The Astros are nearing a cope with Jason Heyward, per Brian McTaggart of MLB.com on X. Kiley McDaniel of ESPN relays on X that the deal is completed, pending a bodily. The outfielder was lately launched by the Dodgers. The Astros might want to make a corresponding transfer to open a spot on the 40-man as soon as the deal is official, in addition to a transfer to open an lively roster spot as soon as Heyward reviews to the staff.
Heyward, 35, was capable of engineer a pleasant bounceback season with the Dodgers final 12 months. After struggling for a lot of his time with the Cubs, he spent 2023 in Los Angeles, hitting 15 dwelling runs whereas strolling in 9% of his plate appearances. His .269/.340/.473 batting line translated to a 120 wRC+, indicating he was 20% higher than league common.
Most of that harm got here with the platoon benefit, because the lefty swinger solely stepped to the plate 28 occasions in opposition to southpaws, in comparison with 349 occasions in opposition to righties. But it surely nonetheless allowed him to have a productive season. When mixed with robust protection, he was thought of to be value 2.2 wins above alternative by FanGraphs.
He and the Dodgers reunited this winter on a one-year, $9MM deal however the Hollywood sequel wasn’t as satisfying as the unique. In 197 plate appearances with the Dodgers this 12 months, Heyward slashed .208/.289/.393 for a wRC+ of 91.
The Dodgers confronted a troublesome roster choice when Mookie Betts was lately getting back from the injured record. He had been serving because the membership’s on a regular basis shortstop previous to getting harm however the choice was made to maneuver him again to his customary proper subject spot for the stretch run and postseason. The membership had Teoscar Hernández in left and was planning to make use of a mix of Tommy Edman and Kevin Kiermaier in middle, with Andy Pages additionally round as optionable depth. For bench/utility roles, they determined to maintain multi-positional guys like Enrique Hernández and Chris Taylor, which nudged Heyward off the roster.
Given Heyward’s diminished efficiency and notable wage, he unsurprisingly went unclaimed off waivers, however there’s logic to the Astros selecting him up now. With Heyward’s latest launch, the Dodgers are on the hook for almost all of what’s left to be paid out of that wage. The Astros will solely should pay him the prorated portion of the $740K league minimal, making him roughly a free pickup.
It’s additionally potential that his outcomes this 12 months are a bit primarily based on luck. His .224 batting common on balls in play is properly under the .291 mark he had final 12 months and the league-wide common of .290 this 12 months. His common exit velocity and arduous hit price are literally increased than final 12 months’s, in accordance with Statcast, although his launch angle is lower than preferrred. His 41.4% floor ball price final 12 months was a profession low, as he has pounded the ball into the dust at a 48.3% clip in his profession. That quantity is as much as 51.4% this 12 months, so maybe he might have some higher outcomes if that normalizes by even just a few factors, getting nearer to his profession price.
The Astros have been with out their common proper fielder for a very long time. Kyle Tucker put up a monster batting line of .266/.395/.584 for a 174 wRC+ in 60 video games earlier than fouling a ball off himself in early June. The membership introduced his damage as a shin contusion and it didn’t seem to be he was going to be away from the membership for lengthy, however he’s coming near a three-month absence at this level. The membership is hopeful of Tucker returning in September, however as of just a few days in the past, he nonetheless hasn’t been capable of dash at full velocity. That means there’s nonetheless some hurdles to clear earlier than he’s a candidate to return.
On prime of that, Yordan Alvarez missed just a few days lately because of some neck stiffness, although he was capable of return to the lineup final evening. Alex Bregman was additionally taking on the designated hitter spot for some time because of elbow irritation, although he’s been again on the sizzling nook for the previous three video games.
Jake Meyers is the common in middle subject. The nook outfield combine consists of Alvarez, Ben Gamel, Mauricio Dubón and Chas McCormick. Gamel is a 32-year-old journeyman who was simply claimed off waivers lately. Dubón is a glove-first utility man. McCormick has some good outcomes on his observe report however is having a brutal 12 months, presently slashing .188/.253/.275.
Heyward isn’t a assure however he has a good shot at being an improve over that group, and at no actual price to the Astros. Even when his bat doesn’t flip round, he’s nonetheless a strong defender at this level in his profession. It’s a strong pickup and one which raises the opportunity of Heyward maybe going through his former membership within the World Collection, if the Astros and Dodgers find yourself in a rematch of the scandal-plagued 2017 sequence.