Astros breakout star has fans begging Jim Crane to open his checkbook

For a little while, it felt as if Hunter Brown's hot start to his MLB career was nothing more than a fluke. Brown burst onto the scene in September of 2022 with the Houston Astros and threw the ball really well to begin the 2023 campaign as well, but his 6.72 ERA in his final 18 appearances (16 starts) to finish 2023 and his 9.78 ERA in his first five starts of 2024 brought more questions than answers about who Brown was at the MLB level.

The right-hander wound up adding a sinker to his repertoire after his lackluster start to the 2024 campaign, and the results have been staggering to say the least. Brown posted a 2.51 ERA in his final 25 appearances (24 starts) of that season, pitching well enough to start their second postseason game. It was quite the turnaround from a guy who appeared to be on the verge of getting demoted to the minor leagues.

His momentum has carried into this season, as Brown has a 1.16 ERA through five starts and 31 innings of work. All of a sudden, Brown looks like one of the best pitchers in the American League. Brown's breakout has Houston fans begging for owner Jim Crane to open his checkbook to ensure he can continue to dominate in an Astros uniform.

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Astros fans are imploring Jim Crane to approve an extension for Hunter Brown before it's too late

Not only is Brown pitching like one of the best starting pitchers in the world, but he just keeps getting better. After throwing seven innings of shutout ball against the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday, he has now thrown 24 consecutive scoreless innings. He has not allowed a run since the first inning of his second start of the year, and he has gone at least six innings in all five of his outings.

With Brown only getting better, his price tag to keep him around long-term is only soaring. Astros fans don't have to worry too much about Brown leaving in the short-term - he doesn't even hit arbitration until after this season - but he's under club control through the 2028 campaign before he can explore free agency. The time to get him on any sort of team-friendly deal is right now, and that might even be too late.

Brown, fittingly, changed his representation to Scott Boras' agency after the 2024 season. While Boras did negotiate an extension involving Jose Altuve with the Astros, the super-agent is known for being extremely extension-averse and pushing his clients toward free agency. With how well Brown has pitched, Boras has to be salivating at a potential bidding war for his services when all 30 teams can entertain signing him in the not-too-distant future. Brown likely made the switch to Boras to milk every last cent that he can, which doesn't bode well for Houston's chances.

While they've remained competitive for a decade now, the Astros have let countless players walk on the open market, like George Springer, Carlos Correa, and Alex Bregman, to name a few. They even just traded Kyle Tucker, perhaps the best of the bunch they've let go of, because they knew he'd depart in free agency after the 2025 campaign.

Crane's reluctance to splurge on massive contracts has Astros fans fearing that Brown might walk out the door right in the middle of his prime - and it's hard to blame them. Unfortunately, at this point, Brown might not even entertain an extension. Astros fans can only hope that isn't the case.