MLB rumors: Jayson Stark thinks Astros are ‘hitting gas pedal’ in Isaac Paredes trade talks

The Houston Astros have opened spring training after missing the playoffs for the first time since 2016. They made trades last season to try to salvage the campaign, including the reunion with Carlos Correa. Now, that deal has one player on the outside looking in despite a strong season. The Astros are pushing hard for an Isaac Paredes trade, according to The Athletic’s Jayson Stark.

Stark polled 36 executives, managers, and ex-executives, asking who was most likely to be traded in spring training. He said that Paredes had a lot of late votes in the week-long process. “I tend to take that as a sign the Astros have hit the gas pedal in their attempts to help clear up their infield mess by moving Paredes (or possibly Christian Walker) sooner than later.”

Stark continued, “All four of the votes for Paredes rolled in over the last 24 hours before I cut off the balloting. And one of those votes came from an exec whose team is looking for infield bats. His strong impression is that the Astros are feeling more urgency to tidy up their roster in the near future. ‘That’s going to be a tough situation to manage,’ he said, ‘if everyone is healthy.'”

Best fits for Astros’ Isaac Paredes

The Astros got Paredes from the Chicago Cubs in the Kyle Tucker trade before the 2025 season. In 102 games, he slugged 20 homers and posted an .809 OPS. He looked to be the new man at third base after losing Alex Bregman to the Boston Red Sox until he got hurt. They traded for Correa to play third, which now could lead to another Paredes trade.

Bregman went from Boston to the Cubs, so the Red Sox had an opening at third. But they filled that with Caleb Durbin, cancelling the ability to close the third-base loop with Paredes. That does mean that the Milwaukee Brewers could use an infielder, but they are known to replace from within rather than trade for a player.

The Pittsburgh Pirates traded away Ke’Bryan Hayes last week, but have now put together an offense worthy of a playoff race. They should look at Paredes as an option to fill the hole at third base. Paredes is an offense-first option at the hot corner, while their current third baseman, Jared Triolo, is a glove-first option.

If the Astros do trade Paredes, it will likely be the biggest deal of spring training.

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