December 13, 2024 • 11 mins
Our good buddy, former major leaguer and now Space City Home Network analyst Geoff Blum joins The A-Team. Blummer says that it looked like this conclusion was building for some time between Tucker and the Astros. He also talks about what it means for the club in the immediate future. Plus, what he knows about the players the Astros are getting back in return.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
We bring back our old buddy, and we say that
because it's been a minute. He will be filling in
when I'm out next week, So I'm pretty jealous about that.
But for today, he's going to talk about the Kyle
Tucker trade. He is Jeff Blum of Space City Home Network.
Do you think Todd Kallis is inconsolable somewhere right now?
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Jeff? Good to be all with you guys. I wish
it was under different circumstances, but yeah, there's probably quite
a few out there right now in Houston that are
kind of unconsolable trying to figure out what the heck
is going on.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
Well, I only say that because we're not going to
hear his iconic King Tuck call ever again unless they
sign him in the next serious offseason.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
No, And you know, that's probably one of the things
that we're terrible at, is that we should trademark or
whatever it is, some of these phrases that we develop
for these guys before they take off, so that we
can own them and sell them to the next team
they go to.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Yeah, we should get some sort of royalties here. What
was your I mean, you probably had an idea. This
was happening. We all thought this is probably coming. It's
just the way it happened, a trade via letting him
walk in free agency. I'm choosing to console myself with
something Wex said early on, which is that basically they
didn't go the Angels route and just let him walk
out the door, like show hey, O Tani for nothing.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Yeah, And I think that that's probably the more, you know,
hopefully that's the more logical way of looking at it,
because emotionally, you know, we get attached to these guys,
and I'm in that same boat. I'm with you, guys.
I mean, we're we're We watched these guys on TV.
We watch them put up great numbers, we watch them
win championships, we watch them, you know, develop as human
beings and become these mature adults who are playing the
(01:38):
game great and earn the right to go to free agency.
And unfortunately, it's kind of a situation where I think that,
you know, it's different for me. It's a little bit
different with Kyle Tucker, just because I think there's a
little more history there. You know, Luno drafts him, says
he's untouchable, keeps him here, we avoid trading him early
on and now we finally trade them under the Dana
Brown era. But at the same time, you know, I
(02:00):
remember two or three years ago, I think it was
after that twenty twenty two season. You know, there were
some arbitration issues. You know, there's always been kind of
this icy backstory between Kyle Tucker and the Houston Astros.
I don't know if any of that had to come
you know, had come into play during this time, but
I do think it has something to do with the
fact that with Juan Soto signing that ridiculously large contract
(02:24):
is going to have an impact on next year's free
agent market for Kyle Tucker. And there was already writing
on the wall, and I think it got filled in
and maybe Neon, you know, spray Paint said that Kyle
Tucker's going to go get some dollars next year, so
why don't we let him go and see what we
can get in return?
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Seemed very obvious. I totally agree that once that came out,
that probably tipped them off to what they should probably do,
which is a wait free agency in the twenty twenty
five offseason day being Kyle Tucker and his agency, well
curious a little more about Tucker. We'll save that for
the end. Just on the acquisition. One of the players
(03:01):
is somebody who has discussed a lot, both internally by
the Rays and the Astros E's Operettis, but by all
of us during that time period around the trade deadline,
about what he might be able to do on this team. Now, granted,
had they traded for him last year, he would have
been playing with Alex Bregman and with Kyle Tucker, and
now he might actually be playing without either one of them,
but just the player himself, your thoughts about what you'd
(03:23):
seen from him over the years, certainly with Tampa's time
at Chicago was a little bit of a downturn for
those couple of months. But the player they're getting who
will be an everyday player somewhere on the corner of
the Astros in field, most likely E's Opperettas.
Speaker 2 (03:38):
Yeah, I think that latter comment you just made a
play worth The interest is for Esac Paratus, and you're right.
There was conversations and rumors out there of Paradis coming
the Astros way via a trade last year, but more
of it was to kind of try and fill the
gap at first base because esaw Paratus has done a
good job of proving his worth around on the infield.
(04:00):
He's played what seventy one games I think at first base.
He's played three hundred and thirty five at third base,
So it kind of gives you an idea that he's
a little bit of a protection plan if Bragman is
unable to come back to the Astros, so he could
fill in at third base. He could also fill in
at first base if necessary. So I think it's kind
of interesting in that sense. But if you do look
at him as a third baseman with the potential of
(04:22):
an Alex Bragman moving on as well, which would make
this offseason very interesting for Astro fans, I think it's
also kind of fun to look at He saw Parides
the hitter. He's a dead whole guy, very similar to
Alex Bragman, and Sarah Lang's put out a tweet today
as the trade is going down about parade Is saying
he actually would have hit twenty six home runs if
(04:44):
he had been playing in the now Dyke In Park
for the Houston Astros. So I think it's really interesting
that they put a guy like that who has the
ability to elevate to the pull side in a ballpark
like ours, where he could actually provide a lot of production.
But he's going to be an interesting guy. His strikeout
member have decreased over the years he's been in the
big leagues, and that's obviously an appeal for the Astros.
But I think the versatility and the pop to the
(05:07):
pull side for him as a right handed hitter is
what makes him appealing.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
We had Chandler Roman earlier, Jeff, and when we asked
him the same question, you know, is there a scenario
where this trade today actually means the Astros are more
likely to hang on to Alex Bregman to come to
an agreement and he's His response to that was, well,
as long as he's out there, he's still available. That's
(05:31):
not I don't think he's coming back because there's no
way they can resign him. Kyle Tucker, So with all
that being said, how do you feel about Bregman?
Speaker 2 (05:43):
My feelings about Alex are obvious. I mean I would
have thought him in a heartbeat, or I'd asked to
be adopted by him if I could. But you know,
his work, ethic and his leadership spoke volumes of during
his time here with the Astros and the you know, again,
I go back to him being humble enough to move
from shortstop to third to make this ball club better.
And I think he's you know, he's also a business guy,
(06:04):
you know, behind the scenes, so he's taken into account
all of the numbers, all of the opportunities that he's
going to have wherever he goes. Obviously solidify the foundation
here in Houston that is going to benefit him for
the rest of his life. You know, wife being from
here might carry a little bit of weight, but Alex
is going to be very practical and very logical about
what he chooses to do moving forward. And he's got
(06:25):
an agent who's going out there trying to get top dollar. Anyways,
it's just a matter of which team's going to jump
at the number. The fact that he's still out there
right now obviously gives me hope that he could come
back to Houston. And you know, I also find a
very interesting note. The Astros in the American League West,
in the American League are still contenders, and we saw
how good they could play without Tucker last year, but
(06:47):
we haven't yet, We've yet to see what the Astros
can be without a guy like Alex Bregman, and I
think that's probably what the you know, the powers that
be here are trying to figure out right now.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Any recollection or something stand out if there's some recollection
of Hayden. Was Nesky's lone career appearance against the Astros,
which took place when the Astros were Wriggly in April
of this past year, gave him two and a third
innings worth of shutout baseball against Houston.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Well, timing is everything, and the Astros going through Wrigley
phil at that time during the frozen tundra of Chicago
was not fun to watch at all, and it wasn't
fun to call from that you know, phone booth of
a of a broadcast booth either there in jur Wrigley.
So I choose to selectively disremember or misremember, so to speak,
that time in Chicago. But I think what's kind of
(07:36):
cool with with Nesky coming to the Astros is the
fact that he's got connections here. I'm not sure if
too many people understand that, but if you do your research,
he's a sci fare guy right here in Houston, went
to Sam Houston, so hopefully coming here to Houston, will
you know revive him a little bit and give him
some inspiration to perform in front of family and friends,
which I'm sure is a dream come true for every
(07:56):
guy who ever gets a chance to play in their
hometown city. But how often have we seen it with
the Astros picking a guy or training for a guy
that's you know, kind of on the fringe a little
bit and they turn him into this guy that can
go out there and accomplish something. So I'm sure that
the you know, some of the coaching staff has kind
of done their research scene spin rates and seen some
swing amissibility from Wiznsky, and that's probably why he's coming here.
(08:19):
And I also think the fact that he can go
you know, a little bit longer. He's kind of that
in between that fifth starter or that long relief guy.
He might be a little bit of protection trying to
see if he can mix into that rotation until some
of these arms get healthy. For the Astros too.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
How difficult do you think it is for us or
the gms of these sides that made this deal to
kind of pinpoint what the value needs to be when
you're dealing with a player who's heading into his final
year of control and what the timing of when you
pull off the deal, the Astros end up with three players.
The player we haven't talked about is presumed to be
the best of the bunch. It's just a matter of when,
(08:57):
and clearly a huge if he's never played in the majors.
How difficult do you think it is settling in on
what really should be the value?
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, And I think that's that's the real question right
here that a lot of fans need to try and
wrap their head around, because you know, last season, we
saw the Yankees give up a pretty good haul for
Juan Soto, and it was a little bit of arrogance
on their side, saying we'll trade for this guy because
we know we can pay him, and they weren't able
to pay him. And now they're seeing what happens when
you trade away a lot of guys for a one
(09:27):
year rental, so to speak, and he doesn't sign back
with your ball club. So I think there's a little
bit of trepidation around the league because of what the
Yankees went through with Juan Soto, and that might have
made it a little bit tougher for Dana Brown to
go out and ask for exactly what he wanted. But
I think that, you know, he's a pretty good talent
evaluator and felt that being able to get guys like
(09:50):
Cam Smith, who's going to be a future third basement potentially.
He's a number one pick from last season for the
Chicago Cubs, so obviously he's coveted. I think he was
their seventh best inside the organization, and he's got a future.
And then you get a you know, you get a
potential replacement in EASTSOC parades currently to plug into your
lineup and in your infield to try and plug a
couple of holes, and you get a reliever that you
(10:12):
need out in that bullpen. So it's one less thing
that he has to go out in the free agent
market and do. But I do think, you know it
kind of I hope that's kind of where you were
hinting at WEX, was, you know, the mentality of trading
for a guy that's even a one year or a
three month rental. You've got to be careful because you're
not still not sure even if you've got all the
money in the world that you're going to sign this
guy back, and there's going to be quite a bit
(10:32):
of money going Tucker's way if he has another career year.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
I love that for the Yankees first of all, that
that hell unfolded that.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
Way, dude, isn't it great? Yeah? It is.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
And I'm also looking forward to the Astros churning was
Nesky into this year's Kakuchi and Kakucci going to the
Angels and his career torpedoing again because that's how things go, Blum.
We are up against it. We appreciate the time, especially
on the fly. We miss you. We miss your musk
here on the eighteen Sports Talk seven ninety so enjoy
the rest of your off season. Maybe we'll be calling
(11:02):
you again soon.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
But either way, week in studio, well I met when
the Bregmant deal.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
Goes down effect us effect on Wednesday. Watch will be ready.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
I'll let you sit in my chair. All right, Blummer,
we will talk to you soon and good stuff there,
as always from a guy who joins US weekly during
the baseball season as well.
We bring back our old buddy, and we say that
because it's been a minute. He will be filling in
when I'm out next week, So I'm pretty jealous about that.
But for today, he's going to talk about the Kyle
Tucker trade. He is Jeff Blum of Space City Home Network.
Do you think Todd Kallis is inconsolable somewhere right now?
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Jeff? Good to be all with you guys. I wish
it was under different circumstances, but yeah, there's probably quite
a few out there right now in Houston that are
kind of unconsolable trying to figure out what the heck
is going on.
Speaker 1 (00:31):
Well, I only say that because we're not going to
hear his iconic King Tuck call ever again unless they
sign him in the next serious offseason.
Speaker 2 (00:40):
No, And you know, that's probably one of the things
that we're terrible at, is that we should trademark or
whatever it is, some of these phrases that we develop
for these guys before they take off, so that we
can own them and sell them to the next team
they go to.
Speaker 1 (00:53):
Yeah, we should get some sort of royalties here. What
was your I mean, you probably had an idea. This
was happening. We all thought this is probably coming. It's
just the way it happened, a trade via letting him
walk in free agency. I'm choosing to console myself with
something Wex said early on, which is that basically they
didn't go the Angels route and just let him walk
out the door, like show hey, O Tani for nothing.
Speaker 2 (01:15):
Yeah, And I think that that's probably the more, you know,
hopefully that's the more logical way of looking at it,
because emotionally, you know, we get attached to these guys,
and I'm in that same boat. I'm with you, guys.
I mean, we're we're We watched these guys on TV.
We watch them put up great numbers, we watch them
win championships, we watch them, you know, develop as human
beings and become these mature adults who are playing the
(01:38):
game great and earn the right to go to free agency.
And unfortunately, it's kind of a situation where I think that,
you know, it's different for me. It's a little bit
different with Kyle Tucker, just because I think there's a
little more history there. You know, Luno drafts him, says
he's untouchable, keeps him here, we avoid trading him early
on and now we finally trade them under the Dana
Brown era. But at the same time, you know, I
(02:00):
remember two or three years ago, I think it was
after that twenty twenty two season. You know, there were
some arbitration issues. You know, there's always been kind of
this icy backstory between Kyle Tucker and the Houston Astros.
I don't know if any of that had to come
you know, had come into play during this time, but
I do think it has something to do with the
fact that with Juan Soto signing that ridiculously large contract
(02:24):
is going to have an impact on next year's free
agent market for Kyle Tucker. And there was already writing
on the wall, and I think it got filled in
and maybe Neon, you know, spray Paint said that Kyle
Tucker's going to go get some dollars next year, so
why don't we let him go and see what we
can get in return?
Speaker 3 (02:41):
Seemed very obvious. I totally agree that once that came out,
that probably tipped them off to what they should probably do,
which is a wait free agency in the twenty twenty
five offseason day being Kyle Tucker and his agency, well
curious a little more about Tucker. We'll save that for
the end. Just on the acquisition. One of the players
(03:01):
is somebody who has discussed a lot, both internally by
the Rays and the Astros E's Operettis, but by all
of us during that time period around the trade deadline,
about what he might be able to do on this team. Now, granted,
had they traded for him last year, he would have
been playing with Alex Bregman and with Kyle Tucker, and
now he might actually be playing without either one of them,
but just the player himself, your thoughts about what you'd
(03:23):
seen from him over the years, certainly with Tampa's time
at Chicago was a little bit of a downturn for
those couple of months. But the player they're getting who
will be an everyday player somewhere on the corner of
the Astros in field, most likely E's Opperettas.
Speaker 2 (03:38):
Yeah, I think that latter comment you just made a
play worth The interest is for Esac Paratus, and you're right.
There was conversations and rumors out there of Paradis coming
the Astros way via a trade last year, but more
of it was to kind of try and fill the
gap at first base because esaw Paratus has done a
good job of proving his worth around on the infield.
(04:00):
He's played what seventy one games I think at first base.
He's played three hundred and thirty five at third base,
So it kind of gives you an idea that he's
a little bit of a protection plan if Bragman is
unable to come back to the Astros, so he could
fill in at third base. He could also fill in
at first base if necessary. So I think it's kind
of interesting in that sense. But if you do look
at him as a third baseman with the potential of
(04:22):
an Alex Bragman moving on as well, which would make
this offseason very interesting for Astro fans, I think it's
also kind of fun to look at He saw Parides
the hitter. He's a dead whole guy, very similar to
Alex Bragman, and Sarah Lang's put out a tweet today
as the trade is going down about parade Is saying
he actually would have hit twenty six home runs if
(04:44):
he had been playing in the now Dyke In Park
for the Houston Astros. So I think it's really interesting
that they put a guy like that who has the
ability to elevate to the pull side in a ballpark
like ours, where he could actually provide a lot of production.
But he's going to be an interesting guy. His strikeout
member have decreased over the years he's been in the
big leagues, and that's obviously an appeal for the Astros.
But I think the versatility and the pop to the
(05:07):
pull side for him as a right handed hitter is
what makes him appealing.
Speaker 1 (05:11):
We had Chandler Roman earlier, Jeff, and when we asked
him the same question, you know, is there a scenario
where this trade today actually means the Astros are more
likely to hang on to Alex Bregman to come to
an agreement and he's His response to that was, well,
as long as he's out there, he's still available. That's
(05:31):
not I don't think he's coming back because there's no
way they can resign him. Kyle Tucker, So with all
that being said, how do you feel about Bregman?
Speaker 2 (05:43):
My feelings about Alex are obvious. I mean I would
have thought him in a heartbeat, or I'd asked to
be adopted by him if I could. But you know,
his work, ethic and his leadership spoke volumes of during
his time here with the Astros and the you know, again,
I go back to him being humble enough to move
from shortstop to third to make this ball club better.
And I think he's you know, he's also a business guy,
(06:04):
you know, behind the scenes, so he's taken into account
all of the numbers, all of the opportunities that he's
going to have wherever he goes. Obviously solidify the foundation
here in Houston that is going to benefit him for
the rest of his life. You know, wife being from
here might carry a little bit of weight, but Alex
is going to be very practical and very logical about
what he chooses to do moving forward. And he's got
(06:25):
an agent who's going out there trying to get top dollar. Anyways,
it's just a matter of which team's going to jump
at the number. The fact that he's still out there
right now obviously gives me hope that he could come
back to Houston. And you know, I also find a
very interesting note. The Astros in the American League West,
in the American League are still contenders, and we saw
how good they could play without Tucker last year, but
(06:47):
we haven't yet, We've yet to see what the Astros
can be without a guy like Alex Bregman, and I
think that's probably what the you know, the powers that
be here are trying to figure out right now.
Speaker 3 (06:57):
Any recollection or something stand out if there's some recollection
of Hayden. Was Nesky's lone career appearance against the Astros,
which took place when the Astros were Wriggly in April
of this past year, gave him two and a third
innings worth of shutout baseball against Houston.
Speaker 2 (07:16):
Well, timing is everything, and the Astros going through Wrigley
phil at that time during the frozen tundra of Chicago
was not fun to watch at all, and it wasn't
fun to call from that you know, phone booth of
a of a broadcast booth either there in jur Wrigley.
So I choose to selectively disremember or misremember, so to speak,
that time in Chicago. But I think what's kind of
(07:36):
cool with with Nesky coming to the Astros is the
fact that he's got connections here. I'm not sure if
too many people understand that, but if you do your research,
he's a sci fare guy right here in Houston, went
to Sam Houston, so hopefully coming here to Houston, will
you know revive him a little bit and give him
some inspiration to perform in front of family and friends,
which I'm sure is a dream come true for every
(07:56):
guy who ever gets a chance to play in their
hometown city. But how often have we seen it with
the Astros picking a guy or training for a guy
that's you know, kind of on the fringe a little
bit and they turn him into this guy that can
go out there and accomplish something. So I'm sure that
the you know, some of the coaching staff has kind
of done their research scene spin rates and seen some
swing amissibility from Wiznsky, and that's probably why he's coming here.
(08:19):
And I also think the fact that he can go
you know, a little bit longer. He's kind of that
in between that fifth starter or that long relief guy.
He might be a little bit of protection trying to
see if he can mix into that rotation until some
of these arms get healthy. For the Astros too.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
How difficult do you think it is for us or
the gms of these sides that made this deal to
kind of pinpoint what the value needs to be when
you're dealing with a player who's heading into his final
year of control and what the timing of when you
pull off the deal, the Astros end up with three players.
The player we haven't talked about is presumed to be
the best of the bunch. It's just a matter of when,
(08:57):
and clearly a huge if he's never played in the majors.
How difficult do you think it is settling in on
what really should be the value?
Speaker 2 (09:05):
Yeah, And I think that's that's the real question right
here that a lot of fans need to try and
wrap their head around, because you know, last season, we
saw the Yankees give up a pretty good haul for
Juan Soto, and it was a little bit of arrogance
on their side, saying we'll trade for this guy because
we know we can pay him, and they weren't able
to pay him. And now they're seeing what happens when
you trade away a lot of guys for a one
(09:27):
year rental, so to speak, and he doesn't sign back
with your ball club. So I think there's a little
bit of trepidation around the league because of what the
Yankees went through with Juan Soto, and that might have
made it a little bit tougher for Dana Brown to
go out and ask for exactly what he wanted. But
I think that, you know, he's a pretty good talent
evaluator and felt that being able to get guys like
(09:50):
Cam Smith, who's going to be a future third basement potentially.
He's a number one pick from last season for the
Chicago Cubs, so obviously he's coveted. I think he was
their seventh best inside the organization, and he's got a future.
And then you get a you know, you get a
potential replacement in EASTSOC parades currently to plug into your
lineup and in your infield to try and plug a
couple of holes, and you get a reliever that you
(10:12):
need out in that bullpen. So it's one less thing
that he has to go out in the free agent
market and do. But I do think, you know it
kind of I hope that's kind of where you were
hinting at WEX, was, you know, the mentality of trading
for a guy that's even a one year or a
three month rental. You've got to be careful because you're
not still not sure even if you've got all the
money in the world that you're going to sign this
guy back, and there's going to be quite a bit
(10:32):
of money going Tucker's way if he has another career year.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
I love that for the Yankees first of all, that
that hell unfolded that.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
Way, dude, isn't it great? Yeah? It is.
Speaker 1 (10:41):
And I'm also looking forward to the Astros churning was
Nesky into this year's Kakuchi and Kakucci going to the
Angels and his career torpedoing again because that's how things go, Blum.
We are up against it. We appreciate the time, especially
on the fly. We miss you. We miss your musk
here on the eighteen Sports Talk seven ninety so enjoy
the rest of your off season. Maybe we'll be calling
(11:02):
you again soon.
Speaker 3 (11:03):
But either way, week in studio, well I met when
the Bregmant deal.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
Goes down effect us effect on Wednesday. Watch will be ready.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
I'll let you sit in my chair. All right, Blummer,
we will talk to you soon and good stuff there,
as always from a guy who joins US weekly during
the baseball season as well.
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