CONFIRMED DEAL: An insider claims that Houston Astros second baseman  has formally consented to sign with the Atlanta Braves because…

The Houston Astros operated in a much different fashion this offseason than they have done previously under the ownership of Jim Crane.

He handed out the largest deal to a free agent during his tenure when they landed Josh Hader. He also was willing to sign Jose Altuve to a lucrative extension, something that hasn’t quite been the case in the past.

That’s one of the main reasons why Gerrit Cole, George Springer and Carlos Correa are playing baseball for different teams.

It’s hard to argue with what the Astros have done.

They won another World Series title after all three of those star players were no longer with the club.

But, at some point, letting elite talent out of the building could come back to haunt the organization.

As Alex Bregman is entering the upcoming season on the last year of his deal, unless he signs a contract extension, he’ll hit the open market where he likely will have tons of suitors.

Knowing this, general manager Dana Brown emphasized again that Houston will offer their star third baseman a new deal at some point with the hope that he stays.

However, with Bregman’s agent being Scott Boras, it’s very likely he’ll hit the open market after the 2024 season is complete.

If that does indeed happen, Joel Sherman of The New York Post suggests that the New York Mets could be a real player in the pursuit of the elite free agent.

“And one that I think could be particularly interesting involves Alex Bregman,” he writes.

Sherman goes on to discuss some of the main reasons why he thinks they’d be interested in handing out a potential megadeal to the upcoming 30-year-old, but the one particularly interesting things is looking at the Mets’ current situation at the position.

Ideally, New York would be able to do something similar to what the Astros have done with their star prospects taking over and holding that spot for the foreseeable future.