Houston Astros star Jose Altuve is set to make his spring training debut on Friday, and manager Joe Espada told reporters on Wednesday that he will be doing that in left field, according to ESPN.
The Astros have an opening in the outfield after trading Kyle Tucker to the Chicago Cubs this offseason, and Altuve previously said this offseason that he would be willing to play anywhere on the field when he is needed. The willingness to play the outfield surfaced when Alex Bregman’s free agency was still developing, and the potential re-signing of him would have moved Altuve to the outfield full-time in all likelihood. Still, the Astros are going through with the position change.
Altuve has played almost his entire career at second base, but his defensive statistics have slipped significantly over the last three seasons, posting DRS marks of -15, -13 and -13 again, according to FanGraphs. He also posted a career-worst -8 OAA at second base in 2024. If there was a time to move Altuve to another position, that is now.
If the Astros had brought back Bregman, the defensive alignment likely would have had Altuve in left field with Bregman back at third, Isaac Paredes at second base and Christian Walker at first base. However, even without Bregman, it still makes sense to move Altuve to left field given the presence of top prospect Cam Smith, who was acquired in the Tucker trade.
Smith eventually should play into the picture in the infield, specifically at third base. Paredes could be moved to second base, where Mauricio Dubon, Brendan Rodgers and Luis Guillorme are currently battling to claim the starting role on Opening Day. Smith is the future, though. He hit two home runs against the New York Mets on Tuesday, flashing his potential and giving Astros fans something to look forward to in the long-term.
For now, it will be interesting to track Altuve’s transition to left field.
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