The Houston Astros are one of the top contenders in the American League, and a huge reason why is the emergence of Hunter Brown as an ace and top Cy Young candidate.
He’s having a career year, earning his first All-Star nod and making a strong push for the AL Cy Young Award. The 27-year-old is a huge reason why the Astros lead the AL West.
Brown is making the case to earn a huge payday when he becomes a free agent after 2028. But, as Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report mentions, the Astros could look to make an exciting decision in the offseason to sign him to an early extension.
Houston Could Extend Hunter Brown
Houston has a lot of financial commitments on the roster already, and is losing Framber Valdez to free agency. Instead of letting Valdez walk after 2025 and Brown after 2028, the Astros should extend Brown to a huge deal.
Reuter listed 10 names who could be in line for big extensions in the offseason, and Brown was the Astros player named as an extension candidate. Amid his breakout campaign, a long-term deal would be appealing for the Astros.
He has a 2.37 ERA and a 10-6 record in 26 starts this season, and is in the top-three for the 2025 Cy Young Award in the AL. Having a player like that long-term is a no-brainer.
Extending Brown should be high on the Astros’ list of priorities this offseason. Starting pitchers aren’t easy to come by. Keeping Brown in Houston would help raise the floor of the team, regardless of how the rest of the roster shapes out.
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It wouldn’t be cheap, but since Brown has just one season as an ace-level pitcher, it would likely be a cheaper deal than if he continued to pitch this well, and the Astros wait until after the 2028 season to try and extend him.
While the Astros don’t need to extend him yet, doing so early would be a great way to ensure the team has an ace for the foreseeable future.
It’d be even more important if Valdez leaves in free agency, as it would open the door to both staff aces departing would be a disastrous outcome.
A Brown extension would be expensive, but for the Astros and owner Jim Crane, they’ve already opened the door to huge financial commitments with the Carlos Correa trade. Keeping someone like Brown should be an easy decision for Houston, and they could start on an extension this offseason, even though he has three more years of control.
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