Astros’ Jose Altuve to Primarily Play Left Field This Season
It’s the beginning of a new era for the Houston Astros as someone other than Jose Altuve will occupy second base on Opening Day for only the second time since 2012.
The 34-year-old will no longer reside at his usual position on the diamond after officially being named the club’s starting left fielder, manager Joe Espada announced Wednesday afternoon. Prior to this spring, he had spent all 1,821 career major league games as an infielder, either at second base or shortstop.
“The plan for me right now, based on what I’ve seen, is for him to play most of his games in left field,” Espada told reporters Wednesday, including MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart. “With that said, there’s always changes that could happen based on the roster changing, injuries happening, someone in the Minor Leagues starts getting locked in. Right now, the plan is for him to get most of his starts in left field.”
Altuve will start in left field when the Astros open the 2025 season at Daikin Park – formerly Minute Maid Park – against the New York Mets next Thursday. The only other time he hasn’t started at second base on Opening Day came in ‘23 when Mauricio Dubón took his place as the nine-time All-Star recovered from a fractured right thumb.
Dubón is expected to receive the starting nod at second this season, although Altuve will occasionally return to the dirt throughout the year. But it remains to be seen how often that will be.
Houston’s brass has yet to determine exactly how many games its longtime franchise icon will compile in the left field in ‘25. He’s already made 10 starts at that position this spring while making one start at second.
“I don’t want to put a number on starts, percentage, none of that,” Espada said. “Right now, I like where he’s at defensively. He’s committed to being the best left fielder, and we’re going to give him the opportunity, but he knows in a seven-, eight-month season, things can change. Jose’s attitude is always doing what’s best for the team.”
Learning left field has been a long, winding journey for the 2015 Gold Glove winner. After the team consulted with him about changing positions over the winter, he focused on improving his outfield defence in Houston for several weeks during the off-season.
While he’s already made a handful of mistakes in camp, dropping a few routine fly balls during exhibition action, the Astros are confident his athleticism will be the key to a successful transition. Overcoming the learning curve may just take a bit more time, though.
“He’s a really good athlete and can track balls down,” Espada said. “It’s the small stuff — the slices by the left-handed hitters, throwing the ball to the right base. Those are the things that he’s going to need some time. The fact he’s tracking balls down and doing as well as he’s doing now, I’m not surprised.”
Altuve is coming off arguably his worst defensive showing since he became a full-time big-leaguer in 12. In 1,262 innings at second, he registered career worsts in outs above average (minus-eight) and fielding run value (minus-six).
Additionally, the native of Venezuela produced -13 defensive runs saved during his age-34 campaign, finishing two shy of matching his career-worst set three years ago.
While he struggled in the field, Altuve remained an impact hitter for Houston in ‘24, slashing .295/.350/.439 with a 127 wRC+ (100 league average) across 153 games, worth 3.9 fWAR. He also crushed 20 home runs, reaching that mark for the sixth time in his career.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: Jeffrey Hayes. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.