Astros insider claims Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Yordan Alvarez dwarfed Kyle Tucker, hints Cubs' acquisition as a Jose Ramirez-type franchise face

Kyle Tucker was a blockbuster acquisition by the Chicago Cubs, and one Houston Astros insider believes he could be a franchise-changing player for them. Tucker is as talented as they come in baseball, but the Astros were going to have trouble paying him at year's end.

Astros beat reporter Chandler Rome believes that Tucker was overshadowed by a lot of Astros players. They had a deep roster with Tucker, but he was never the star he'll likely be in Chicago.

Having to contend with a clubhouse of "Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Yordan Alvarez, and Carlos Correa for a while, and Justin Verlander," made Tucker seem a little more insignificant than he actually was. Rome said:

"Personality and clubhouse as part of that team, he got dwarfed a lot. He was in a clubhouse with Jose Altuve, Alex Bregman, Yordan Alvarez, and Carlos Correa for a while, and Justin Verlander.

"When you have that many established superstars, you kind of get, I don't wanna say forgotten about, but he didn't have to be the voice, the face, the guy that did all the interviews, things like that." (2:45)

Rome noted that Tucker is a quiet guy who doesn't "scream face of the franchise," but added that a franchise's face can be a variety of different things. Tucker doesn't have to change to be that, and Rome cited Cleveland Guardians star Jose Ramirez as an example:

"Look at Jose Ramirez in Cleveland. I don't think anyone would describe him as outgoing."

He's a softer-spoken star on a smaller market team, which is exactly what the Cubs are hoping Tucker will be. They have to make sure he's around for more than just this year with an extension, but that's the goal and it was when the Astros traded for the outfielder.

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Kyle Tucker & Cubs avoid arbitration

The relationship between the Chicago Cubs and Kyle Tucker was not off to a great start. They acquired him and then almost had to go to arbitration before settling on a deal for the 2025 season, his last remaining year of team control.

Kyle Tucker signed his contract (Imagn)

Tucker is poised for free agency after this season. The Cubs will want to ensure they didn't trade all the pieces for a rental and extend him, but they could barely come to an agreement on a deal for 2025.

He was prepared to go to arbitration after he asked for $17.5 million in salary. The Cubs countered with $15 before meeting in roughly the middle at $16.5 million for the upcoming season.