The Houston Astros got off to a disastrous start to the 2024 season. They began the season 12-24, looking more like the Astros that played in the NL Central a decade ago than the AL West Astros that dominated the mid-late 2010’s.
But we play 162 games for a reason.
The Astros have completely turned their season around despite being riddled with a plethora of injuries. They have more starting pitchers on the injured list than any Houston fan could have imagined, leaving them with a ton of holes on their roster.
One of the holes is at first base and there may not be a better potential trade option on the market than the New York Mets slugger, Pete Alonso.
With the Mets still in the postseason race, the idea of trading for Pete Alonso isn’t the most likely option. But if New York begins to fall back, they will look to trade him and the Astros have already began checking in on his availability and asking price.
The Astros have had conversations with the Mets about Pete Alonso, per @JimBowdenGM pic.twitter.com/DAXWjiC7lQ
— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) July 11, 2024
MLB insider Jim Bowden has reported that the Astros have engaged in talks with the Mets about Alonso. The extent to these talks is unknown at the moment, but the fact that the Mets are answering the call and engaging in the conversations is quite telling in and of itself.
The asking price for Alonso would be massive and for the Astros to lure him away with FanGraphs still gives New York a 39 percent chance to make the postseason, Houston would need to deal away a ton of prospect capital.
A trade for Alonso would begin with a few top prospects that provide the Mets with the high ceiling that they’re looking for if they’re going to deal their slugger away.
Brice Matthews and Zach Cole, two top-five prospects in the Houston system, are exactly what the Mets would need to pull the trigger here.
Matthews is slashing .284/.399/.500 with 16 extra base hits this year while Cole is slashing .246/.355/.458 across two levels of the minor leagues. There is so much upside in adding these two prospects that the Mets simply wouldn’t be able to say no to a deal like this.
Ullola, 22, is one of the most electric pitchers in the entire Astros system, including the big-league club. He’s nearly un-hittable when he’s in and around the zone, but his troublesome command has haunted him again this year. He’s walked 47 batters in 76 innings this year but has only allowed 43 hits.
Acquiring Alonso for the postseason push would be what pushes the Astros over the edge. They aren’t a team that is content with just making the postseason either. They want to win the World Series each and every season. With Kyle Tucker bound to return to the lineup this year and a trade market to add impactful players, the Astros season is far from over.