What If — Astros lineup — end of 2025?

There is another version of this question for the 2026 season, but there is a current version possibly facing the Astros in 2025. We say possibly, because it has to do with Astros’ health and as the fandom has seen, that is never a sure thing. But straight out – what do the Astros do if Yordan Alvarez, Isaac Paredes and Jake Meyers come back healthy before the end of the season.

First of all, Yordan Alvarez is taking batting practice again. Now we’ve seen this movie before as he has gone through the motions of healing only to be hurting again when the wood meets the baseball. But if his hands are OK this time, the hope would be that he would be back in the lineup for the stretch run. And back in the lineup would likely be limited to being the designated hitter 90+% of the time. He is shown as returning TBD on the injury report.

Paredes has decided to forego surgery for his hamstring injury and attempt to rehab his way back through non-surgical means. This could backfire and he might have to have the surgery anyways, but for this effort let’s just say he returns mid-September good as new. You would just put the 2025 All-Star third baseman right back into the 3B spot and move on – right? Well…..you are not likely to move newly acquired Carlos Correa out of the 3B slot at this point. What would you do? Well, we will talk more about that below.

Meyers has been the quiet man on the IL with a calf strain that caused him to collapse on the field prior to a game. He was having his best season as an Astro and was critical in what little offense the Astros were putting up early in the season. Right now, the injury report states he should be back in August and is running on flat ground.

Note – unlike pitching where there is a huge difference between throwing on flat ground and throwing off a mound, what does it mean when a player is running on flat ground? Now that Tal’s Hill is gone, isn’t that what all players run on?

Some folks may say, what difference does it make if all three return, they all play spots that don’t overlap in the field with Paredes at third, Meyers in CF and Alvarez at DH. But especially filling the DH spot takes away a spot that Joe Espada could use to rotate guys around.

Let’s look at the Astros depth chart as it stands right now.

What happens if all three of these Astros come back?

  • The easiest one is that Meyers goes to CF and Trammell and McCormick go sit down or rotate with Cam and Sanchez a bit
  • The hardest one is Paredes. Do you slide him into 3B and sit Correa? Or do you move him or Correa into 2B? But then what do you do with Altuve – arguably your best hitter for the season behind Pena? Do you put him in LF and move Sanchez to RF and sit Cam? You could put one of them at DH, except….for the next point.
  • Yordan, if healthy, takes 90% of your DH bats for the season. But it means you can’t really semi-hide your infield log jam by using the DH spot for a rotation between Correa, Paredes and Altuve.

In truth the following will likely happen in 2025.

  • Paredes does not return. These types of injuries tend to linger and surgery is still a real possibility.
  • Meyers returns and slides into the CF spot.
  • Alvarez returns and the team is careful with him – perhaps playing him a couple games in a row and letting him take the third day off.
  • Not having Paredes back allows them to go with the current IF configuration of Correa/Pena/Altuve/Walker.
  • Having Yordan skipping games allows them to give some DH at bats to Altuve, Caratini and whoever else they want to rest or keep sharp.
  • They will certainly have a much deeper lineup going forward, such as….
    • Pena SS
    • Sanchez LF
    • Altuve 2B
    • Alvarez DH
    • Correa 3B
    • Walker 1B
    • Diaz C
    • Meyers CF
    • Smith RF

Now 2026….a post for another time.

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38 responses to “What If — Astros lineup — end of 2025?”

  1. If all 3 of Alvarez, Paredes and Myers are healthy at the end of this season, I think Espada would play Paredes at 3B, Correa at SS, Pena at 2B, Altuve in LF and Myers in CF.

    But what I would rather see is Altuve at 2B, Pena in LF and Myers in CF (or Pena in CF and Myers in LF).  I would especially like to see a deep outfield relay from Pena to Correa to home throwing out runners.

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    • I understand where you are coming from – but if I am Pena (and probably his agent) I may balk a lot at this. He’s one of the best combinations of fielding and hitting at shortstop in baseball and he is giving it up to Correa who is neither right now.

      I know things like this have happened before like when ARod had to play 3rd while Derek Jeter who was a bit of a statue by that time continued to play short stop. How about totally testing Correa’s love for his team by sending him out to LF? That would be awfully interesting, but I doubt that is happening either.

      In my heart I don’t think Paredes is coming back in 2025, so this is going to be for discussion in the off-season where someone (Walker? Paredes?) might get traded.

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      • “Positional Flexibility” is valuable. It didn’t hurt Mookie Betts and it won’t hurt Pena when he becomes a free agent. Someone will pay him $$$ whatever position he plays.

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      • You are right Astro Nut, but will Pena see it that way. Love it to happen because it would be a formidable infield with Pena, Correa, Paredes and Walker or with Altuve at 2B and Pena in LF

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    • Pena is the far superior shortstop today. He’s one of the best shortstops in the game. He should not be at second, nor the outfield. Every inning of his ML career has been played at short. He’s our shortstop. Correa? I think he might be better suited to second than Issac. Correa might also play some first base one day. It’s a tough situation. We could seemingly have more starters than places to put them. But that’s better than the other way around.

      Altuve will not play left in a big park. Hopefully Sanchez will have made the adjustments to playing left, as he’s looked rough there so far. In fact, if Cam does not start to hit, Sanchez might be starting in right at some point against righty pitching. Jake will hopefully come back and play his regular excellent center. He is not familiar with left field.

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      • Dave, moving “shortstop” Correa to first base would not be the first time the Astros have made a move like that.

        Denis Menke did that back in 1971.

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    • There is no way Pena plays anywhere other than SS. I also think there is also no way Paredes returns this season, but this would be a great problem to have.

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  2. In the off season, if a trade is between Parades and Walker, I would hope that Walker would be traded and keep Parades. He’s younger and a very good clutch hitter. Converting a 3rd baseman to first has in the past worked well. Bagwell is probably the best fielding 1st baseman we’ve had and he came up as a 3rd baseman . I was impressed by Blubaugh last night. His velocity has increased.

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    • If they trade Walker they will have to pick up some of that salary over the next two seasons unless he turns into superman between now and the end of the season/playoffs. But I agree he would be the choice.

      Blubaugh did a great job last night – solid performance and ate up some innings. And as you said – his velo is up.

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    • Larry, Issac helped us forget about who used to play third. He should be our third baseman, because he’s our best third baseman.

      This year? I don’t know. I wish they had all come to the conclusion that surgery now likely offered a more permanent fix.

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  3. I’ll echo what I said in the last post (as everyone may not have seen it). I’m not happy that Correa basically declared himself a “third baseman” when asked about playing SS. Did he maybe run this by the actual third baseman, Isaac Paredes? Isaac is clearly the better player at this point in their careers. Announcing yourself the third baseman is a bit arrogant when the other guy has double the homeruns in less PT and much better OBP and OPS.

    IF, and that’s a big if because I’m skeptical it will happen, but if Isaac is back before the playoffs, what Joe and the Astros do will give us a gauge on the offseason. This is one of the moments that always reminds me these guys care as much about respect and pecking order than they do actual performance and current skill level. They will probably defer to Correa at 3B, and may even try Isaac at 2B for the playoffs, when this team would clearly be better with Issac at 3B and Dubon at 2B, or maybe Urias at 2B.

    If everyone was healthy – I would play this lineup – SS Pena, 2B Altuve, DH Alvarez, 3B Paredes, 1B Walker, LF Sanchez, C Diaz, RF Smith, CF Meyers. But thats WSWD because I don’t defer to what you used to be. Joe Espada will probably SS- Pena, LF Sanchez, DH Alvarez, 3B- Correa, 1B – Walker, C – Diaz, RF – Smith, CF – Meyers, 2B – Urias or Dubon. Then you will hear some excuse about Paredes and freshness and not testing the hammy and him being used as a pinch hitter.

    A playoff rotation of Brown, Framber, Javier and Arrighetti (on a short leash) is about as good as anyone else can present IF everyone is healthy and pitching at their best.

    As for the offseason, I think there is a world where they come back with all of these guys. Afterall, in the careers of Carlos Correa, Isaac Paredes and Yordan Alvarez is there an idea that all 3 will be healthy and available? Now what happens on opening day if they all three are? I don’t know. The OF has the same problem with Altuve, Meyers, Smith and Sanchez. Only 3 can play at any given time. But thats a discussion for another time.

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    • Steven, in your all healthy lineup with Parades at 3rd,, which I don’t disagree with and Correa on the bench is a strong move. (might be a little clubhouse intrigue). How would you deal then with Correa this winter?

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      • It’s why they don’t hire me.

        But he would need to learn 2B. He should be our starting 2B in 2026, because he is physically more able to play it than Paredes at this point, and thats how I would explain it. I know his heart is set on following A-Rod because he has believed all the hype of being the next A-Rod, but Isaac can’t play 2B at this point. Nor should we want what I assume by then will be a surgically repaired hammy playing 2B. He is the more capable one.

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  4. I read an article, but it has disappeared, where Correa stated, to Espada, that the clubhouse needs a spark now, suggesting problems.

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  5. If anyone listened to the radio broadcast today of the Astros game you would have heard the announcers discuss ad nauseam how CC has been lobbying to take over 3rd base. It’s less burdensome on his body, he recovers faster, blah, blah, blah! Wonder how that makes Parades feel seeing a former Astro return seeking now to push him out of his job. Thank you Jerry Jon…oops, Crane I meant, for playing GM once again. I am not a fan of this move nor do I think CC’s body or production will hold up in the long run.

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  6. Contrary to popular belief, Correa is not the prodigal son. I think that this is going to be very disruptive for the team as well as it’s general well being.

    Arrighetti had a rough go of it tonight. he kept missing the corners for the most part and had to come over the plate with the fast ball. Miami hitters made good contact and the hits were finding holes all over the place. Now on to NY.

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    • Z, I’m with you. For right now though, 2025 is a separate and more pressing issue. I hate to say this, but at some point, someone is going to get injured and we’ll need the depth we’ve got out on the field.

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  7. I don’t think Correa has pushed Paredes off of 3B. I think Paredes’s hamstring did that and will probably do that thru the end of the season. Personally, I don’t want a guy nursing a bad hamstring playing 3B or 2B.

    I also don’t see Espada leaving Altuve out of the lineup down the stretch or in the playoffs. I see Correa at 3B and Pena at SS with Altuve at 2B and Walker at 1B Yordan at DH, Myers in CF and Sanchez in RF against righties and Smith in RF against lefties, Chas in LF seems like a good option. If Paredes is good enough to come back I see him as a very important PH in the playoffs. His bat is his calling card, especially with a not so good hammy.

    2026 is a whole other story.

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    • I agree with this alignment. Hopefully we don’t see many lefties in the playoffs, because I really like Sanchez’ bat, but he is difficult to play against lefties.

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  8. Good morning. You know, Spencer Arrighetti remains a question mark simply because he’s not ready. He got rushed out there because we don’t have other good options. At least Spencer missed some bats. And he looked healthy. But he was all over the place. There were a batch of infield hits but there were plenty of hard hit balls too. And he has forgotten how to cover first base. But earlier the year, our pen likely would have thrown zeros and kept us closer. With guys like Neris and Ort and Souza and Hernandez it’s more or less a crap shoot these days. Maybe Dubin can help. But I wonder if he’s really healthy. We also had a pretty good line up last night that just could not get a hit when one gapper would have tied the game up. Nothing new there.

    Cristian Javier will likely suffer a similar fate when his next appearance comes, as it seems he’ll also be pitching for the Astros. Unless Reptil can flip a switch, he does not appear ready either.

    Luis Garcia looks pretty far away, topping out at 92.7 last time out and even commenting that he does not seem to have the power he needs with the tweaked delivery he’s working on.

    Has Lance really been injured, or have they just had him tucked away at “an unknown facility”, hoping to make him a better pitcher than the 6.90 ERA and 1.737 WHIP Indicates?

    Walter? Who knows. Can Colton Gordon give us a game? Can Alexander and Blubaugh repeat? France?

    We really have so many unanswered questions as it applies to our pitching staff. Steven noted yesterday that there is still plenty of time. Heck, we do still lead our division. But I don’t think we’re trending very well. Am I missed any positives as far as pitching goes?

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  9. Thoughts

    • Yeah Arrighetti had some hard hit balls and some bad luck hits too – but he had no idea where the ball was going. Normally they might have given him another start in the minors first, but they are running out of options.
    • The Astros did not even need a gapper if they could have brought a couple guys in from third base with one out.
    • The first base ump (who I think made the right call on the checked swing) must have big ears. I mean the home plate ump might get sick of the pitching coach yelling at him during the course of the game, but how often do you see a base ump throw out a pitching coach? Josh Miller – you were thrown out and it was unusual.
    • Positives – the Astros won the series. The Astros still are leading the division. The pitching staff gets a day off (and in fact they also get next Thursday off. They have Hunter and Framber going the next two games.
    • Negatives – they had a golden opportunity to sweep the series and turned 12 hits and 3 walks into only 4 runs. The Mariners are only 2 games back. The Astros starting pitchers after the next two games are the TBD brothers.
    • Javier supposedly will be back on the next home stand. A solid start would be a huge shot in the arm.

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    • Yeah Dan, I am normally pleased with 2 out of 3, especially on the road, but that sweep was there for the taking.

      Arrighetti said last night that it felt like his debut out there yesterday. He sure needs to get that out of his head. His debut last year was long and hard and forgettable.

      I think it was Faucher on the mound yesterday who made that throw to the plate. It was an excellent play that could have easily gone sideways. Lot’s of pitchers don’t get that ball to the catcher.

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      • Yeah, that was Faucher – a 10th of a second later and the Astros are only one down and still have the bases loaded with one out. Huge play.

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  12. Seattle won today to reduce the Astros lead to 1.5 games. Time for the Astros to get their collective heads out of their …. and get on the stick!

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  13. It feels as if the stretch run is finally upon us. It’s going to come down to pitching. Shawn Dubin pitched well as a Space Cowboy on August 5 and 6. It would be great to get the effective version of Dubin back tonight.

    At the same time, our bats, both established and new, need to jell. We need to honor Issac by making a weakened Yankee rotation throw pitches. We need to take those free passes if offered. You too Yanier and Frenchie. And then we hit.

    And we have to play clean ballgames, no lost baserunners allowed. No bad sends by the “P” man in the 3rd base box. No cheap errors. Just solid late season Astro baseball. We have enough guys that have been through it before. It’s time to go to work.

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  14. It feels as if the stretch run is finally upon us. It’s going to come down to pitching. Shawn Dubin pitched well as a Space Cowboy on August 5 and 6. It would be great to get the effective version of Dubin back tonight.

    At the same time, our bats, both established and new, need to jell. We need to honor Issac by making a weakened Yankee rotation throw pitches. We need to take those free passes if offered. You too Yanier and Frenchie. And then we hit.

    And we have to play clean ballgames, no lost baserunners allowed. No bad sends by the “P” man in the 3rd base box. No cheap errors. Just solid late season Astro baseball. We have enough guys that have been through it before. It’s time to go to work.

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  15. It feels as if the stretch run is finally upon us. It’s going to come down to pitching. Shawn Dubin pitched well as a Space Cowboy on August 5 and 6. It would be great to get the effective version of Dubin back tonight.

    At the same time, our bats, both established and new, need to jell. We need to honor Issac by making a weakened Yankee rotation throw pitches. We need to take those free passes if offered. You too Yanier and Frenchie. And then we hit.

    And we have to play clean ballgames, no lost baserunners allowed. No bad sends by the “P” man in the 3rd base box. No cheap errors. Just solid late season Astro baseball. We have enough guys that have been through it before. It’s time to go to work.

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  16. You folks make this blog so much better – so many thoughtful comments. There are so many other blogs where it is just a bunch of whiners, trolls or out of touch dreamers commenting. Y’all are good fans and serious students of the game. Thank you.

    I will be working on a new post today.

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