Houston Astros Top Offseason Priority Could Cost $160 Million in MLB Free Agency

The slugger would be well worth the price for the Houston Astros due to their struggles at first base.

Oct 18, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso (20) reacts after the Mets defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in game five of the NLCS during the 2024 MLB playoffs at Citi Field. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Statistically, the Houston Astros' first basemen were among the worst in Major League Baseball. It was simply inexcusable for a team that wanted to win a World Series. 

They haven't figured out the position over the past two seasons, but there are ways for them to improve at first base during the winter months. 

It'll all come down to how much the front office is willing to spend. If they're willing to hand out $100-plus million to a first baseman, there will be many on the market for them to pursue. 

The top two at the position who hit the free agency market this winter are Pete Alonso and Christian Walker.

Walker is expected to be much cheaper than Alonso, but Walker still has plenty of value.

Regarding Alonso, the biggest issue with him is how much money he could make on the open market. He turned down a seven-year, $158 million extension, so he must believe he could get more than that in free agency. 

Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report predicted him to get two million more than what he turned down, coming in at a seven-year, $160 million deal.

"According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, slugger Pete Alonso turned down a seven-year, $158 million extension offer from the New York Mets in June 2023. That offer was structured to closely resemble the final seven seasons of the eight-year, $168 million extension Matt Olson signed with the Atlanta Braves, while Freddie Freeman's six-year, $162 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers was also part of the discussion. Olson is a Gold Glove defender, while Freeman is one of the best contact hitters in the game with an offensive profile that should age well. Alonso does not provide the same secondary value those players do and his extremely power-centric game is one that generally does not age well," Reuter wrote.

If the Astros were to sign the power hitter to a deal similar to the prediction, it shouldn't be viewed as a bad signing. 

Obviously, the other moves in the offseason would determine how their free agency period went, but Alonso is as good offensively as any first baseman in baseball.

Signing Walker might be the better decision due to the price, so it'll be up to the front office to figure out who makes more sense if there's interest from the two players. Either player would be excellent to have.