After World Series appearances in two of the past three seasons, the expectations are high for the 2020 Houston Astros. Houston came out on the losing end of the 2019 World Series, which left a lot of Astros hungry to get back. The 2019 offseason also left plenty to be desired as they lost one of the best pitchers in the game in Gerrit Cole. They also had to deal with the fallout of the infamous sign-stealing scandal. The roster for this Houston Astros season preview is still largely intact, with proven talent and young potential lining the clubhouse. Through all the turmoil and disappointment, the Astros have another talented club that will compete for the Commissioner’s Trophy.
Projected Lineup
- CF-George Springer
- 2B-Jose Altuve
- LF-Michael Brantley
- 3B-Alex Bregman
- DH-Yordan Alvarez
- SS-Carlos Correa
- 1B-Yuli Gurriel
- RF-Josh Reddick
- C-Martin Maldonado
Not much has changed from 2019’s potent lineup. The only big change is in the ninth spot, where Martin Maldonado will be the starter after losing Robinson Chirinos to free agency. While Houston lost the offensive presence of Chirinos (22 doubles/17 home runs) they will have one of the best defensive catchers in Maldonado. His 36.3% caught stealing rate is fourth among active players. This lineup definitely doesn’t need to stress much about the loss of their 2019 catcher as it’s lined with All-Stars. In fact, Yordan Alvarez is the only batter of the first six who hasn’t been an All-Star, and he will likely go on to play in a lot of All-Star games.
The big question mark for the lineup currently is whether Alvarez will be able to play at the start of the season. The reigning AL Rookie of the Year has not been at camp and was recently put on the injured list. Manager Dusty Baker has not been able to explain the reason behind his absence, so there is no concrete return date. If Alvarez cannot return before Opening Day, Houston will be missing a big bat.
Regardless of whether Alvarez can play, this lineup is one of the most potent in baseball. If Alvarez arrives at camp in time, this lineup gets that much scarier.
Bench Options
OF Kyle Tucker
INF Abraham Toro
UT Myles Straw
UT Aledmys Diaz
The Astros bench options have plenty of potential, but they are not proven. The only player with experience is utility man Aledmys Diaz. An All-Star in his rookie year of 2016, Diaz owns a career slash line of .275/.330/.459. Kyle Tucker was one of Houston’s top prospects because of his combination of power and speed. He played in 22 games last year, slugging .537 and stealing five bases. Abraham Toro is currently the third-ranked prospect in the Houston farm system. The 23-year-old earned himself a promotion last year and played in 25 games.
Utility man Myles Straw has played at every outfield position plus second and shortstop in 65 career games and has not made an error. He is the team’s resident speedster as well, stealing 170 bases in his minor league career. The final bench option is backup catcher, Dustin Garneau. Despite only having 123 big league games under his belt, this is the 32-year-old’s fifth team. In those 123 career games, he is a .207 hitter with eight home runs and 38 runs driven in.
The Astros depth is not especially strong, but there is some potential in the young position players. One of these young men might have to take Alvarez’s place if the slugger can’t return to camp in time.
Projected Starting Rotation
- RHP Justin Verlander
- RHP Zack Greinke
- RHP Lance McCullers Jr.
- RHP Jose Urquidy
- RHP Josh James
After losing co-ace Gerrit Cole in free agency, this rotation has more questions than in past years. They still have the reigning AL Cy Young winner although Verlander is coming off groin and lat injuries from spring training. While Greinke is probably headed to Cooperstown one day, he is not at Cole’s level, but perhaps there is no one at that level right now. The third man, McCullers, missed all of last season recovering from Tommy John surgery. The right-hander was an All-Star in 2017, but that does not guarantee success in 2020 since he has not pitched in a major league game for almost two years.
The bottom of the Astros rotation is a little more cloudy. The expected fourth starter is right-hander Jose Urquidy. However, Urquidy has not arrived at summer camp and was recently put on the injured list. He has not been ruled out for the beginning of the season, but time is running out. Josh James is far from a concrete choice for the fifth starter spot. He is one of many options the Astros have. James was one of the players to have missed the beginning of summer camp. He recently arrived after the birth of his daughter. If James is not the fifth starter, one of the other bullpen pitchers will get opportunities.
While not quite at the caliber it was in the last couple of seasons, the Astros rotation still has the potential to be one of the best in all of baseball.
Relievers
LHP Framber Valdez RHP Cy Sneed
RHP Joe Smith RHP Austin Pruitt
RHP Ryan Pressly RHP Brad Peacock
RHP Roberto Osuna RHP Bryan Abreu
RHP Rogelio Armenteros RHP Joe Biagini
RHP Chris Devenski
The Astros have a very solid relief corps with plenty of veterans to complement the young talent in the back-end of the pecking order. There are also some candidates to fill in for Urquidy or James, such as Valdez and the veteran Peacock. There are a lot of righties in this Astros staff, but there are some lefties who are in the 60-man player pool who are not on the 30-man roster, such as Cionel Perez and Blake Taylor. This Astros bullpen is solid and has the potential to be one of the best in the whole league.
Season Outlook
The Astros have a great club, with elite talent up and down the lineup and the pitching staff. Houston has made it to the World Series in two of the past three seasons, winning in 2017, losing in 2019. Despite the different circumstances surrounding the 2020 season, the expectations remain the same: prove the doubters wrong and win another World Series.
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