Coming into the winter, the Astros have some big decisions to make regarding what the future of the team might look like.

This offseason, Houston has a few big-named free agents with Alex Bregman leading the way.

The decision of what the franchise will do with Bregman is going to impact the team for years, as they certainly won’t be able to replace him with a player of that caliber in 2025 if they let him walk.

Furthermore, they also have Kyle Tucker and Framber Valdez hitting free agency after next season.

If the Astros are going to try and keep this team together, they will need to spend a ton of money and have one of the highest salaries in the league. It seems highly unlikely they will be able to afford all three players since they have other positions to fill and owner Jim Crane has rarely been willing to go over the luxury tax threshold.

One of the great moves by Houston this year was the decision to trade for Yusei Kikuchi to strengthen their rotation.

After struggling a bit with the Toronto Blue Jays, the magic touch of the Astros helped him turn his season around.

Now, he is hitting free agency and could be a solid middle of the rotation option for a lot of teams.

Recently, Zachary D. Rymer of Bleacher Report predicted he would sign with the New York Mets on a three-year, $45 million deal and highlighted some of his improvements.

“Kikuchi’s 2024 season got off a rough start in Toronto. Through 22 starts, he had a 4.75 ERA and had given up 125 hits in 115.2 innings. Then the Houston Astros got their hooks in him and, well, the rest is history. He finished with a 2.70 ERA, 76 strikeouts, 14 walks and only 42 hits allowed in 60 innings. They turned his slider into one of the best breaking balls in MLB, and now he stands to profit.”

Kikuchi could be an excellent fit for the Mets, as they will be looking to reshape their rotation that is full of free agents this offseason.

While New York will be trying to land an ace, a pitcher like Kikuchi could be a solid option for them to add more depth.