For almost all of the 2000s, Roy Oswalt has been the one mainstay on the Houston pitching staff. You could pencil him in for 15-20 wins each season and know he’d give you his finest effort every time he got the start. But it may well be time to say goodbye, not before the end of the season but during the upcoming winter.

Let me begin by saying that, the Astros have scores of reasons to show gratitude to the young pitcher from Wier, MS. Without him, the Astros would not have made two playoffs and one World Series. He’s been a straightforward guy and a powerful player. If the Astros seemed to be a team able to contend in the next few seasons, I’d hope to keep him around.

But the reality is that the Astros seem like they’ll need to strip themselves down a bit before they can advance. Since 2007, they have relentlessly tried to milk another World Series by putting older and older lineups on the field and it plainly hasn’t succeeded.

Going into next year, the Astros will have to disburse three giant salaries, all with no-trade clauses. Two of these, Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee, reveal no indication they would allow a trade. Oswalt dances around the question but it seems unmistakable he would go anywhere that could put a championship ring on his hand and blend with his standard of living.

It’s been a frustrating year for Roy who is not used to being this deep into the year and still be stuck on 7 wins. He’s in danger of not earning ten victories for the first occasion in his big league existence. He hasn’t been helped by much run support and, when he has, something has frequently kept him from getting the victory, whether it be a trivial injury, some bloopers behind him or a relief pitching collapse.

You don’t have to wonder much when he asserts he “didn’t come here to be on a middling team” and claimed, after his most recent loss in St. Louis, that the Astros are “merely going through the motions” to know he’s not pleased playing here.

So, where else might Oswalt go? I think Oswalt would have a preference to play in the South or the Midwest. Teams like Arizona, the Royals and the Twins don’t have the payroll to take Roy’s agreement. Likewise, the Marlins and the Rays would be good fits except the organizations don’t have the money.

Until a short time ago, the belief of trading Oswalt would have been met with rash denunciation but it seems clear Roy doesn’t want to continue through a reconstruction run (if there is one) and he won’t be happy about being an Astro if Cooper is still the skipper. Getting rid of his salary brings relief and flexibility to Houston’s purses which may make them a bit more brave to offer mediation to players who will bring draft prospects our way if they sign to a different place.

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Category: Baseball Players• Tags used in this article: astros  Carlos Lee  houston  Houston Astros  Lance Berkman  mlb  Roy Oswalt 

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