Preston Wilson

[Baseball Guru]

According to the Houston Chronicle, the Astros are close to signing free agent CF Preston Wilson.

[Durango53]

I think this is a great signing. I like Preston a ton. He is a great teamate from what I saw of him in Denver. His defense is WAY underated. He was the best CF the Rockies ever had. He ran everything down in that pasture and had the arm to make everyone respect him. I bet the Astros make him a corner fielder which could cut down on him getting hurt.

With a good team around him he can put up some RBI numbers as he did in Denver. Sure he strikes out a bit but he also makes teams respect the long ball from him also.

[Toy Cannon]

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/3562368.html

The Astros have reached a preliminary agreement with free agent outfielder Preston Wilson on a one-year deal, pending a physical.

Wilson was on a flight to Houston this afternoon to undergo his physical, and a news conference could be called to introduce the veteran slugger later today once Wilson undergoes and passes his physical.

"There's still some details to work out," Astros general manager Tim Purpura said.

Purpura withheld further comment until the deal was complete. Wilson's agent, Robert Bry of St. Louis, said he hoped to be able to make an official comment by 5 p.m. today.

Wilson, 31, would give the Astros a solid middle-of-the-order run producer who can help protect Lance Berkman and Morgan Ensberg in the lineup. He has played center field most of his career.

Last year with the Colorado Rockies and Washington Nationals, Wilson hit .260 with 25 home runs, 90 RBIs and 148 strikeouts.

[Baseball Guru]

I think its a great signing by the Stros... He should have some fun with that left field fence;)

I honestly feel he will hit over 30 hr's and over 100 rbi's next season...

[Durango53]

I to think he will James. With some of those hitters around him he will have a great year I feel also. I to think 100+ RBI's. I would be willing to bet he has a year like he did with the Rockies in 2003 or close to it.

[Toy Cannon]

Astros ink Wilson to one-year contract

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20060103&content_id=1290790&vkey=news_hou&fext=.jsp&c_id=hou

HOUSTON -- The Houston Astros completed a deal with outfielder Preston Wilson on Tuesday, signing him to a one-year contract which, with options, could be as long as four years.
Wilson batted .260 (135-for-520) with 25 homers and 90 RBIs in 2005 with the Rockies and Nationals. Over eight big-league seasons, he has a .264 average with 171 homers and 591 RBIs.

It's unclear where Wilson, 31, will play. He has played the majority of his career as a center fielder, but the makeup of the Astros could necessitate a position switch.

If Wilson is slotted into left field, Lance Berkman would play right. This leaves Jason Lane without a position, unless the Astros decide to slide him into center and deal Willy Taveras.

Chris Burke, whom the club was considering to platoon with left-handed-hitting Luke Scott in left field, is also without any guarantees, and the signing of Wilson makes the picture a lot less clear for the Astros' former No. 1 draft pick.

A lot of the decisions will hinge on Jeff Bagwell's status. If Bagwell proves he is healthy and can play first base, Berkman will remain in the now-crowded outfield. Should Bagwell conclude that he cannot play, Berkman would move to first, which would create an opening in the outfield for whoever was pushed out by Wilson's arrival.

The other scenario would call for Wilson to be a fourth outfielder and competing for a starting job during Spring Training. That is unlikely, however, considering Wilson is only two years removed from driving in a league-leading 141 runs for the Rockies in '03.

[lal4l]

Hope this gets some more hitting for us!

[Astro Annie]

It also helps on the diversity front. (I can't understand why people care about that.)