3 Discussion Items

1.) Are you happy with the Draft picks so far?

Generally there are 2 lines of thought in this area - In Luhnow We Trust or evaluation based on national pundits perspective. The Astros drafted 2 players yesterday, both of which could be considered a reach.

Korey Lee

Grae Kessinger

Highly recommend reading Spencer’s perspectives on both draft picks. Korey had some late helium with Fangraphs elevating him all the way up to 45th on their most recent draft board. MLB.com ranked him at #119. Kessinger was seen more as a Day 2 pick. One has to wonder if the Astros had a different take or have plans for underslot signings with the hopes of a mini-Correa/McCullers etc coup that they pulled off before.

What do you think of their first two picks? Any guesses on their strategy?

2.) Should the Astros sign Craig Kimbrel?

This is a topic we’ve discussed before, but with the draft pick officially not associated with his signing, I figured it was worth exploring again. With Hinch’s comments last night:

One has to wonder if it will be an area of focus for the Astros. Most people on the board agree the Astros are all but a sure thing for the playoffs, and Fangraphs has them at a 99.9% chance of making the play-offs at this point. The bullpen becomes a much larger factor in the playoffs, and simply put, Kimbrel is one of the best relief pitchers in baseball. Across his past 9 years, 532.2 IP he holds a 1.91 ERA and 18 WAR. Even last year, a down year for him, was an elite 42 Saves with a 2.74 ERA across 62 IP.

We’ve recently had discussions on what the Astros should do to improve the team and one of the items mentioned is bolstering an already dominant bullpen, and there isn’t much easier of a way to do so than adding Kimbrel.

I’m personally hopeful that the Astros could pull off a trade utilizing some of the excess value of blocked players for someone like Seth Lugo, but it’s hard to deny that Kimbrel wouldn’t be a significant impact.

3.)Which of the Core 4 is your favorite and why?

Yes, I know this is like asking which of your children is your favorite, but let’s face it - we all know you have a favorite.

This season Springer started at a torrid pace, finally looking to be showing off all of the elite skills that made him a top prospect elevating his status from simply All-Star level to a true MVP quality candidate. Springer always has a smile on his face and puts his body on the line with every play?

Before last year, many saw Bregman as a clear step below the others in the core-4 pecking order talent wise. Then he exploded onto the scene having an MVP quality season. His “arrogance” become a moniker that he was able to back up in everything he did. He became the super villain of the MLB in many people’s minds regularly calling out pitchers and backing it up. He resumed where he left off last year, with 2.7 WAR this year nipping at Springer’s heels for the lead.

How anyone could not love Altuve is beyond me. If Bregman is truly the MLB’s Super Villain, Altuve is the polar opposite. He seems beloved by every fan, every player, basically everyone. His exuberance for the game is contagious. An underdog story of epic undersized proportions, Altuve actually won an MVP. It’s true that he’s hurt right now, but even in his down year, he was only 35% better than the rest of the league and had essentially a 5 WAR season.

I have a feeling Correa has fallen behind significantly in this race. Part of Luhnow’s genius master stroke of “gaming” the draft, Correa made Luhnow look good every step of the way. He was young, but filled with such an immense amount of talent - it seemed unparalleled in baseball. He hit the MLB scene and immediately made a name for himself as the young shortstop of the future. He has sputtered since, largely due to injuries but has been an essential building block of this team. When healthy, he has the talent level to blow away any of the other 4, but expectations get more tempered by the day.