Third in a series on the Houston Astros' 2026 season, which ended with an AL West title but a sweep in the opening round of the playoffs
Second base
After a season in which he dabbled in left field and at designated hitter, Jose Altuve returned to his long-time position in 2026. The Houston Astros reinstalled Altuve at second base, where he started regularly outside of a brief stint on the injured list.
Though in a familiar role, the face of Houston's franchise endured one of the least productive seasons of his decorated career. Altuve acknowledged frustration in June en route to compiling a 97 OPS-plus, three percent below MLB average, and 0.0 wins above replacement, per Baseball Reference.
Overall, the Astros' second basemen - a group that also included glimpses of Nick Allen, Brice Matthews, Braden Shewmake, Raynel Delgado and Isaac Paredes - combined for 0.7 bWAR. Only rotating casts in center and left field produced a lower bWAR for Houston this season.
What went right
Before the season, Altuve stated a goal to play "more than 150 games." He came close. Altuve played in 135 games, starting all but eight of them at second base. In May, he sustained what the Astros termed a Grade 2 left oblique strain. He spent just 19 days on the injured list before returning to the lineup.
Altuve had moments. He homered twice in the fifth game of the season against Boston. He batted .308 in August. He recorded his 2,500th career hit in Philadelphia in early September. He cracked the top 100 in career hits, ending the season with 2,519, tied with Todd Helton for 99th all-time.
Such moments were fewer. What Altuve did, at least, was hold a position where Houston had no other options. Last season, when the Astros tried moving Altuve to left field, all other second basemen had a .595 OPS. This season, their other second basemen hit .216 with three home runs in 134 at-bats.
What went wrong
While Altuve remained mostly available, his production dipped. Offensively, Altuve compiled his lowest batting average (.250), second-lowest on-base percentage (.306) and third-lowest slugging percentage (.395) in any season except the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.
Altuve's 16 home runs were his fewest in a full-length season since 2016 and his 19.9% strikeout rate a career high. His 22.1% swing-and-miss rate matched his highest since at least 2015 - though it was still below league average - while his 37.2% chase rate was 4 percent above his career mark. Defensively, he accrued minus-17 runs saved at second base, per Sports Info Solutions, the majors' worst mark.
Fill-ins did not fare much better. The Astros ranked 25th of 30 teams in wins above replacement and OPS from second basemen. Allen did bat .283 in 20 games at second base. Matthews hit .196 in his 19 games there. Houston ranked 27th in defensive runs saved at the position, per Sports Info Solutions.
Number to note
Minus-9: Jose Altuve's batter run value against sinkers in 2026.
In the Statcast era (since 2015), only six players have totaled a higher batter run value against four-seam fastballs than Altuve, per Baseball Savant: Aaron Judge, Bryce Harper, Mike Trout, Freddie Freeman, Juan Soto and Paul Goldschmidt. At 36, Altuve can still do damage against four-seamers. He batted .284 and slugged .504 against them this season, with a plus-8 run value.
For the first time in his career, though, Altuve saw a higher percentage of sinkers (23.2%) than four-seam fastballs (21.7%) this season. And sinkers posed more of a challenge. Altuve hit .243 and slugged .297 against sinkers, with a minus-9 run value against them. Just five hitters in the majors owned a lower run value against the pitch.
That alone does not explain Altuve's production this season. But the higher dose of sinkers probably did contribute to a 21.7% fly-ball rate, tied for his lowest since 2017, that tamped down his power numbers. And he saw a career-low rate of four-seamers - he'd never seen a lower rate than 26.1% before last year - lessening his opportunities to beat a pitch on which he has feasted.
Contract status
Altuve is signed through 2029 on the five-year, $125 million extension that will carry through his age-39 season. Along with securing the face of their franchise, the Astros likely envisioned Altuve making a run at 3,000 hits during that term. Altuve would need to average 160.3 hits over the next three seasons to reach the milestone.
Allen, entering his second year of salary arbitration eligibility, is projected to earn $1.8 million next year by MLB Trade Rumors. That seems reasonable for a utility infielder who posted a 104 OPS-plus and 1.3 bWAR in 94 games this season. Matthews, who still had rookie status this season, will not be arbitration-eligible until 2029.
In the minors
When Matthews moved from the left side of the infield to second base in 2025, it suggested the Astros considered the 2023 first-round pick a potential successor there. Altuve's return to second this spring spurred the Astros to try Matthews in the outfield. Matthews took to the outfield comfortably, raising the possibility of that being his best long-term fit.
The question with Matthews remains the bat. Matthews produced a .587 OPS in 233 plate appearances with the Astros this season, with strikeout (31.8%) and swing-and-miss (36%) rates that remained well above MLB average. Both were down from Matthews' brief debut stint in 2025, but he still must create more consistent contact to command a major-league role.
Other second-base prospects are not obvious. Cavan Biggio, 31, logged the most games at second base for Triple-A Sugar Land this season. Pascanel Ferreras, 24, drew some starts there while posting a .305 average and .837 OPS in 71 games at Triple-A. Yamal Encarnacion, 23, played mostly second base while posting a .720 OPS with 48 steals in 95 games at Double-A.
Key question
Will Jose Altuve be the primary second baseman in 2027?
Last year's Altuve-in-left field experiment in part reflected his declining defensive metrics at second base. Failure of other second-base options led the Astros to abandon it, but the defensive question remains. Sports Info Solutions assessed Altuve minus-17 defensive runs saved at second base this season, and Houston often replaced him on defense late in games.
In 2025, Altuve produced a better OPS as a designated hitter (.816) than when he played second base (.759) or left field (.742). Prioritizing offense with Altuve, who will turn 37 next May, may be ideal. But the Astros already have a full-time designated hitter in Yordan Alvarez, who just posted a season in that role that could earn him AL MVP honors.
The Astros may face a decision, then, on how to deploy their two franchise pillars. Do they keep Altuve at second base, even after he just endured his least productive offense season in more than a decade? Do they explore a greater timeshare at DH by asking Alvarez to play more left field, easing their caution after he just authored a career offensive year?
Altuve did not play an inning in left field this season. But might he be willing to return there, perhaps to platoon with Alvarez or when the Astros want to maximize their infield defense, such as behind a groundball pitcher like Hunter Brown? And if Altuve's role evolves, how would the Astros fill the position he has manned for most of his storied career?
Summary
Altuve has been Houston's primary second baseman for 15 accomplished seasons. Whether to proceed as such is a question that the Astros - who will ostensibly enter next season with a new general manager, as well as potentially a different manager and coaching staff - may need to consider along with Altuve this winter. The lack of an evident successor, however, coupled with Altuve's comfort at second and importance to the franchise, make it possible he'll be there again next year.
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Oct. 11: Rotation
Oct. 12:First base
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There’s more to Houston with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at Houston Astros roster analysis: Second base. How best can team use Jose Altuve?.