MLB Expert Makes Bold Prediction About Houston Astros Star Free Agent

How will things play out for the Houston Astros and one of their key free agents?

Oct 2, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros third base Alex Bregman (2) hits a single against the Detroit Tigers during the second inning of game two of the Wildcard round for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Minute Maid Park. / Thomas Shea-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros are going to have some major decisions to make this upcoming offseason.

Two of their key players during their recent stretch of success, Alex Bregman and Justin Verlander, are both hitting free agency. It sounds as if the franchise is ready to move on from the former Cy Young Award winner; will they do the same with their star at the hot corner?

Bregman has been a fixture in the Houston lineup for nine seasons and is going to command a sizable contract. He is by far the best third baseman available on the market after Matt Chapman signed a six-year, $151 million extension with the San Francisco Giants in early September.

Will the Astros be able to afford him? It will have a major impact on all of their plans this offseason, as they have other holes to fill but might not have the money to do so.

But, that is exactly what Bradford Doolittle of ESPN believes will happen. His offseason prediction for the franchise will excite fans, as he doesn’t believe that their star third baseman is going anywhere.

“Bregman stays on a long-term deal. It's impossible to imagine Bregman with another team. (Though the list of "you can't see him with another team" players is as long as baseball history itself.) Still, what would they do at The Moonshiners if he left? Name his sandwich after somebody else? No, this has to work out, and Bregman has an off-the-field future with the club if he wants it. Make him a career Astro. You could see a deal surprisingly longer in duration than you might expect, but perhaps with more modest average annual values to lessen the tax hit. And there are always deferrals,” the MLB expert wrote.

Doolittle is certainly right that it wouldn’t feel right seeing Bregman don another team’s jersey. Just like Jose Altuve, he is someone who should be a lifelong Astro and remain with the franchise until the very end.

It is something we rarely see in the modern MLB, as there is something special to playing an entire career with one franchise.

After a slow start, he found his groove and ended with numbers that were pretty in line with what he had been providing in previous years. There are always some risks to signing a player who will be 31 when the next season starts to a long-term deal, but this feels like one that will get done.

It would take a truly massive offer sheet from another franchise for Bregman to leave Houston and for the franchise to not match the price.