The Biggest Question Houston Astros Must Answer in The Outfield

If you follow the team often, the problem has not been far from your perception: the Houston Astros have used 15 different left fielders over the last two seasons. That record by itself does not become a problem until you look at a couple of details.

First, the Astros entered the 2026 season with total uncertainty, as they let the versatile Mauricio Dubon go, who handled the position in 133 games in 2025 with a solid 2.2 fWAR and 6 defensive runs saved, the best mark on the team among all defenders during that span.

Without Dubon, it was clear that Yordan Alvarez would not be the solution, and Houston had to face the process hoping that several of its prospects would do the job. We will get to some of the most valuable ones in a minute. I do not see it as entirely poor management that the Astros invested in their pitchers, in bringing in arms to support the bullpen and strengthen the infield.

However, the outfield problems went beyond the number seven position, as center fielder Jake Meyers lost playing time on the injured list and, at the same time, has experienced a decline with his bat and his defensive value over the last two seasons.

Meyers played only 57 games in 2026, so, long before he went on the injured list and missed practically the entire month of July, the Astros were going through a complicated situation and had many questions in the outfield. That void led to the reasonable thing, that they arrived at the trade deadline ready to look for an outfielder, preferably a left-hander who could handle center field. Daulton Varsho, although he was at his worst point of the last three years, was a relief option at a key moment when Houston was fighting harder for a playoff spot.

Then, Varsho also went on the injured list, and rookie Lucas Spence filled part of the void left in center field. I know Hunter Brown was terrible, and the best part of his historic 6-0 record with a 2.39 ERA against the White Sox in his career could never come out in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series, but Yordan Alvarez clearly lost a fly ball from Sam Antonacci, which would have been the first out of the game. By this I do not mean that the Astros’ fate would have changed completely, but it was evident that Brown needed extra help to get out of the abyss he got into from his first pitches of the game.

So, at least we can take it as a sign that can clearly serve as a reminder that the Astros need to strengthen their defense as part of their priorities if they want to have a more competent team in 2027.

Who should handle left field full time?

Houston Astros left fielder Joey Loperfido (10). Mandatory Credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Look, if Houston has no plans to bring in a new outfielder and if Jose Altuve does not end up there again, we can have a list of some names here, and I think I would start with Brice Matthews and Joey Loperfido. Both are young, but their profiles so far have been very similar, leaning more toward providing defense. If it depended on that, either one of them can solve the problem. Both averaged +2 FRV with runs saved above average.

Now, the problem came when they stepped into the batter’s box. Loperfido was supposed to be the big surprise, but he fell to a .214/.311/.333 line with an 82 wRC+ in his limited playing time over 121 plate appearances. Matthews was less productive, finishing with a puzzling .602 OPS and only a 67 wRC+.

Even so, defense influenced both players’ contributions so much that they finished with positive fWAR, but that was not enough to make the left fielder position competitive for Houston. The option that came closest to the MLB average in wRC+ was Zach Cole, who posted a 94 wRC+, but struggled with his defense and finished with –0.9 Def, according to FanGraphs’ evaluation range.

This is not a minor breakdown for the Astros, who carried a terrible deficiency as their left fielders finished with the third-worst on-base percentage in the league (.298) and the second-lowest BABIP (.273).

The offseason has just begun, so there is some time for Houston to get on track to define priorities and establish a plan to solve what has become one of their most pressing questions of this offseason.

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