Young fan never thought he would get a reply from 'busy' Jeff Luhnow

HOUSTON -- When 7-year-old Will Erickson penned a letter to Jeff Luhnow imploring the Houston Astros general manager to not trade George Springer, he never dreamed he'd get a response.

The reason was simple.

"Because he's busy," Will told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Will decided to write the letter when he heard the Astros could be looking for pitching this offseason and might need to trade a player such as Springer to get it. His letter was straightforward. With a few spelling errors, it said: "Please don't trade George Springer these are the reasons 1. He is my favorite player 2. I get my hair cut like his 3. He is a team leader."

It turns out that Luhnow wasn't too busy to take some time to get back to the second-grader.

Will said it took him about 15 minutes to write the letter. He decided after a recent letter-writing project at school that it would be cool to write instead of sending an email. He wasn't nervous about reaching out to a baseball executive, despite being in elementary school.

"No, because it was just a letter -- not like talking," Will said.

He has been to quite a few Astros games and loves the work of Springer, who is an outfielder.

"I like how he robs homers and hits home runs," Will said.

During the week, Will's bedtime is 8 p.m., so he isn't able to watch much of Astros games live, as they begin at 7:10 p.m. But he DVRs every game and watches his beloved Springer's work from the night before after school each day.

As for the haircut, Will decided to change his hairstyle after seeing Springer's cool 'do, which has shaved sides and is longer on top. It was supposed to be for only a little while, according to Will's parents, but now they can't get him to change it and say it's part of his personality.

"There's no curls [on mine], but it's the same," Will said.

After Luhnow tweeted Will's letter, it got a lot of attention on the internet, with scores of people retweeting it and dozens of news stories written about it. Will's father discussed the letter in a segment on the local news in Houston, and Will's teacher played the segment in class Wednesday.

"They called me famous," Will said of his classmates.

Will hasn't met Springer but is a little worried about how he'll respond if he ever gets the chance.

"If I saw him, I would faint," he said.

When he isn't talking trades with baseball executives, Will is a typical elementary school boy. He plays little league baseball and fit his first interview in between school and a trip to see Santa Claus at a nearby Christmas village.

It's not much of a surprise what he planned to ask Jolly Old Saint Nick for on Wednesday. He wants "real snow" or a baseball lesson from Springer at Minute Maid Park.

Both are a tall order, but considering Will lives in a place where temperatures in December can soar into the 70s, his parents aren't sure which wish is more unlikely.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.