The Houston Astros announced a five-year, $125 million extension with second baseman Jose Altuve on Tuesday night.
It didn’t come as a shock for a variety of reasons: Altuve was close to hitting free agency and the Astros surely were going to have a word about that.
Secondly, the 33-year-old infielder has shown no signs of slowing down, and remains a top regular-season and playoff performer.
The move made sense: it carries a bit of age-related risk, but Altuve remains a star and it made sense to retain him.
He has been with the team since signing as an amateur free agent in 2007, and after a promising minor league career, he made his MLB debut in 2011.
Altuve shared a hilarious story about that first season as a major leaguer and how he has beaten the odds to dominate in MLB, per FOX: Sports MLB.
“When I got called up in 2011, they told me it was something temporary until they found another second baseman,” he said.
Looks like it worked out pretty well pic.twitter.com/CKnMQunIs0
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) February 7, 2024
When the Astros called him up in 2011, they were one of the worst teams in baseball.
It sounds hard to believe, but they had a 56-106 record that year.
People forget that, to build their current powerhouse, the Astros tanked for a long time.
The organization told Altuve that he would temporarily hold down the fort at second base until they found a replacement for him.
We really hope they stopped looking at some point because otherwise, they would be very, very tired.
All kidding aside, Altuve slashed .276/.297/.357 in 57 games in that 2011 campaign, enough to get him another chance in 2012.
In 2012, he was better, hitting .290/.340/.399 with seven homers and 33 stolen bases.
It was clear he was a starting-caliber talent who was, throughout his life, ignored or dismissed because of his height.
In 2014, Altuve had a .341/.377/.453 line with 56 thefts, and he won an MVP award in 2017 with 24 round-trippers and 32 steals.
He established himself as a star.
Nowadays, he is a two-time World Series winner, a three-time batting champ, and an eight-time All-Star.
He has 2,047 hits to this day.
Yes, we really hope the Astros were quick to stop looking for another second baseman.
The post Jose Altuve Shares Legendary Quote About His MLB Debut appeared first on The Cold Wire.