How Astros position battles raise fascinating plot points for 2025 season
THE PLOT THICKENS
03 March
Do the Astros have enough depth in the outfield? Composite Getty Image.
Is Jose Altuve’s move to left field overblown?
In Altuve's first start in left field last week, he didn't have a single ball hit in his direction. In his second start in left, Altuve had two opportunities. The first was a ground ball in which Altuve made a throwing error trying to throw out a runner at home. The second opportunity went better, with Altuve making a nice catch at the wall. If Altuve only gets two or three balls hit his way per game, which could very well be the case, will this be a smoother transition than initially thought?
Astros manager Joe Espada is making it clear—if Altuve is moving to left field, it won’t be a temporary experiment. “I would like to leave him at one position for the majority of games,” Espada said. “The back and forth is something that I am going to avoid.”
Barring injuries or roster changes, Espada expects Altuve to get more starts in left field than at second base. The shift also allows the Astros to be flexible, potentially opening up DH opportunities when Yordan Alvarez gets some occasional starts in left field.
Outfield depth still a concern
Houston’s outfield situation remains shaky. Ben Gamel has yet to record a hit this spring and has been sidelined with back soreness, though he’s expected to return this week. Jake Meyers, who was also off to a slow start, finally showed signs of life Sunday with a pair of RBI singles. Meanwhile, prospect Jacob Melton has been reassigned to minor league camp but could see more Grapefruit League action down the line.
The offensive struggles don’t end there. Heading into Monday's game, Chas McCormick and Mauricio Dubon had yet to record a hit this spring. However, McCormick did come through with a hit and an RBI on Monday. Yippee!
A call for help?
Outfielder Alex Verdugo is still on the market. Astros GM Dana Brown reportedly checked in on Verdugo several weeks ago, but his price tag appears too rich for Houston as they try to stay under the luxury tax. With Altuve appearing to be a staple in left field, should the club consider adding Verdugo to replace Meyers or McCormick, considering their continued struggles at the plate? Or should Verdugo's disappointing 2024 season be enough to scare the club away from signing him?
Bullpen questions linger
Josh Hader, once a fixture on Buster Olney's top reliever lists, was relegated to the "honorable mention" section this year following a down season. With Houston hoping to manage the workload of Hader and Bryan Abreu, should they have considered bringing back Hector Neris? The veteran reliever recently signed a minor-league deal with Atlanta.
Prospects and pitching notes
While several of the big-league bats have struggled, prospects Shay Whitcomb and Zack Dezenzo have shown some promise. Whitcomb has collected three hits, including a home run, while Dezenzo has five hits in sixteen at-bats with a double.
On the mound, Lance McCullers Jr. faced live hitters and reached nearly 95 mph on the radar gun, a positive sign for his return.
Cam Smith continues to rake, driving in three runs with a triple on Monday. So that's three walks, two homers, and a bases clearing triple. Pretty, pretty good.
With Isaac Paredes (homered over the weekend), Hayden Wesneski (pitched two scoreless innings on Monday), and Smith looking as advertised, the haul for Kyle Tucker is looking good so far!
We're just scratching the surface on everything covered in the video above. Be sure to hit play to watch the full conversation!
The countdown to Opening Day is on. Join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and Charlie Pallilo for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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Here's what really made the Rockets stop waiting and start building boldly
Jun 25, 2025, 5:06 pm
While the rolling Astros have a week of possible World Series preview matchups against the Phillies and Cubs, it’s the Rockets who made the biggest local sports headline with their acquisition of Kevin Durant. What a move! Of course there is risk involved in trading for a guy soon to turn 37 years old and who carries an injury history, but balancing risk vs. reward is a part of the game. This is a fabulous move for the Rockets. It’s understood that there are dissenters to this view. Everyone is entitled to an opinion, including people with the wrong opinion! Let’s dig in. The Rockets had a wonderful season in winning 52 games before their disappointing first-round playoff loss to the Warriors, but like everyone else in the Western Conference, they were nowhere close to Oklahoma City’s caliber. While they finished second in the West, the Rockets only finished four games ahead of the play-in. That letting the stew simmer with further growth among their young players would yield true championship contention was no given for 2025-26 or beyond.
Kevin Durant is one of the 10 greatest offensive players the NBA has ever seen. Among his current contemporaries only Stephen Curry and Nikola Jokic make that list. For instance, Durant offensively has clearly been better than the late and legendary Kobe Bryant. To view it from a Houston perspective, Durant has been an indisputably greater offensive force than the amazing Hakeem Olajuwon. But this is not a nostalgia trip in which the Rockets are trading for a guy based on what he used to be. While Durant could hit the wall at any point, living in fear that it’s about to happen is no way to live because KD, approaching his 18th NBA season, is still an elite offensive player.
As to the durability concern, Durant played more games (62) this past season than did Fred VanVleet, Jabari Smith, and Tari Eason. The season before he played more games (75) than did VanVleet, Dillon Brooks, and Alperin Sengun. In each of the last two seasons Durant averaged more minutes per game (36.9) than any Rocket. That was stupid and/or desperate of the Suns, the Rockets will be smarter. Not that the workload eroded Durant’s production or efficiency. Over the two seasons he averaged almost 27 points per game while shooting 52 percent from the floor, 42 percent from behind the three-point line, and 85 percent from the free throw line. Awesomeness. The Rockets made the leap to being a very good team despite a frankly crummy half-court offense. The Rockets ranked 21st among the 30 NBA teams in three-point percentage, and dead last in free throw percentage. Amen Thompson has an array of skills and looks poised to be a unique star. Alas, Thompson has no credible jump shot. VanVleet is not a creator, Smith has limited handle. Adding Durant directly addresses the Rockets’ most glaring weakness.
The price the Rockets paid was in the big picture, minimal, unless you think Jalen Green is going to become a bonafide star. Green is still just 23 years old and spectacular athletically, but nothing he has done over four pro seasons suggests he’s on the cusp of greatness. In no season has Green even shot the league average from the floor or from three. His defense has never been as good as it should be given his athleticism. Compared to some other two-guards who made the NBA move one year removed from high school, four seasons into his career Green is waaaaaay behind where Shae Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Edwards, and Devin Booker were four seasons in, and now well behind his draft classmate Cade Cunningham. Dillon Brooks was a solid pro in two seasons here and shot a career-best from three in 2024-2025, but he’s being replaced by Kevin Durant! In terms of the draft pick capital sent to Phoenix, five second round picks are essentially meaningless. The Rockets have multiple extra first round picks in the coming years. As for the sole first-rounder dealt away, whichever player the Rockets would have taken 10th Wednesday night would have been rather unlikely to crack the playing rotation.
VanVleet signs extension
Re-signing Fred VanVleet to a two-year, 50 million dollar guarantee is sensible. In a vacuum, VanVleet was substantially overpaid at the over 40 mil he made per season the last two. He’s a middle-of-the-pack starting point guard. But his professionalism and headiness brought major value to the Rockets’ kiddie corps while their payroll was otherwise very low. Ideally, Reed Sheppard makes a leap to look like an NBA lead guard in his second season, after a pretty much zippo of a rookie campaign. Sheppard is supposed to be a lights-out shooter. For the Rockets to max out, they need two sharpshooters on the court to balance Thompson’s presence.
For Astro-centric conversation, join Brandon Strange, Josh Jordan, and me for the Stone Cold ‘Stros podcast which drops each Monday afternoon, with an additional episode now on Thursday. Click here to catch!
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