Houston Astros Reportedly Made Contract Offer to Former Mariners INF Jorge Polanco

It's unclear how recent this offer is, but it's something to watch.

Seattle Mariners second base Jorge Polanco (7) hits against the Oakland Athletics in the sixth inning at Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in 2024. | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

We've heard throughout the offseason that the rival Houston Astros have reportedly been interested in signing former Seattle Mariners second baseman Jorge Polanco.

And according to Hector Gomez of Z101 Digital, the Astros have made Polanco a contract offer.

I heard #Astros offered Jorge Polanco one-year, $4.0 million.

I heard #Astros offered Jorge Polanco one-year, $4.0 million. https://t.co/oFBO4AJDkb

— Héctor Gómez (@hgomez27) January 16, 2025

Now, there's a few things at play here:

First, Polanco would likely have to be a bench player in Houston, and there's no indication that he wants that. The 'Stros have Jose Altuve at second base, Jeremy Pena at shortstop and Isaac Paredes at third base. Christian Walker is set to play first.

We also have to wonder about the timing of this offer. We first heard the Astros were interested in Polanco as a third baseman earlier this offseason. Since then, they've acquired Paredes, so is this offer still on the table? Are the Astros even still interested in him given that fact?

You also have to wonder if the Mariners could re-engage Polanco. They need massive help in the infield and given that Polanco's contract number would be far lower than the $12 million option they declined earlier this offseason, they could be interested. Polanco could slot in again as the team's second baseman, even after they recently signed Donovan Solano to a one-year deal.

Polanco hit .213 this past season and dealt with a serious knee injury that just required surgery. He's 31 years old and doesn't play great defense anymore. He was an All-Star in 2019 and hit 33 homers back in 2021, but he's been injured and regressing since then, so it's understandable why the team declined his option at that number, but with a healthy knee, there's a chance of him recapturing his old form.

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