The Houston Astros have acquired utility infielder Jeff Keppinger from the Cincinnati Reds in return for what will either be cash considerations or a player to be named later.

In a previous post I named Keppinger as a potential Aaron Boone replacement, claiming that Keppinger would be a likely target if Jeff Baker (the most likely candidate) was too costly. According to multiple sources out of Colorado, was not inspiring offers from teams that Colorado wanted. It is likely that the Astros were one of those teams, and as a result indeed turned to Keppinger as their next target.

Jeff Keppinger is more or less similar to Mark Loretta. He is very versatile, with plenty of experience at shortstop, second base, and third base, and has the potential to hit .280+ over the course of the season. His downfall, like Loretta, is a clear lack of power. What Ed Wade liked most about Keppinger, aside from his versatility, was his lack of strike outs; Keppinger has walked more than he has struck out the past 2 seasons. Keppinger is going to primarily platoon at third base with Geoff Blum, but will also be used at second base and shortstop as well.

In other news, the Astros sent Rule 5 pick Gilbert De La Vara back to the Royals for $25,000 dollars. Because De La Vara did not make the major league squad the Astros were required to offer him back to the Royals before sending him to the minor leagues. De La Vara had a decent camp, but with Wesley Wright as a lock and a strong showing by Tim Byrdak to back up his surprisingly successful season in 2008 there was simply no room for a third lefty in the bullpen.

By: Adam Herman on Mar 31st, 2009
Tagged as: Transactions

No Comments »