Juan Soto’s contract has Dana Brown, Astros spooked about Kyle Tucker

The Houston Astros fell short of their ultimate goal this season, and as a result face some important questions heading into the winter. While the Astros rotation should improve immensely thanks to a fresh bill of health for Framber Valdez, Lance McCullers and others, Dana Brown also must decide on the future of third baseman Alex Bregman and outfielder Kyle Tucker.

Bregman looks to be on the outs, as he's meeting with other teams and the Astros are merely on the periphery. The veteran third baseman has been linked with the Yankees and Red Sox, among other contenders.

One look further down the line, though, proves the Astros have bigger fish to fry. While Bregman was a part of Houston's World Series core, his value has decreased over the past year. Now on the wrong side of 30 years old, the Astros can afford to let him walk. Kyle Tucker, on the other hand, is a different story.

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Could the Astros trade Kyle Tucker thanks to Juan Soto?

Tucker was an All-Star this past season despite playing in just 78 games. He accumulated a 4.7 WAR in that time, hitting 23 home runs and slashing .289/.408/.585, good for a .993 OPS. Just days after Juan Soto signed a record-breaking contract with the New York Mets, the Astros can't help but feel backed into a corner some with Tucker, who is set to become a free agent after the 2025 season.

Trading Tucker remains on the table, and the acquiring team would get a full year of service time on an arbitration deal, at the very worst. As Astros general manager Dana Brown noted at the winter meetings, every player is available for the right asking price. Still, he is not trying to trade Tucker just for the sake of pulling off a big move.

“We’re not trying to aggressively move anybody out the door, but if someone wants to talk, that’s part of being at the Winter Meetings,” Brown said. “Sometimes guys will think outside the box and say, ‘Hey would you guys do this guy or that guy.’ If it doesn’t make sense, we wouldn’t do it. It would really have to make sense. We’re a good team and we’re not motivated to move any of these guys.”

Tucker is unlikely to receive Soto money, but assuming he keeps hitting at this level, the 27-year-old outfielder will sign a lucrative deal somewhere if he hits the open market. Will the Astros really let it get that far?