HOUSTON — Much remains unsettled for a Houston Astros franchise operating without a manager or general manager. Owner Jim Crane is overseeing day-to-day baseball operations while searching for the next faces of his front office and field staff.
Whomever Crane chooses as his general manager will inherit an aging roster with obvious flaws. Few straightforward solutions exist to fix it. Without knowing the incoming general manager’s preferences or precedents, it’s difficult to speculate on any direction.
Salaries, however, are something absolute. Crane is unafraid to spend money, and Houston’s new head of baseball operations should be given ample resources. Crane has carried a top-10 payroll in each of the past five seasons, but the one his new general manager will inherit has myriad issues.
Presumably, part of the interview process involves how to solve them. Here is an analysis of the Astros’ 2027 payroll and what the new general manager may face. All figures are approximations and come from estimates compiled by Cot’s Contracts and Spotrac.
What option decisions must be made within five days of the World Series?
Tatsuya Imai
Imai’s inauspicious first season should make his decision obvious, but on multiple occasions in September, the right-hander did not commit to exercising his $18 million player option for 2027. Imai threw just 76 2/3 innings in an inconsistent season, posted a 4.93 ERA and was demoted from the starting rotation to mop-up duty in the Astros’ bullpen. In mid-August, Imai told The Athletic through an interpreter that “it’s my rookie year. Yes, I do have to perform, but I have to adjust and experience everything so it goes smoothly in my second year and third year.” It would stand to reason, then, that Imai plans on pitching in MLB next season despite his difficult transition on and off the field. Finding anything more lucrative than $18 million on the free-agent market feels almost impossible.
Isaac Paredes
Paredes’ $13.35 million club option is a no-brainer to pick up. Whether he stays on the team after they do is a more pertinent question. Carlos Correa’s return will reignite questions of how Houston will navigate its infield logjam. Trading Jeremy Peña could help solve it, but if the Astros want to keep their homegrown shortstop, parting with Paredes would allow Correa to reprise his role as Houston’s third baseman and net a decent return before Paredes’ platform year.
