One Preseason Ranking That Should Worry the Astros’ Front Office

This offseason, there were a lot of trade rumors surrounding the Houston Astros. A lot of the rumors surrounded infielder Isaac Paredes. The Boston Red Sox were one team that was involved in a discussion, reportedly.

Astros general manager Dana Brown would have loved to add an outfielder in any trade, but there ended up being no trades made. The Red Sox had Wilyer Abreu and Jarren Duran as potential candidates to be moved by chief baseball officer Craig Breslow.

Instead, Houston and Brown reacquired outfielder Joey Loperfido after initially trading him to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2024. This winter, Brown sent Jesús Sánchez to the defending American League East champs.

Loperfido is projected to be Joe Espada's Opening Day left fielder against the Los Angeles Angels on March 26. If that ends up being the case and he struggles, then that may leave Brown with no choice but to seek help from outside the organization.

Latest Preseason Ranking Should Give the Astros Warning Signs That Help Is Needed

Houston Astros left fielder Joey Loperfido — Joey Loperfido | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report ranked all starting left fielders for the 2026 season and Loperfido came in ranked 27th. That's just above Alek Thomas of the Arizona Diamondbacks, Andrew Benintendi of the Chicago White Sox, and Jake McCarthy of the Colorado Rockies.

"The Astros traded Loperfido to the Blue Jays at the 2024 deadline, but brought him back this offseason in a one-for-one swap that sent Jesús Sánchez the other way. The 26-year-old raked in a small sample size last year, and a Houston outfield in flux should give him an opportunity to prove he can maintain impact-level production in a regular role,'' Reuter wrote.

The problem for Houston is that they can't afford mid-level production from Loperfido. They're going to need more if they are going to rebound from missing the playoffs last season with a September fade. The path to the postseason for a veteran roster that has some flaws that were not addressed this season is going to be very difficult.

Brown will likely have to address left field through a trade. Abreu is someone the Astros could use now, as he has won a pair of Gold Gloves with Boston and would supply the offense they are missing from the left side of the plate. You could say the same about Duran.

This ranking should concern the Houston front office as Opening Day approaches, as the roster will likely need reinforcements as the season goes along. An offensive outfielder should be at the top of the list.