HOUSTON -- When the Astros lost star outfielder George Springer in free agency to the Blue Jays after the 2020 season, they had Kyle Tucker set to emerge as a star. When Houston lost star shortstop Carlos Correa to the Twins in free agency a year later, it had shortstop prospect Jeremy Pe?a waiting in the wings.

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The Astros let Springer and Correa walk in free agency and continued to win at a high level -- Pe?a was the Most Valuable Player of the 2022 American League Championship Series and World Series as a rookie -- but with a farm system ranked near the bottom of the Major Leagues in terms of talent level and no replacement on the roster, Houston took a different approach with Tucker.

? Analyzing the Tucker trade from all sides

Tucker, a three-time All-Star right fielder who caught the final out of the 2022 World Series, was traded to the Cubs on Friday afternoon. The Astros will receive infielder Isaac Paredes, right-hander Hayden Wesneski and third baseman Cam Smith -- is ranked as MLB's No. 73 overall prospect by MLB Pipeline -- in return.

Smith immediately becomes the Astros' No. 1 prospect.

¡°Sometimes there¡¯s an opportunity where you trade a really good player to get back multiple pieces and it doesn¡¯t affect the current calendar year and you have a chance to be even better in the future,¡± Astros general manager Dana Brown said. ¡°I feel like this is one of those moves.¡±

TRADE DETAILS

Astros get: IF Isaac Paredes, RHP Hayden Wesneski and 3B Cam Smith (Cubs No. 7 prospect).

Cubs get: RF Kyle Tucker.

The trade came as somewhat of a shock to some Astros players considering Tucker¡¯s status and impact on the Houston lineup. Tucker, 27, missed three months last season with a fractured shin and still hit 23 homers to go with 49 RBIs in 78 games, slashing .289/.408/.585 for a .993 OPS. He had his best season in ¡¯23, slashing .284/.369/.517 with 29 homers and 112 RBIs, falling one steal shy of a 30-30 season. He won a Gold Glove in 2022.

¡°This is probably one of those moves that in the future people will see and understand [and say], ¡®Yeah, now I get it,¡¯ even though it¡¯s tough in that first year to stomach because Kyle Tucker had such a great career here, such an outstanding player on some really good teams, won a championship,¡± Brown said. ¡°All that can be true at one time. I would say this is more to strengthen the opportunity down the road without losing any footage in the current year.¡±

Paredes, a 2024 All-Star the Astros tried to acquire at the Trade Deadline last season, can play first base or third base, depending on what happens with free-agent third baseman Alex Bregman, whom the club hopes to re-sign. The Astros will look for another impact bat on the trade or free-agent market -- one that can play one of the corner-infield spots or right field, or both.

¡°We¡¯re consistently looking to add to this club for sure,¡± Brown said. ¡°We definitely have our eyes set on improving the offense. That could certainly happen over the next week or so.¡±

• How does Tucker trade impact Bregman, Bellinger, Alonso?

Losing Tucker and Bregman from the Astros¡¯ lineup would leave the team without two of their top three position players from 2024 in terms of bWAR. Yordan Alvarez (5.4) led the club in bWAR, with Tucker (4.7) ranking second and Bregman and Pe?a (4.1) tied for third. It also makes Houston a much more right-handed-dominant lineup with Alvarez, Jon Singleton, Taylor Trammell and C¨¦sar Salazar as the only left-handed bats on the 40-man roster.

Paredes, 25, began last season with the Rays and was traded to the Cubs. A right-handed pull hitter who could take advantage of the Crawford Boxes at Daikin Park in 2025, Paredes hit a combined .238/.346/.393 with 19 homers and 80 RBIs in 153 games last season. He played exclusively third base last year but has games under his belt at first base. He¡¯s signed through 2027 and is first-time arbitration-eligible this year.

¡°I¡¯ll always be available to play any other position,¡± Paredes said. ¡°I have played third base my whole career, but if the team needs for me to play first base or any other position, I will do so. My focus is on being a good batter, but I will play defense anywhere the team needs me.¡±

Wesneski, 27, is a Houston native who has gone 9-13 with a 3.93 ERA in 190 career innings with the Cubs in three seasons. He¡¯s bounced between the rotation and the bullpen, making 22 starts among his 68 career appearances, but will compete in Houston¡¯s rotation. Wesneski is under club control for five more seasons.

¡°We¡¯re excited about it,¡± Brown said. ¡°He throws 96 [mph]. He¡¯s from Houston, so I felt this was a good piece to add. There¡¯s some upside here as well. We have really good pitching people and we have identified some things we could adjust and tweak and that could make him even better.¡±

Smith, 21, was the No. 14 overall pick in this year¡¯s MLB Draft. He performed well in his professional debut, slashing .313/.396/.609 in 32 games combined between Single-A Myrtle Beach, High-A South Bend and Double-A Tennessee. Brown called him ¡°an impact bat with power¡± and said he¡¯ll play third, first and right field.

¡°Whichever position he¡¯s playing the best, we¡¯ll put him at that position as he moves up,¡± Brown said. ¡°His last position he played was some third base in Double-A and he has a pretty good pro debut as you can see with the stats. ¡­ He was a college bat with power and has a chance to hit and is pretty athletic, as well. We¡¯re really excited about Cam Smith.¡±