Houston Astros Free Agent Star Lands Massive Deal in Recent Prediction

The Houston Astros star might not be worth this price, but it's his market value.

Aug 28, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Houston Astros infielder Alex Bregman (2) hits a single against the Philadelphia Phillies in the third inning at Citizens Bank Park. / Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

According to recent reports, the Houston Astros have spoken with Alex Bregman about returning to the team.

That's a good indication he could be coming back to the Astros, as he's somebody the team needs.

Not only has Bregman been one of the top players in baseball over much of the past decade, but Houston's farm system is nowhere near good enough to allow a hitter of his caliber to walk.

There simply isn't any solution waiting in the passenger seat. 

The only potential problem with him returning could be his price, as the slugger could be looking at a deal around $200 million. That's more than a fair price to pay, given the numbers he's produced, but he's aging and had one of the worst seasons of his career at the plate this past campaign.

On the one hand, even though Bregman turned it around, his slow start can't be ignored since it was about as bad of a two-and-a-half month stretch as any player in Major League Baseball which should be a concern moving forward due to the type of money he's set to receive. 

However, evaluators still view him as a nearly $200 million guy, as Tim Britton of The Athletic predicted he'd land a seven-year, $189 million deal.

"Bregman rebounded from a difficult start to the year to look basically like himself from mid-May on: an OPS around .850 with 25 homers in his last 108 games. There was one key difference from his past years, though: the collapse of his walk rate. After years spent in the teens, Bregman’s walk rate plummeted below seven percent. He attributed that earlier in the season to swinging too much, especially at borderline pitches, which led to weaker contact. He swung more than he had in any other full season in the major leagues, and he made more contact outside the strike zone than ever before. Whether that’s an aberration or a trend will color how you feel about giving an otherwise stalwart performer a deal for six or seven years and close to $200 million."

If that contract does come true, it wouldn't be the worst price for the Astros.

They could spend that money elsewhere, but there isn't another third baseman on the market who does what he does and is the type of player he is in their clubhouse.

There are some infielders who could potentially move over to third base, but there would be concerns about that, too.

The best bet would be to bring the franchise legend back and go from there.