Free agent outfielder Carlos Beltran has found a new home, though just in a different part of Texas. The veteran slugger has agreed to terms with the Houston Astros, per Buster Olney of ESPN.
Carlos Beltran, Astros reportedly agree to 1-year deal
$16 million pact include no-trade clause
Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images
The deal is a one-year, $16 million contract, per Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports, and includes a no-trade clause.
Beltran, who will turn 40 in April, hit .295/.337/.513 with 29 home runs and 33 doubles in 151 games between the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers in 2016. He made $15 million last year in the final season of a three-year deal originally signed with the Yankees.
Beltran split time between the outfield and designated hitter in 2016, starting 67 games in right field and 73 games at designated hitter.
Our own Grant Brisbee rated Beltran as the 29th-best available free agent this winter.
Because he was traded midseason from New York to Texas, Beltran was not eligible to receive a qualifying offer. As such, the Astros don’t have to forfeit a draft pick for signing him.
Beltran joins a formidable lineup in Houston that includes second baseman Jose Altuve, shortstop Carlos Correa, and third baseman Alex Bregman, among others.
This is the second time Beltran has joined the Astros. He was traded to Houston midseason in 2004, and had 23 home runs and 28 steals in 90 games for the Astros, helping them to the National League Championship Series. That was Beltran’s first taste of the postseason, and he hit eight home runs in 12 games for the Astros.
In parts of 19 major league seasons, Beltran has hit .281/.354/.492, a 121 OPS+, with 421 home runs, 536 doubles, 1,521 RBI, 1,522 runs scored, and 312 stolen bases.
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