Houston Astros Already Have Long-Term Plan in Place at Hot Corner

The Houston Astros are going to have a massive change at third base, but already have a plan in place for the future.

Sep 25, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago Cubs infielder Isaac Paredes (17) throws to first against the Philadelphia Phillies in the fourth inning at Citizens Bank Park. | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros just lost their long time third baseman, but already look to have a plan in place for the future.

Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter recently went through each team's situation at the hot corner to find what it will look like for the next five years.

The Astros have good answers for both the immediate and down the road.

Newcomer Isaac Paredes, acquired from the Chicago Cubs in the Kyle Tucker trade, is expected to be the Opening Day starter at third.

There have been murmurs that he could switch to second base at some point in the near future, which would leave the path open for their top prospect to take over.

Cam Smith, also acquired in the same trade, was the pick to be starting there five years from now.

Both players will have massive shoes to fill with Alex Bregman departing to the Boston Red Sox.

Bregman has manned the hot corner since partway through the 2016 campaign. In that time, he has posted a .272/.366/.483 slash line with an average of 21 home runs and 74 RBI. He was a two-time All-Star, one-time Silver Slugger and a one-time Gold Glove winner there.

No one is expecting them to replace a franchise legend in one offseason, but they have done at least a solid job of trying.

Paredes is an interesting case. He has been a very promising hitter for a while now, but is coming off of a career-worst stretch with the Cubs.

The good news for Houston is that his swing is tailor-made for Daikin Park. He is as much of a pull-hitter as possible, and it's only gotten more pronounced.

For context, Bregman had a pull-rate of 39.9% last season. The Astros had an average of 41.7%, which was the eighth-highest mark in MLB. Paredes' rate was all the way up at 53.7%, and that was actually lower than the year before.

The Crawford Boxes are about to have a new frequent visitor.

Smith is even more exciting of a player, as he hit the ground running in a full-on sprint in the minors.

He was the No. 14 overall pick in the 2024 draft. Over his first 32 professional games, he posted a .313/.396/.609 slash line with seven home runs.

Paredes is around league average on defense, mostly because of his arm strength. Smith has a cannon on him. Moving Paredes to second and having Smith take over at third makes sense for the future.