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The Houston Astros came away with a series win over the AL leading Baltimore Orioles this week despite some underwhelming production from Jose Abreu in games one and two.

This shouldn't come as a surprise, as Abreu has struggled for most of the season. What is concerning though is despite how bad he was in the first half, his batting average and slugging percentage are actually worse in the 23 games he's played since the All-Star break.

And even though Abreu has been hitting in the heart of the Astros order, he's gone nine straight games without an RBI.

Something to monitor

Abreu didn't play in the finale against the Orioles, and he's reportedly dealing with some back discomfort. Hopefully his poor performance is due to his back issue, as opposed to him falling off a cliff statistically at age 36. Injuries typically heal. Father Time is undefeated.

With the Astros calling up Jon Singleton, and Dusty Baker moving Abreu behind Chas McCormick in the lineup recently, perhaps Houston's manager is starting to realize the reality of the situation. Abreu is the 8th-worst hitter in baseball based on his OPS, and should no longer be hitting in front of Chas McCormick moving forward.

With Baker starting to come around to the reality of the situation, we could see Yainer Diaz and Singleton getting more opportunities at first base. At least, we hope so. It's one thing to play Martin Maldonado as much as he does. Playing both of these guys regularly is one of the reasons the offense has been in the middle of the pack for most of the season.

Big picture

If Abreu is unable to get things going this year, what will the Astros do? Our guess, they blame his struggles in 2023 on a down year and a change of scenery, showing their full confidence in him publicly. Privately, however, they can't just hope he'll turn things around. They'll have to add some low-key reinforcements to the squad that can take his place in 2024 should he continue to struggle at the plate.

The Astros will still owe him $39 million for the 2024 and 2025 seasons. Which will be a tough pill for owner Jim Crane to swallow. But he wants to win. If Abreu is keeping the team down, we think he'll be on board with exploring some other options at first base.

Plus, Astros GM Dana Brown had nothing to do with this contract, so it's not on him if the Abreu experiment fails.

Editor's note: This video was shot before Abreu's back discomfort was reported.

Don't miss the video above as we discuss all these possible scenarios and much more!

Listen to The Bench with John Granato and Lance Zierlein weekday mornings on ESPN 97.5 and 92.5 FM.

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Astros test new formula with star slugger back in the lineup

Yordan Alvarez is back! Composite Getty Image.

The Houston Astros open a three-game set Tuesday night against the struggling Colorado Rockies, with Hunter Brown set to take the mound at Daikin Park.

Houston (72-59) enters the matchup atop the AL West despite dropping six of its last 10 games, during which the offense has sputtered to a .204 average and the pitching staff has been tagged for a 5.69 ERA. The Astros will look to steady things at home, where they’ve gone 38-27 this season, and lean on Brown, who has been one of their most consistent arms. The right-hander owns a 10-5 record, a 2.36 ERA and 170 strikeouts in 2025.

Colorado (37-94) comes in losers of four straight and carrying the worst road record in baseball at 16-49. The Rockies have struggled mightily to contain the long ball, going 17-77 in games when allowing at least one home run. Starter Tanner Gordon (4-5, 7.11 ERA) will try to buck that trend in just his 10th appearance of the season.

Yordan Alvarez will make his long-awaited return to the lineup Tuesday, starting in left field for the opener against Colorado. It will be his first game action since May 2 after being sidelined with a hand injury.

Jose Altuve continues to lead the Astros’ offense with 22 home runs and a .456 slugging percentage, while Carlos Correa has been one of Houston’s most reliable bats of late, collecting 13 hits in his last 39 at-bats. On the Rockies’ side, Hunter Goodman has piled up 52 extra-base hits this season, and Brenton Doyle enters the series swinging a hot bat with 15 hits and 11 RBIs over his past 10 games.

The matchup is the fourth meeting between the two clubs this year, with Houston heavily favored to pick up another win as it looks to build momentum in the stretch run.

Betting odds

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Astros -341, Rockies +270; over/under is 8 runs

Roster moves

RHP Shawn Dubin has been claimed by the Orioles.

pic.twitter.com/Mte5EPYUCq
— Houston Astros (@astros) August 26, 2025

Starting lineup

What stands out? With Yordan back in the lineup, manager Joe Espada has decided to deploy him in the cleanup spot, leaving the Top 3 of Pena, Correa, and Altuve (DH) unchanged.

A surprising twist

However, Alvarez playing left field is not something we were expecting.

Image via: MLB.com/Screenshot.

With Yordan hitting fourth, Christian Waker slides back to the five spot, followed by Jesus Sanchez (RF), Victor Caratini (C), Mauricio Dubon (2B), and Jacob Melton (CF).

Interesting to see Yainer Diaz with the night off. He was hit in the wrist by a pitch from Craig Kimbrel on Sunday. Perhaps he needed an extra day to recover.

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