HOUSTON — Dana Brown’s second winter as a general manager is massive. The Houston Astros have myriad questions and many holes, and they might not have much money to manage them all. Franchise icon Alex Bregman is also a free agent, and Jose Altuve has all but demanded the club retain him.
Other than to acknowledge “nothing is off the table,” Brown hasn’t offered a blueprint for how he and his baseball operations department will navigate the winter. Perhaps one will emerge when Brown meets with reporters Tuesday afternoon at the general managers’ meetings. Before they begin, here is where Brown’s ballclub stands.
Advertisement Free-agent roster decisions Houston has eight free agents: Bregman, Justin Verlander, Yusei Kikuchi, Kendall Graveman, Jason Heyward, Hector Neris, Caleb Ferguson and Ben Gamel. Bregman’s future will dominate most of the winter discourse, but the Astros’ desire to add bullpen depth could prompt reunion conversations with Graveman or Neris. Houston has reacquired both relievers after initial stints with the team, and both carry cachet inside the clubhouse.
Verlander’s availability on the open market can’t be ignored if owner Jim Crane is involved in baseball operations decisions. The two are extremely close. Verlander credited Crane with the contract he signed before the 2022 season and orchestrating his acquisition from the New York Mets in August 2023.
Verlander’s age and late-season swoon might give Crane pause in pursuing anoth.