Finally able to swing the bat in the offseason without any restrictions because of injuries, Astros third baseman Alex Bregman is brimming with confidence a month out from Spring Training. That shouldn’t be a surprise considering Bregman always oozes confidence, but he’s spent the offseason training rigorously in Arizona and believes he could be poised for one of the best seasons of his career.

That would be ideal for Bregman, who will be a free agent at the end of the season … if the Astros aren’t able to sign him to a contract extension. Bregman, who will turn 30 in March, is entering the final season of a five-year, $100 million contract. Astros general manager Dana Brown said at the Winter Meetings the club has no plans to trade its cornerstone third baseman as it looks to return to the World Series in 2024.

“To be honest, I’m really not even approaching the season like there is anything looming really,” Bregman said. “I’m approaching the season like I want to play the best year of my career and have the best season I’ve ever had, and let everything fall where it falls.”

Last year, Bregman started 161 of 162 games in the regular season and slashed .262/.363/.441 with 25 home runs, 98 RBIs, 103 runs and 92 walks, and he was a Gold Glove finalist at third base in the American League. He appeared on one AL Most Valuable Player ballot. Still, Bregman is aiming to return to his 2019 form when he finished second in AL MVP voting.

“I thought last year defensively I had a good year,” he said. “I think I swung the bat well in the postseason. I think offensively I have some extremely lofty goals for this year that I’m going to go hit.”

That’s why Bregman, his wife, Reagan, and son, Knox, have been in Arizona since the start of November. Bregman is working out at Exos gym in Phoenix with fellow big leaguers, a group that includes Matt Chapman, Garrett Stubbs, Bradley Zimmer, Tyler Wade and Josh Rojas.

“We have a really good group of guys down there training every morning,” Bregman said. “There’s probably about 30 of us.”

Bregman heads to the gym at 9:30 a.m. each day for three hours before moving to the cage, where he takes batting practice. He goes back to his house and does some body-maintenance work with his physical therapist. That’s important, considering Bregman missed three weeks in 2020 with a hamstring strain and two months in ’21 with a quad strain. He also had wrist surgery after the ’21 season and fractured a finger in the clinching Game 6 of the ’22 World Series -- all of which served as road bumps in his offseason routine.

“Physically I feel like I’m in the best shape of my life, mechanically with my swing, and being able to hit in the offseason for the first time in maybe four years has been amazing,” he said. “In the [2022] World Series, I broke my finger and had to rehab that. The year before, I had a hand injury. Just being able to hit for the first time in the offseason since the 2019 season has been awesome.”

Bregman has been in touch with new manager Joe Espada and thinks the Astros are in a good spot to contend for another World Series. A big season from Bregman would go a long way in helping Houston’s chances.

“I can’t wait to get down there to Florida to get started on this season,” he said. “Super motivated and optimistic, and looking forward to having the best season of my career.”

Baseball will return to Minute Maid Park next month with the 12th annual Houston Winter Invitational, an annual Division II college tournament that is co-hosted by the Astros and the University of Central Missouri, the alma mater of Astros owner Jim Crane. This year’s tournament, which will be held Feb. 2-4, will also include Millersville University (Pa.) -- the alma mater of Astros outfielder Chas McCormick.

McCormick played four years at Millersville, helping the Marauders to an NCAA Division II championship runner-up finish in 2016. He’s the only player in program history to be a four-time all-PSAC East selection and is the team’s all-time leader in hits, runs and RBIs. He hit .373 with a .441 on-base percentage while at Millersville.

The rest of the Invitational field includes Arkansas Tech, Southern New Hampshire, St. Cloud State and the University of Tampa. The complete schedule and ticket information for the tournament can be found at astros.com/winterinvitational.

Jan. 12, 2004 -- 'Rocket' to Houston

A month after the Astros signed left-hander Andy Pettitte to a three-year contract to pitch in his hometown after spending his entire career with the Yankees, the team convinced Roger Clemens -- Pettitte’s close friend and Yankees teammate -- to follow in his path and signed him to a one-year, $5 million deal.

Clemens had retired following the 2003 season with the Yankees, but Astros owner Drayton McLane paid a visit to the Clemens home in Houston before Christmas and gave him a glass baseball glove ornament as a gift, which sparked contract talks.

“It was complicated because he had fully retired, and we persuaded him to come back,” McLane said. “That was fun to do.”

Pettitte made only 15 starts and missed the postseason with an elbow injury, but Clemens was terrific. He went 18-4 with a 2.98 ERA to win his seventh and final Cy Young Award. The Astros convinced Clemens to return for another season in 2005, signing him for $18 million, and he went 13-8 with a 1.87 ERA while helping the Astros to their first World Series appearance.

Clemens returned to Houston in 2006 on a one-year, $22 million deal, but he didn’t make his first start until June 22. As part of the agreement, he was allowed to skip series on the road in which he wasn’t pitching. He went 7-6 with a 2.30 ERA in 19 starts before coming out of retirement for a final time and finishing his career with the Yankees in ’07.

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