Astros trade proposal lands Gold Glove infielder, top-5 prospect from Pirates

This offseason, the Houston Astros have been readjusting their roster in a big way. Letting Framber Valdez walk, trading a pair of prospects for Mike Burrows, and signing Tatsuya Imai were nice moves for Houston this offseason.

But there is still a big need to address with the roster. Specifically, the infield logjam hasn't been resolved. Trading a player is their best option, and one of Isaac Paredes or Christian Walker is the most likely to be on their way out.

ESPN's David Schoenfield proposed a trade that would help their infield logjam. He proposes the Astros send Paredes and cash to the Pittsburgh Pirates for, ironically, an infielder with a Gold Glove and a top-5 pitching prospect.

Astros trade proposal sends Paredes to Pirates for Gold Glove INF, top-5 prospect

"Houston Astros trade 3B Isaac Paredes + cash to Pittsburgh Pirates for LHP Hunter Barco, 3B Jared Triolo," Schoenfield proposed.

With the Pirates looking to sign Eugenio Suarez, before he took the Cincinnati Reds deal, the Pirates could turn to the Astros and Paredes. He's under club control for a few more years and would be a great trade option for the Pirates.

Coming back in return for Paredes (and cash) in this trade proposal for the Astros would be Hunter Barco, a left-handed pitcher who's ranked 4th in the Pirates farm system by MLB Pipeline, and Jared Triolo, a third baseman who won a Gold Glove in 2024.

Triolo is 28 years old and is under club control through the 2029 season. In his career, he's put up 2.0, 1.3, and 2.3 bWAR across 45, 125, and 107 games, respectively.

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While he might not be the best hitter, with a .236 career batting average and .667 OPS, his great defense at first base, third base, and even second base means he's the perfect depth piece for the Astros.

Barco, meanwhile, is a 25-year-old lefty who, in three innings pitched in his MLB career so far, has a 0.00 ERA with three strikeouts. In the minors, across 54 games and 47 starts, Barco has a 3.04 ERA with 227 strikeouts in 183.2 innings pitched. He has at least six years of club control left.

While losing Paredes would sting, adding players like Barco and Triolo would be more than worth it for the Astros. Not only would this trade proposal solve their infield logjam, but it would give them two great young players who are under control for a long time.

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