THE Houston Astros are going to have to make some tough decisions over the next couple of years in what is an undeniable reality of life in Major League Baseball, especially as a contending franchise full of star players.

This offseason, the big looming question of course is the free agency status of the superstar third baseman and fan favorite. Alex Bregman. However, since the start of free agency, GM Dana Brown said all the right things about the team being very serious about keeping Bregman and his agent Scott Boras echoes a similar sentiment.

While Astros fans would love to keep Bregman in Houston forever, a mega-deal for him could have unintended long-term consequences.

Another superstar right fielder Kyle Tucker will become a free agent after the 2025 season, unless an agreement is reached to a long-term contract before that point. Estimated by Spotrac receiving just over $16 million next season in arbitration, Tucker will be one of the biggest prizes in free agency a year from now if the team doesn’t reach an agreement with him before then.

Eric Treuden from climbing Tal’s Hill believes that if the team does indeed bring back Bregman in a big deal, it could cause problems for Tucker’s future in Houston.

“It feels like the Astros are going to have to choose between keeping Tucker for the rest of his career or Bregman,” Treuden wrote. “Since the club has already been so loud and proud about its pursuit of Bregman, it appears that question has already been answered.”

If it truly is an either/or situation, one can make an argument for wanting to keep Tucker instead of Bregman for the long term. An All-Star for the past three consecutive seasons, Tucker still feels like a guy who hasn’t quite reached his prime yet and will only be 28 years old when the 2025 season begins. Bregman, meanwhile, is still a player elite, but his numbers seem to be downward trend while those of Tucker tend to increase.

Tucker did suffer from an injury in 2024, but the 78 games he played in were arguably his best. the best of his career. In an ideal world, the Astros will be able to keep Bregman and Tucker for the rest of their careers, but it will certainly be difficult to make it all work.