Mariners fans are loving the blockbuster trade that's backfiring on the Astros

This past offseason, the biggest move made by an American League West club was the trade the Houston Astros made with the Chicago Cubs that sent Kyle Tucker to the North Side. While the Seattle Mariners largely sat by idly, they had to watch as one of their biggest division rivals went out and made one of the biggest blockbusters of the winter.

We're only a handful of games into the regular season, but so far, that trade has been extremely one-sided, and not in the Astros' favor. Unfortunately, fans of the Mariners don't have a leg to stand on in their efforts to laugh at the Astros, because Seattle is currently 2-4 and in last place in the division.

Fortunately, the Astros are 2-3 and just one game above the Mariners in the standings, so point and laugh we will.

Mariners fans aren't missing Kyle Tucker, while Astros fans surely are

Through his first eight games on the Cubs, Tucker has already gone 12-for-34 (.353) and is leading the majors in hits, doubles (five), and RBI (11). He's also hit four home runs (in four straight games, no less) and has a 1.303 OPS and 259 OPS+.

Sure, none of these numbers are sustainable over the course of a full season, but it's refreshing to see a player like this leave and save his best performances for when he gets out of the AL West.

On the flip side of this, all three of the players the Astros acquired from the Cubs are on their big league roster.

Isaac Paredes, who is supposed to be the Astros' new third baseman to replace Alex Bregman, is hitting just .188 with a .600 OPS through his first five games in Houston. He's got light-tower in his bat, but there's been none of that on display so far.

Hayden Wesneski spent three years on the Cubs as a swingman before opening the 2025 campaign in the Astros' starting rotation. Of all of the players going from Chicago to Houston, he's got the smallest sample size. The right-hander has made just one start, going five innings while striking out six and allowing three earned runs, good for a 5.40 ERA.

Lastly, there's super-prospect Cam Smith, who shockingly made the Astros' Opening Day roster after being drafted by the Cubs just last year. The 22-year-old lit the world on fire during spring training and basically forced his way on to the Astros' roster, perhaps a little bit earlier than they had initially anticipated. So far, he's just 2-for-11 (.182) through four games with a pair of singles and no runs driven in.

Look, there's no reason to remind us that it's still unimaginably early in the season. Things can (and likely will) change with this trade as the year marches on. All that's clear right at this moment is that it's nice to see the Big Bad Astros look like "losers" in a trade, with Tucker elevating his game even further the moment he leaves the AL West.