Houston Astros May Have Missed Out Badly By Not Signing Veteran Infielder

The Houston Astros had quite the turbulent offseason, a period which included two of their most important players either signing for or being traded to other teams.

This year brought the start of a new era for Houston and replacing Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker was never going to happen with one player.

One guy who the Astros had entertained potentially bringing in to soften the blow but wound up missing out instead has had an absolutely incredible start to the year.

It seems like a lifetime ago, but fans in Houston groaned at the possibility of bringing in Jorge Polanco to play in the infield.

Though Polanco has never been a horrible player by any means, it's understandable that fans were not going to be thrilled by going from a franchise player like Bregman to an aging veteran whose production has been moving in the wrong direction.

While the rumors of interest from the Astros were very real, Polanco instead wound up re-signing with the division rival Seattle Mariners on a one-year agreement.

Polanco has responded through the first month of his 12th season in the Major Leagues with what so far is the best start to a year in his entire career.

Slashing an absurd .384/.418/.808 with nine home runs and 25 RBI over 22 games playing designated hitter and wherever he is needed in the infield, Polanco has helped the Mariners to a two-game lead in the division as May arrives.

In all likelihood, had Polanco come to Houston, he would have for the most part put a stop to the sort of revolving door the team has had at the second base position.

Seattle has needed him more at third and designated hitter and he has never been a particularly strong defensive player, though he has hit so well this year it almost doesn't even matter.

For reference as to how impressive this season has been, Polanco last season over 118 games posted a bWAR of 1.3. This year he has matched the 1.3 in just 22 games.

If he can continue hitting at this pace, he's not just going to be an All-Star for the second time in his career, he will have a legitimate case to be the American League MVP.

For the Astros, not only does it sting in the sense that they missed out, but Polanco's performance is also going to give the Mariners an upper hand in what promises to be a close divisional race.

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