Houston Astros in no hurry to add a Designated Hitter as Lance Berkman remains favourite - MLB News
The Houston Astros are already in action at the Winter Meetings held in Nashville, Tennessee. They have traded reliever Wilton Lopez for Alex White to the Colorado Rockies. The original target was to pick players from the Rule 5 Draft. Whether it is still
on their mind or not, is to be seen.
For the designated hitter spot, Lance Berkman remains to be a favourite. Jeff Luhnow, the general manager for the Astros has not talked much about Berkman and only said that they have had some talks but nothing specific at this point in time. Jeff also ruled
out any interest in acquiring Josh Hamilton.
"We had a discussion with them and had a very basic conversation," he said. "We haven't talked anything specifically at this point."
Luhnow also said that there was no rush amongst the Astros’ ranks to get a designated hitter and the club will not be worried if the spot is not filled at the end of the Winter Meetings. "We're not necessarily concerned about leaving Nashville with a DH
in place," Luhnow said Wednesday. "I think we've got a long time between now and Opening Day, so we'll definitely have an opportunity to fill that spot."
Lance Berkman had a tremendous year for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011, going long on 31 occasions and batting in 94 runs along with a .301 average. Lance, however, had little action in 2012 due to knee injuries and only had 81 at-bats.
The 36-year-old, who is a resident of Houston, has previously met Jim Crane, the owner of the Houston Astros and their manager Bo Porter. The first baseman has played for the Astros all the way from 1999 to 2009 and a part of 2010 season as well.
About the level of interest the Houston ball club currently has in Lance, Jeff Luhnow said that it was relative to the overall look of the line-up. "There is some interest, and I'll leave it at that," he said. "It all depends on how the rest of our team
is configured. It depends on a few other factors. I can't tell you where the option of attempting to sign Lance ranks relative to others, because there are some different paths we're considering simultaneously," he said.
About the Rule 5 Draft, Jeff stated that it was a big commitment and to keep a player on the 25-man roster throughout the season is not an easy decision. He said that they had previously selected players from the draft who turned out to be quite useful for
the team.
The Astros have been able to add a starting pitcher to their line-up and quite possibly will be looking to the Rule 5 Draft as well for some good players. It is also possible that the team may have Lance Berkman back soon as well. There is some definite
movement in the Astros’ ranks and only time will tell if it is all for the better.
Tags: