “Some of those may not come until later in the offseason — like last year — but we’re not going to stop working to improve this team.”