Houston Astros Have Alex Bregman Replacement Waiting in Wings of Minor Leagues

The Houston Astros have a talented young slugger in the Minor Leagues who could replace Alex Bregman.

Sep 2, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Houston Astros third baseman Shay Whitcomb (10) prepares for the pitch in the sixth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. / Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros 2024 season was ended abruptly by the Detroit Tigers in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs.

After advancing to the ALCS in seven straight years, the Astros were swept in the best-of-three series, snapping their streak. They had opportunities to win games, but the upstart Tigers came up big whenever they needed and advanced to the ALDS.

Attention will now turn to offseason preparations for Houston. There will be some major decisions to make in the coming weeks once free agency heats up.

One of the players that people will be keeping a close eye on is third baseman Alex Bregman.

A stalwart for the team at the hot corner, Bregman has a chance to earn a lot of money this offseason. He is the clear-cut No. 1 option at his position on the market and there are teams who will have a need.

If Houston can’t retain him, there is a sizable void to fill in their lineup. While he had his struggles in the early going, he found his groove after a few bad weeks and put together yet another solid campaign.

Should the team need to replace him, one player who could emerge as an option is Shay Whitcomb. He performed at a very high level in 2024, being named the team’s Minor League Player of the Year by Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report.

“Whitcomb opened eyes with a 35-homer, 102-RBI season in 2023, but he hit just .240/.301/.470 with a 30.2 percent strikeout rate. He continued to show impressive power with 19 doubles, 25 home runs and 91 RBI in 108 games at Triple-A, and more importantly slashed his strikeout rate to a far more palatable 19.8 percent. If Alex Bregman walks in free agency, he will be a candidate to replace him at third base in 2025,” the MLB expert wrote.

If management comes to the decision they need to spend money elsewhere and cannot commit the kind of money to Bregman which he is seeking, Whitcomb is an excellent pivot. As a rookie he would cost a fraction of th price and his improvements this year show that he is ready for the Big Leagues.

The No. 14 ranked prospect in their system, other infielders may have higher upside, but they aren’t as close to being Major League ready. Brice Matthews has an ETA of 2026 and Chase Jaworsky is 2027.

Zach Dezenzo is someone Whitcomb could be competing with in Spring Training for a starting spot should Bregman move on in free agency.