Houston Astros next extension candidate isn’t so obvious

The next extension candidate on the Houston Astros isn’t so obvious.

The Houston Astros are in a bit of a transitional phase of the franchise yet not ready to give up and quit on contending. They lost Carlos Correa in free agency this offseason and didn’t bring in too many new faces. The Astros remain one of the better teams in Major League Baseball. A reason for it has been their ability to develop players from the minor leagues.

One of those players happens to a guy whose performance last year made a somewhat overlooked extension candidate.

On the power rankings of Astros players, he might not be the first one to come to mind. However, it’s Kyle Tucker who should be next in line to receive an extension.

Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker made himself an early extension candidate with last year’s performance

At 25, the fifth overall pick from the 2015 MLB Draft begun his journey toward a major payday last year when Tucker finished a distant 20th in the AL MVP voting. The numbers he posted include a .294/.359/.557 slash line plus 30 home runs and 92 RBI.

The Astros had slowly been giving Tucker some sips of coffee in the big leagues. He received 72 plate appearances in 2018, another 72 in 2019, and finally 228 in the shortened 2020 campaign.

Tucker never really caught the attention of too many fans outside of Houston until last year. It was his first full major league season. As the new starting right fielder for the Astros, he made his mark and should be well on his way to getting paid.

The urgency to getting a deal done, however, isn’t there. Tucker isn’t arbitration-eligible until next year when he’ll receive his first major bump in salary and officially become a millionaire. Rather than go through the arbitration process with him each year, the Astros can simply begin to talk to the young outfielder about an extension. They can buy out his arbitration seasons and lock him up beyond that and even into his 30s.

A slow start for Tucker in 2022, though, should delay the Astros from actually pulling the trigger on any sort of lengthy extension talks. You don’t reward players with rich extensions when they’re struggling the way he has thus far. Tucker may need to prove himself yet again this year before any noise is made in regards to some permanency in Houston. Of course, the better he plays the more he’d be able to justifiably demand.

The Astros have been hit and miss when it comes to locking up their players long-term. Because they have been able to churn out new talent, like Tucker, it hasn’t hurt them in the standings.

Tucker will not be eligible for free agency until after the 2025 season. Before he gets there, look for the Astros to make him a nice offer.