Pedro Feliz Fills Astros' Third Base Void

It's been a puzzling offseason so far for Houston Astros’ GM Ed Wade.

He makes a good move in trading for Matt Lindstrom, then he makes a horrific move in signing Brandon Lyon to a three-year deal, and now he makes a good value move.

It’s like for every two steps forward, he takes one step back.

Today, Wade inked former Philadelphia Philly third baseman Pedro Feliz to a one-year, $4.5 million contract—a good value signing by the Astros.

Feliz, who was made available after the Phillies declined his 2010 option, hit .266/.308/.386 12 home runs in 158 games last year. Outside of the pitcher, he was widely regarded as the easiest out in the Phillies’ lineup.

Feliz is now an Astro

While Feliz is an average batter at best, he is not an average fielder.

Feliz is a very good defensive player. He had a 5.0 UZR (Ultimate Zone Rating), which ranked towards the top of all third basemen in 2009.

At $4.5 million, this is a good deal for the Astros. Feliz was worth about $5.7 million to the Phillies last season. Plus, Feliz is an upgrade over Geoff Blum, who played the majority of the games (102) at third base for the Astros in 2009.

This deal was first reported by ESPN.com’s Jorge Arangure, via Enrique Rojas, via Twitter.

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