Mariners Hated Rival Makes Interesting Decision That Could Further Impact AL West Race
The Seattle Mariners' hated rival, the Houston Astros, are making a very important decision with six weeks to go in the regular season.
According to Chandler Rome of 'The Athletic,' the Astros will start trying to utilize Alex Bregman at first base.
The Astros will expose Alex Bregman to first base soon in hopes that they can get him playing somewhere defensively, Joe Espada said. It is a possibility he sees action there on this road trip.
The Astros will expose Alex Bregman to first base soon in hopes that they can get him playing somewhere defensively, Joe Espada said. It is a possibility he sees action there on this road trip.
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) August 22, 2024
Bregman missed the series last weekend against the Chicago White Sox with a UCL problem and then returned at designated hitter only in the Boston Red Sox series. The Astros likely want him at first base so they can limit the time that Yordan Alvarez needs to spend in the outfield. They'd like to keep him at designated hitter as much as they can, while also keeping Bregman's arm as healthy as possible.
There are some pitfalls in this plan, namely that Bregman can't shut off from throwing entirely, even if at first. He'd still have to make potentially long throws to home plate in a cutoff scenario and would likely need to throw to bases in order to make plays. Furthermore, Bregman is only 6 feet tall, making him not a great target to throw to for other Astros infielders.
At the plate though, Bregman is scorching hot, so Houston undoubtedly wants him to play every day. He's hitting .261 for the year with 20 homers and 60 RBI, but he's hitting .323 over his last 15 games.
Bregman will be a free agent at the end of the year.
The Mariners enter play on Friday at 5.5 games behind Houston in the division with 34 games to play.
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