Houston Astros v Chicago White Sox | Jamie Sabau/GettyImages

The Houston Astros made the mistake of not locking Kyle Tucker up on an extension before he established himself as a superstar. By waiting, the team let Tucker price himself out of Houston and were eventually forced to trade him to the Chicago Cubs. Jose Altuve is hoping that the Astros handle this situation differently with Jeremy Pena.

“He’s more mature and he’s a guy who works hard, plays hard and shows up every day willing to learn,” Altuve said. “He’s a very valuable player for us and I’m surprised he’s not signed into a long-term deal with the Astros, he’s a guy you really want on your team for long term. I think Dana Brown and Mr. Crane need to start working on that.”

Altuve wants to see Pena, Houston’s starting shortstop and newly minted leadoff hitter, in town for a long time. While his stance certainly makes sense, Pena’s future price tag, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, might be too much for the Astros to justify.

“One of the sneaky steadiest players in baseball. Peña isn’t much of a threat to finish high in MVP voting, but his floor is higher than most. He’s just good, a consistent four-win player, and if he can carry that for three more seasons, he’ll reach free agency at 30 as a pretty good comparable to Willy Adames, who just cashed in for $182 million as a 29-year-old over the winter,” Passan wrote.

Projected Jeremy Pena price tag makes it tough for the Astros to make Jose Altuve’s wish come true

Passan is spot-on. Pena might not be the star Astros fans expected him to be after he won World Series MVP as a rookie in 2022, but he’s been nothing but a steady presence at one of MLB’s most valuable positions for years now. If he continues to be as good as he’s been, he might be looking at a hefty free agency contract. If Passan is right about Pena’s future value, though, it’s hard to envision the Astros keeping him around.

While a solid player, can the Astros really justify giving Pena that kind of money when they refused to even go that high for Alex Bregman, a far better all-around player? It’s not as if Altuve didn’t do his best to convince the Astros to bring Bregman back, either.

It’d be great for the Astros to keep Pena around long-term — he’s a winning player — but given how they operate, if what Passan is saying is remotely true, it’s hard to envision Altuve’s wish being granted.