https://theathletic.com/3944053/2022/11/28/mlb-free-agency-rumors-degrom-abreu/

"Jose Abreu remains a target of the Astros, Padres and other clubs, but one executive with a pulse on the market senses that the free-agent first baseman is intrigued by the possibility of playing for one of the two Florida teams.

Abreu, a native of Cuba who turns 36 on Jan. 29, owns a home south of Miami. The question is whether the Marlins or Rays, two of the game's most reluctant spenders, would be willing to meet his price. Abreu also might prefer to join a team that is perceived to be a stronger World Series contender.

The Astros just won the Series. The Padres made it to the NLCS. But the Rays, one of six teams to make the postseason each of the last four years, are no slouch."

agproducer said:

---

Mathguy64 said:

---

I've been watching Astros baseball longer than I have been watching Aggie football and I've been watching Aggies play at Kyle for 40 years.

I have no expectation that I will ever see and football NC in my lifetime. And I have come to peace with that.

I have every expectation the Astros will be in the playoffs next year and play for a 3rd ring. It may not happen but I have an expectation for it.

---

You absolutely nailed it.

I have no expectations for Aggie Football other than to be disappointed. If they win, great! If they lose, oh well. I learned long ago to not get so invested in Aggie Football. I'm much happier for it.

As for the Astros, they've been my team since 1980, when I was 3 years old. With the Astros, I expect them to be good.

As a teenager and college student in the 90s, I went to several Astros games each year. They were always competitive and interesting. Even when they were losing 100 games, you could see where they were headed. They had a plan.

The Aggies don't seem to have one. I don't know if they ever have, and with the current college football landscape, I'm not sure they ever will. As long as a poll system is in place that shows bias and favoritism, I don't see them winning a championship, and I'm ok with it.

---

All kinds of this. I went to the Astros home opener every year from 1987-1999, even skipping a few classes at A&M to get there. In '94, I was working that summer doing baggage at IAH and I bought myself a 20-game mini-season ticket plan, what a great feeling to go to a bunch of games and really feel like you're seeing a team grow. Playing 162 games a year is such a connective tissue for a baseball team and its fans. You can see it on this thread, having the Astros as a near-constant for 6 months is a great way to spend half a year, even when you have a bad day, knowing there's a game that night plus our discussion always makes me feel better.

whatever it takes

I started my Astro journey in 1965, the year the dome opened. Playing t ball then kid pitch all summer with friends on our cul-de-sac in Frostwood, mouthing the Tiajuana Brass BP songs that the dome speaker system would play during batting practice. Houston was just Ft Worth until the ASTROdome then Astroturf defined the city and it's spirit as a can-do land of opportunity. Make no mistake, the Astros ( and the 8th wonder of the world ) became the centerpiece of Houston sports.
In 2017, a city wide tragedy struck in the form of Hurricane Harvey. That year, with a Htown patch on their chest, the Astros lifted more than just a trophy over their heads, but also the spirits of a battered city. The fans remembered when a storm of controversy struck the Astros. They rallied around the team and had their back through it all. These past years of dominance have really been special. Don't take them for granted. I truly believe the relationship between the Astros and Houston is about as special as it can be. I'm all in.

We've had season tickets to Aggie football for 40 years now. My wife has missed a total of 5 home games in the last 60 years. I finally have had enough of the roller coaster that has defined Aggie sports. The final straw was going to MinuteMade and watching the Ags blow a 10-run lead in the 9th inning to the then No. 1 ranked Horned Frogs. As we walked out of there, I told my wife, 'no more, this is it for me. I can't do this anymore.' I still follow and attend Aggie sports, but I just sit and watch with little emotional investment.

The Dodgers are meeting with Justin Verlander today, per @JonHeyman

He also said the Yankees and Astros are interested.

— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) November 28, 2022

McInnis said:

---

Quote:

---

In '94, I was working that summer doing baggage at IAH and I bought myself a 20-game mini-season ticket plan, what a great feeling to go to a bunch of games and really feel like you're seeing a team grow.

---

Overall you make a good case for being an mlb fan but interesting that the '94 season is one that cemented that for you. It took me years to get over the player's strike that year. It might have cost Bagwell 50 home runs and Tony Gwynn batting .400. And then the next year when replacement players were used in spring training, there was one of those players, a relief pitcher whose name I can't remember, that made the Astros roster. And the regular players wouldn't sit next to him in the dugout. That showed me they had more loyalty to the players union than they did to their own team.

Todd Jones made some critical comments towards him. I wrote him a letter (this was before email) expressing my disappointment in his comments and to my surprise he wrote me back a nice letter admitting that he screwed up and inviting me to meet with him before or after a game.

---

Oh I was a Astros fan as early as the late 70s. 94 was just the first year I got season tickets for myself.

Big Al 1992 said:

---

Don’t drink the tap water in the City of Houston without boiling it or you’ll start to see things and feel sick pic.twitter.com/zvU2uQWWAg

— Space Lawyer (@rrossjd) November 28, 2022

---

I still think the Astros should take a shot with Bellinger and try to fix him... BUT only if Altuve, Bregman and LMJ are on board.

Low risk, high reward.

If they could get him on a 1-yr $8M prove it deal, I'd be all for it. I think his fall had more to do with mechanics and slower bat speed due to injuries.

Farmer1906 said:

---

McInnis said:

---

Quote:

---

In '94, I was working that summer doing baggage at IAH and I bought myself a 20-game mini-season ticket plan, what a great feeling to go to a bunch of games and really feel like you're seeing a team grow.

---

Overall you make a good case for being an mlb fan but interesting that the '94 season is one that cemented that for you. It took me years to get over the player's strike that year. It might have cost Bagwell 50 home runs and Tony Gwynn batting .400. And then the next year when replacement players were used in spring training, there was one of those players, a relief pitcher whose name I can't remember, that made the Astros roster. And the regular players wouldn't sit next to him in the dugout. That showed me they had more loyalty to the players union than they did to their own team.

Todd Jones made some critical comments towards him. I wrote him a letter (this was before email) expressing my disappointment in his comments and to my surprise he wrote me back a nice letter admitting that he screwed up and inviting me to meet with him before or after a game.

---

Not with a broken hand. It probably secured him the MVP.

---

I had forgot all about that, I think it happened just before the strike didn't it? And Gwynn was probably going to be a long shot. I just looked it up and he was batting .394 but I really loved watching him play.

Ag4life80 said:

---

I started my Astro journey in 1965, the year the dome opened. Playing t ball then kid pitch all summer with friends on our cul-de-sac in Frostwood, mouthing the Tiajuana Brass BP songs that the dome speaker system would play during batting practice. Houston was just Ft Worth until the ASTROdome then Astroturf defined the city and it's spirit as a can-do land of opportunity. Make no mistake, the Astros ( and the 8th wonder of the world ) became the centerpiece of Houston sports.
In 2017, a city wide tragedy struck in the form of Hurricane Harvey. That year, with a Htown patch on their chest, the Astros lifted more than just a trophy over their heads, but also the spirits of a battered city. The fans remembered when a storm of controversy struck the Astros. They rallied around the team and had their back through it all. These past years of dominance have really been special. Don't take them for granted. I truly believe the relationship between the Astros and Houston is about as special as it can be. I'm all in.

We've had season tickets to Aggie football for 40 years now. My wife has missed a total of 5 home games in the last 60 years. I finally have had enough of the roller coaster that has defined Aggie sports. The final straw was going to MinuteMade and watching the Ags blow a 10-run lead in the 9th inning to the then No. 1 ranked Horned Frogs. As we walked out of there, I told my wife, 'no more, this is it for me. I can't do this anymore.' I still follow and attend Aggie sports, but I just sit and watch with little emotional investment.

---

That's a good writeup, I enjoyed reading it. 1967 was the first year I really remember following the Astros, anxiously awaiting the Chronicle to come every afternoon so I could check the standings to see how the Astros were doing in their race for 9th place against the Mets.

The problem with college football is that every game means so much. That can also be good, but too many times with the Aggies it hasn't been. Over the years I've learned to turn my DGAS meter on and off at will. I really didn't want to watch the Auburn game this year, but at the last minute decided to turn it on. Then on the very first play from scrimmage we had an illegal motion penalty and I knew what was coming. Flipped the tv and went on with my evening. I used to despise fair weather fans, but here I am.

. . . said:

---

https://theathletic.com/3944053/2022/11/28/mlb-free-agency-rumors-degrom-abreu/

"Jose Abreu remains a target of the Astros, Padres and other clubs, but one executive with a pulse on the market senses that the free-agent first baseman is intrigued by the possibility of playing for one of the two Florida teams.

Abreu, a native of Cuba who turns 36 on Jan. 29, owns a home south of Miami. The question is whether the Marlins or Rays, two of the game's most reluctant spenders, would be willing to meet his price. Abreu also might prefer to join a team that is perceived to be a stronger World Series contender.

The Astros just won the Series. The Padres made it to the NLCS. But the Rays, one of six teams to make the postseason each of the last four years, are no slouch."

---

I don't see the Rays paying Abreu what it would take. They didn't even want to pay Choi like 5 M.

The Marlins are just really far from competing. They're stuck behind ATL, NYM, & PHI in the NL East. They were 16 games out of the WC. Plus Garrett Cooper is good and under control for 1 more year. If they did sign Abreu, Cooper would make perfect sense to trade for. He has a 119 wRC+ over the last 4 seasons (111, 132, 133, & 115) and hits righties well. 122 wRC+ (127, 95, 120, 125) over the last 4 seasons.

The Astros have about $55M to spend before going over the tax threshold.

Verlander is going to get around $40M a year. I think he won’t be back in Houston. Mostly likely Dodgers, Yankees, or Mets.

Crane is looking to bring a few big bats to the lineup.

— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) November 28, 2022

Quote:

---

…mouthing the Tiajuana Brass BP songs that the dome speaker system would play during batting practice.

---

Good heavens, I hadn't thought of that in a few decades. What a great memory. Wish the Astros would bring that back every once in a while.

Farmer1906 said:

---

The Astros have about $55M to spend before going over the tax threshold.

Verlander is going to get around $40M a year. I think he won’t be back in Houston. Mostly likely Dodgers, Yankees, or Mets.

Crane is looking to bring a few big bats to the lineup.

— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) November 28, 2022

---

Obviously depends on the "few big bats" we would bring in, but I'm ok with this approach. Using $40M of the $55M we have is too much considering our depth at SP.

Farmer1906 said:

---

The Astros have about $55M to spend before going over the tax threshold.

Verlander is going to get around $40M a year. I think he won’t be back in Houston. Mostly likely Dodgers, Yankees, or Mets.

Crane is looking to bring a few big bats to the lineup.

— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) November 28, 2022

---

Assume we leave ~15 M in space before the tax.

If I use the crowdsource data on Fangraphs plus around 25% we could land a package similar to the following.
1B Abreu 2/40 (20 AAV)
LF Conforto 1/15 (15 AAV)
LHP Britton 1/6 (6 AAV) - lefty flier
TOTAL 41 M, Zero Dollars committed in 2024+.

1B Bell 3/48 (16 AAV)
LF Brantley 1/15 (15 AAV)
LHP Moore 1/6 (6 AAV)
TOTAL 37 M, 16 M committed in 2024+

LF Benintendi 4/70 (17.5 AAV)
1B Belt 1/13 (13 AAV)
UTL Drury 3/36 (12 AAV) - RHH platoon option at 1B & LF
TOTAL 4.5 M, 47 M committed in 2024+ (probably too much)

Tight

The rich get richer!

LFG!!!!

I hats his spray chart? How much could the crawford boxes give him a boost?