As I noted back in early November, the Astros were likely to exhaust all of their “cap space” and then some if they intended to retain the services of both George Springer and Michael Brantley. For a club looking to avoid exceeding the tax threshold for a second consecutive year with higher surcharges involved, the likelihood of a reunion with Springer was probably not in the cards from the start. That is why re-signing Brantley made more financial sense when viewed from the eyes of the front office. Unfortunately, the economics of a reunion with Springer was not possible based on those circumstances from the team’s mindset, although we can disagree with how clubs treat the tax threshold as a de facto “salary cap.
Astros’ 2021 Payroll Preview
