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Mauricio Dubon

Espada: Astros Plan For Altuve To Spend “Majority” Of Time In Left Field

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The concept of Jose Altuve moving from second base to left field first emerged when the Astros reengaged with Alex Bregman late in the offseason. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported at the time that there were talks of re-signing Bregman, sliding Isaac Paredes from third base to second base and shifting Altuve to the outfield. Many initially took that with a heavy dose of skepticism; Altuve, after all, has played all of six major league innings at a position other than second base — and they were all at shortstop.

As Houston brass continued to paint a Bregman reunion as a long shot, however, they kept getting Altuve work in left field. Both manager Joe Espada and GM Dana Brown spoke about wanting to get some looks at Altuve in left and wanting to reduce Yordan Alvarez’s time on the outfield grass. Even when Bregman signed in Boston, the Altuve/left field experiment continued to progress.

The position change seems less like an experiment and more like a reality by the day, and Espada’s latest comments only further that shift. Speaking to the Astros beat this morning, Espada left open the door for Altuve to get some playing time at second base but also suggested it will no longer be his primary position (via Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle).

“Right now, the plan is for [Altuve] to play the majority of his games in left field,” Espada stated. “The days that he plays second base opens the door for [Alvarez] maybe getting a start in left field, someone getting a DH day. So this move allows us to be creative and do stuff like that.”

Espada added that frequently shuttling Altuve back-and-forth between the two positions “is something that I am going to avoid.” The second-year manager stopped short of outright proclaiming Altuve the Astros’ new everyday left fielder, but it certainly seems things are trending in that direction.

Altuve is a former Gold Glove winner at second base, but his defense has declined considerably as he’s entered his mid-30s. Defensive Runs Saved has pegged him at -13 or worse in each of the past three seasons. Statcast’s Outs Above Average isn’t as down on Altuve’s glovework during that three-year period but does agree he’s been a negative since 2023, including a particularly rough -8 mark in 2024.

That’s problematic in and of itself, but it’s particularly egregious when Houston has one of the best second base defenders in the sport (statistically speaking) on its roster already. Mauricio Dubon hasn’t even logged a full season’s worth of second base innings in his career, but in 1154 frames at the position he’s been credited with 12 DRS and 8 OAA. The Astros also inked longtime Rockies second baseman Brendan Rodgers, another plus defender at second base, to a minor league deal and invited him to camp.

At the very least, when ground-ball pitchers like Framber Valdez and Hunter Brown are starting games — Valdez is the top ground-ball starter in the sport over the past three seasons — it makes sense to have a superior defender in there. Either Dubon or Rodgers would fit the bill. Espada’s comments make it sound like Altuve is being pushed to left field more frequently than that, however.

Houston’s decidedly lackluster outfield mix is surely a factor as well. Owner Jim Crane seemed determined to dip under the luxury tax threshold after paying the tax in 2024, and as a result the outfield looks thinner than at any point in recent memory. The Astros traded their final season of control over Kyle Tucker to the Cubs in a deal netting new third baseman Isaac Paredes, rotation candidate Hayden Wesneski and new top prospect Cam Smith. With Tucker gone and Alvarez ticketed for more DH time in ’25, Altuve joins a mix of Jake Meyers, Chas McCormick and free agent signee Ben Gamel in the outfield. There are still a handful of interesting free agents out there — David Peralta or Alex Verdugo could fit the ’Stros — but Crane’s preference is to remain south of the $241MM tax threshold; the Astros are currently at $236.8MM, per RosterResource.

If Altuve’s outfield move yields early dividends, it’s easy enough to see it becoming a permanent arrangement. The nine-time All-Star is entering the first season of a five-year, $125MM extension signed 13 months ago. He’s owed $30MM each year from 2025-27 before his salary greatly reduces to $10MM per season in 2028-29. That extension also came with a $15MM upfront signing bonus that has already been paid out.

Mauricio Dubon To Undergo Thumb Surgery

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Astros infielder/outfielder Mauricio Dubon is slated to undergo surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb this week, reports Chandler Rome of The Athletic. Dubon played the final month of the season with the torn the ligament, Rome reports. The recovery period will be around six to eight weeks, leaving ample time for the versatile utilityman to be healed up by spring training.

Houston acquired the 30-year-old Dubon in a May 2022 trade that sent journeyman catcher Michael Papierski back to the Giants. He’s since emerged as a key role player for the ’Stros, hitting .274/.303/.388 in 920 plate appearances over the past two seasons while playing everywhere on the diamond other than on the mound or behind the plate. Rome notes that Dubon suffered the injury on a slide in early September but went on to hit .291/.322/.346 down the stretch while playing through considerable pain. Though he lacks power, Dubon is an exceptionally tough strikeout (12.9% this past season) and excels on the defensive side of the game, evidenced by a Gold Glove in 2023.

Dubon is arbitration-eligible this offseason and projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz for a reasonable $4.6MM salary. That’ll stand as a raise over this year’s $3.5MM salary, which he earned after winning an arb hearing over the Astros back in February.

While injuries can at times be a catalyst for an arb-eligible player to be non-tendered, that’s highly unlikely in this instance. The Astros can control Dubon through the 2026 season, and there’s no reason to think the surgery will impact his readiness for the 2025 campaign. He should return to the same utility role that saw him log 93 innings at first base, 138 at second base, 75 at third base, 32 at shortstop, 405 in left field, 153 in center field and 88 in right field this past season. As a career .281/.324/.442 hitter against southpaws, he should also be a regular piece of Houston’s attack versus lefties (even if he had a down showing in that regard this past season).

Dana Brown, Joe Espada Discuss Astros First Base Plans

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After the Astros released veteran first baseman Jose Abreu yesterday, the move left a clear hole in the club’s lineup at first base. Both GM Dana Brown and manager Joe Espada have since spoken to media about the club’s plans at the position, as relayed by Matt Young of the Houston Chronicle.

As noted by Young, Brown told reporters that first baseman Jon Singleton, who received the majority of reps at first base when Abreu was optioned to the minors earlier this year, will get the first crack at regular at-bats at the position, with Brown noting that the club intends to give Singleton the opportunity to “grab the bull by the horn” and establish himself as a regular in their lineup. Through 50 games with the club this year, however, Singleton hasn’t done much to suggest he’s ready to step into the role of an everyday first baseman. The 32-year-old slugger has hit just .216/.313/.333 in 174 trips to the plate this year (92 wRC+). While his 13.2% walk rate in that time is quite impressive, he’s striking out at an elevated 26.4% clip and has displayed minimal power with just eight extra base hits this year.

That being said, Singleton’s actually been just above average (101 wRC+) with a 14.3% walk rate and a 22.6% strikeout rate against left-handed pitching this year. That provides some reason for optimism that Singleton could be a viable choice for the strong side of a platoon at first base, and it appears the club is receptive to that possibility. Per Young, both Brown and Espada have indicated that utility man Mauricio Dubon will factor into the club’s first base mix against left-handed pitching. Dubon is hitting a solid .302/.327/.421 (114 wRC+) in 168 trips to the plate with the Astros this year, a figure that includes an impressive 133 wRC+ against southpaws.

While the club appears to be planning on Singleton and Dubon handling first base for the time being, it appears that Astros brass are nonetheless considering alternative options should Singleton struggle in expanded playing time. As noted by Chandler Rome of The Athletic yesterday, the has considered the possibility of utilizing their catching tandem of Yainer Diaz and Victor Caratini at first base in some capacity as well. Both have produced solid offense with the bat this year for the standards of the catcher position: Diaz has slashed .258/.283/.407 (95 wRC+) in 233 trips to the plate while Caratini has posted a similar .235/.278/.408 (93 wRC+) line in 108 plate appearances.

With that said, both of those figures are below average overall and seem somewhat miscast at an offense-first position such as first base. Given that reality, it’s perhaps not a surprise that Espada indicated to reporters yesterday that the club prefers to keep Diaz and Caratini behind the plate. With that being said, the Astros did select the contract of switch-hitting catcher Cooper Hummel to replace Abreu on the roster yesterday. Hummel owns a lifetime slash line of just .166/.264/.286 in the majors, but if he can post something closer to the .301/.423/.509 slash line he has in 201 trips to the plate at the Triple-A level with the Astros this year it’s possible that he could either factor into the first base mix himself or act as a solid enough backup option behind the plate to make the Astros more comfortable utilizing Diaz and/or Caratini at first on a part-time basis.

Of course, all of these options are looking purely internally; MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart relayed yesterday that Brown noted that the Astros expect to search for an additional bat at the trade deadline in addition to their rumored pursuit of starting pitching. If Houston is indeed planning to add a bat to their lineup this summer, first base is certainly a logical fit. Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has already received some buzz as a potential candidate to move this summer, and while Toronto brass have emphasized their reluctance to make such a deal, the fit between Guerrero and the Astros is fairly obvious in the event that the 25-year-old does find himself on the move. Pete Alonso is another notable first baseman who could be on the move this summer, as MLBTR’s Anthony Franco recently discussed. Other speculative candidates to move at the deadline this summer at first base include a host of veterans on expiring deals such as Josh Bell and Justin Turner.

Astros Notes: Alvarez, Abreu, Rotation

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Jose Abreu’s return from an optional assignment to the minor leagues will indirectly further crowd the the team’s outfield mix, writes Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle. Manager Joe Espada said yesterday that with Abreu back on the roster, Yordan Alvarez is likely to see more time in left field, allowing both Abreu and Jon Singleton to be in the lineup at first base and designated hitter.

Alvarez has made consecutive starts in left field after previously appearing in only three games at the position. Espada noted that Alvarez picking up outfield at-bats will come at the expense of Chas McCormick and Mauricio Dubon, adding that he’ll still work to keep everyone involved in the mix for playing time. (MVP candidate Kyle Tucker and center fielder Jake Meyers, in the midst of a breakout showing, naturally don’t appear as though their playing time will be impacted.)

Abreu is 1-for-6 with an RBI single since being recalled from a monthlong sojourn to the minor leagues — a rare assignment for a veteran of his status but one to which the former AL MVP consented after a disastrous start to the season. He went 7-for-22 with a homer and a pair of doubles with Houston’s Rookie-level Arizona Complex League affiliate. Abreu then played a pair of games in Triple-A Sugar Land and went 0-for-7 with a walk and three strikeouts.

The Astros are trying what they can to get Abreu back on track after a disappointing debut campaign in 2023 and a calamitous .099/.156/.113 slash through his first 77 plate appearances of the current campaign. It’s not clear what kind of leash Abreu will have, particularly with Houston sitting 6.5 games back in both the AL West and in the AL Wild Card chase, but Abreu’s three-year, $58.5MM contract gives the team plenty of financial incentive to try to turn things around.

Between Abreu and the 32-year-old Singleton, who returned to the majors after a seven-year absence last season, the Astros’ first base mix has been woefully unproductive. Singleton has turned in a .221/.327/.359 slash — roughly league-average offense (102 wRC+) that’s been accompanied by poorly rated defense (-4 Defensive Runs Saved, -4 Outs Above Average in 293 innings).

That lackluster output from the team’s first basemen is just one of many reasons the Astros find themselves staring at a 24-32 record with more than a third of the season in the books. The rotation’s health — or rather, the lack thereof — has also been a prominent factor. On that front, Espada provided a mixed bag of updates.

On the positive side of things, right-hander Luis Garcia is continuing to progress well in his rehab from last year’s Tommy John surgery. He threw off a mound at Minute Maid Park last week, and MLB.com’s Brian McTaggart tweets that the right-hander is now slated to throw to hitters in his next throwing session. McTaggart adds that righty Lance McCullers Jr., who’s on the mend from flexor surgery, threw a bullpen session this week but is still “a few weeks” from facing live hitters.

Facing live hitters and pitching in simulated game settings are often the last steps before an injured pitcher is cleared to set out on a minor league rehab assignment. Garcia will presumably have multiple live batting practice sessions before progressing to a rehab stint, which could last up to 30 days itself. A return isn’t right around the corner just yet, but he’s on track for a midsummer debut this year. McCullers, it seems, isn’t terribly far behind him.

Less encouraging were Espada’s updates on injured right-handers Jose Urquidy and Cristian Javier. Both are “getting opinions from other doctors,” according to Espada (via McTaggart). Seeking second opinions is always an ominous step for a pitcher, particularly when both are dealing with this type of injury. Urquidy has yet to pitch this season after suffering a forearm strain in spring training. Javier went on the injured list last week with forearm discomfort.

Mauricio Dubon Wins Arbitration Hearing Against Astros

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Utilityman Mauricio Dubón has won an arbitration hearing against the Astros, reports Ari Alexander of KPRC-2 in Houston. The Astros will pay the $3.5MM salary figure submitted by Dubón and his representatives at ALIGND Sports, as opposed to the $3MM sum the team had filed.

Dubón is coming off the best season of his career. He played in a personal-high 132 games and tallied almost 500 plate appearances. Dubón turned in league average results offensively, hitting .278/.309/.411 while getting into the double digits in home runs for the first time. As he has throughout his career, he consistently put the ball in play while playing essneitlaly anywhere on the diamond. Dubón struck out in fewer than 15% of his plate appearances and started multiple games at each of first base, second base, shortstop, left field and center field.

The right-handed hitter filled in effectively at the keystone early in the year when Jose Altuve was on the injured list. He moved back to his traditional utility role as the season progressed. Dubón doesn’t project as a starter at any individual position in a strong Houston lineup, but his defensive flexibility means he’ll log semi-regular playing time around the diamond.

This was his second of four trips through the arbitration process. Dubón qualified for early arbitration last winter as a Super Two player, agreeing to a $1.4MM salary for 2023. He earns a raise of more than $2MM this time and will go through the process twice more. Dubón won’t be eligible for free agency until the 2026-27 offseason, at which point he’ll be entering his age-32 campaign.

Dubón was Houston’s only arbitration-eligible player who didn’t agree to terms this offseason. Finalizing his salary pushes their 2024 payroll commitments to roughly $240MM, as calculated by Roster Resource. They’re up to nearly $255MM in competitive balance tax obligations, just $2MM below the second penalization tier. It’s easily the highest payroll projection in franchise history as Houston pushes for another AL West triumph. With each of Dubón, Taylor Ward and Austin Hays being announced as the winners of their hearings this morning, players have been victorious in three of the first five arbitration cases.

Requested Salary Figures For 22 Players Who Didn’t Reach Agreements By Arbitration-Filing Deadline

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Today was the deadline for teams and players eligible for arbitration to exchange salary figures for the 2024 season ahead of possible arbitration hearings. And, as usual, the vast majority of eligible players worked out deals for 2024 (and, in some cases, beyond) before the deadline this afternoon. While these agreements are all listed in MLBTR’s Arbitration Tracker, unfinished business remains around the league. 22 players have not yet settled on a salary for the 2024 and are therefore at risk of having their salaries determined by an arbiter. That number is down considerably from last season, when 33 players exchanged figures. Of note, this list does not include Brewers right-hander Devin Williams. While the sides exchanged figures earlier this evening, they managed to avoid arbitration after the deadline had passed.

This year, arbitration hearings will begin on January 29th and run through February 16th, two days after pitchers and catchers are due to report for Spring Training. While there’s nothing stopping teams and players from settling to avoid arbitration between now and their hearing, the majority of clubs employ a “file and trial” approach to arbitration hearings, stopping negotiations prior to the formal exchange of figures in order to put additional pressure on players to agree to a deal early. While this approach generally puts a moratorium on discussion of one-year deals, teams are typically still willing to discuss multi-year pacts beyond today’s deadline.

Below are the 22 players who have yet to reach an agreement regarding their 2024 salaries, as well as the players’ requested salaries and the counteroffers issued by clubs. The league tends to pay close attention to arbitration salaries because outliers can serve as precedent going forward, raising the bar both for individual players and players as a whole in the future. That reality incentivizes teams to strictly stick to a “file and trial” approach in arbitration and risk a tense hearing between club and player rather than bridge even fairly minimal gaps between club and player salary figures.

[RELATED: Arbitration projections from MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz]

14 of the league’s 30 clubs have at least one case that has yet to be settled. The Orioles have the most cases that have yet to be settled, with five players on track for a hearing against the club. That being said, it’s worth noting that Baltimore has a massive, 17-player class of arbitration-eligible players, so it’s hardly a surprise that they wound up exchanging figures with an elevated number of players. Toronto first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. submitted the highest salary figure among all players headed for a hearing at $19.9MM, while the Rangers and outfielder Adolis Garcia narrowly top Guerrero and the Blue Jays for the largest gap between figures, with $1.9MM separating Garcia’s request of $6.9MM from the Rangers’ $5MM counteroffer.

The total list, which will be updated as settlements are reached and the results of hearings are made available…

Gold Glove Winners Announced

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Major League Baseball announced the Gold Glove winners tonight, as selected by a group of managers, coaches, and statistical analysis.  Twenty-five percent of the selection total was determined by SABR’s Defensive Index metrics, while the other 75 percent was determined by votes from all 30 managers and up to six coaches from each team.  Of the latter pool, managers and coaches were limited to voting on players in their own league, and they weren’t allowed to vote for any players on their own team.  The utility Gold Glove wasn’t determined with any votes, but rather via a defensive formula calculated by SABR and Rawlings.

The list of winners…

 

Astros’ Options To Cover Second Base In Altuve’s Absence

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The Astros announced this afternoon star second baseman Jose Altuve underwent successful surgery to repair the right thumb fracture he suffered in the World Baseball Classic. He won’t begin baseball activities for two months and will obviously need some time to work back into game shape from that point forward.

Given that timetable, it’s hard to envision Altuve playing in a big league game before June. Houston finds itself in a virtually unheard of position entering a season with some uncertainty at the keystone. Whomever gets the nod next Thursday against the White Sox will be the first player other than Altuve to start at second base on Opening Day since Bill Hall 12 years ago.

Houston general manager Dana Brown addressed the situation this afternoon (link via Brian McTaggart of MLB.com). The first-year GM didn’t rule out the possibility of going outside the organization for infield help but suggested the club preferred to address it with in-house players. “We’re going to look internally first. We have a good, core group of guys here,” Brown said. “We’ll exhaust what we have here in the organization because we do have some good players and we’ve always been interested in depth, (but) sometimes to acquire that depth you have to go outside the organization.”

If the club were to make an addition, it’d presumably be a low-cost depth move. Altuve will obviously take the job back once he’s healthy. It probably doesn’t make much sense to pursue a trade for someone like Isiah Kiner-Falefa; rather, the likelier course of action could be to look to a free agent like Jonathan Villar or a veteran who could opt out of a minor league deal elsewhere before Opening Day.

If the Astros stay internal or merely add a veteran to Triple-A Sugar Land as depth, a pair of players stand out as favorites for second base reps.

David Hensley

Hensley, 27 next week, only has 20 games of big league experience. Four of them came in the postseason, including a pair of starts in the World Series. Those came after a late-season promotion on the heels of an excellent .298/.420/.478 showing in 464 plate appearances with Sugar Land. He only hit 10 home runs but connected on 30 doubles and four triples. More impressively, the right-handed hitter worked walks at an elite 17.2% clip against an average 22.2% strikeout rate. Among Triple-A hitters with 400+ PA’s, only Will Benson had a better on-base percentage while just Jon Singleton, Benson, John Andreoli and Delino DeShields Jr. drew walks at a higher clip.

The San Diego State product now ranks as the #5 prospect in the Houston system at Baseball America. Regarded as a bat-first utility infielder, he predictably draws praise for his plate discipline and bat-to-ball skills. He’s not regarded as a great defender but could offer a decent floor from an on-base perspective towards the back of the Houston lineup.

Mauricio Dubón

Dubón, acquired from the Giants last May, offers a very different profile than Hensley. He’s a versatile up-the-middle defender who makes a ton of contact but rarely walks. He’s played 262 MLB games over parts of four seasons, hitting .244/.287/.366 with a 17.2% strikeout rate and 5.7% walk percentage. That’s well below-average offense but he’s held a roster spot on the strength of his glove. Public metrics like Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average have graded him positively at each of second base, shortstop and in center field.

The Honduras native is out of minor league option years. That means the Astros will have to carry him on the active roster if they don’t want to risk losing him. Considering they agreed to a $1.4MM contract to avoid arbitration this offseason, it’s hard to envision they’d let him go. Dubón will be on the roster and could see a decent amount of action at second base but might not hit enough to be a regular.

Depth Options

Offseason waiver claim Rylan Bannon is an option at second or third base. The 26-year-old has only played five MLB games. He’s coming off a .249/.367/.421 showing over 99 games in Triple-A and has attracted interest from a handful of teams on the waiver wire. Houston added glove-first veteran Dixon Machado on a minor league deal over the winter. He’s a .226/.285/.292 hitter in parts of five MLB seasons and has struggled at the plate this spring. Minor leaguers Grae Kessinger and Will Wagner have performed well during non-roster looks in camp but likely aren’t immediate options considering neither has yet played a game at Triple-A.

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Houston’s lineup should remain one of the league’s best even in Altuve’s absence. Yordan Alvarez, Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, José Abreu and Jeremy Peña are capable of driving a strong run-scoring group. Still, it’s obviously far from ideal to have both Altuve and Michael Brantley open the season on the shelf as Houston gets their title defense underway. In all likelihood, they’ll be counting on one of Hensley or Dubón to step up early in the year to fill the void.

Astros Option Niko Goodrum

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Prior to today’s game, the Astros activated utility player Mauricio Dubon, whom they acquired in a trade with the Giants yesterday, relays Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. In a corresponding move, infielder Niko Goodrum was optioned to Triple-A.

This is yet another step in what has been a downward trajectory for Goodrum in recent years. After establishing himself as a useful part of the Tigers’ roster in 2018 and 2019, things took a turn in 2020. His 2018-2019 batting line of .247/.318/.427 was just two hairs below league average, with his wRC+ coming in at 98 in that time. But due to his 24 steals and quality defense, he was worth 4.5 fWAR over that stretch.

In the shortened season, he hit .184/.263/.335 for a wRC+ of 62. Even during those two good years, he struck out 28% of the time, well above league average, but that shot up to 38.5% in 2020. This trend mostly carried over into 2021, with Goodrum hitting .214/.292/.359 with a 32.9% strikeout rate.

After two straight down years, the Tigers non-tendered him instead of opting for an approximate $2.9MM arbitration salary, as projected by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz. The Astros signed him to a $2.1MM guarantee with incentives, hoping that he and Aledmys Diaz could form a sort of safety net as the club tried out rookie Jeremy Pena as Carlos Correa’s shortstop replacement. Unfortunately, his troubling trends over the past couple of years have worsened, with Goodrum hitting .116/.156/.163 and striking out at a 51.1% clip.

The 30-year-old will now head to Sugar Land and see if regular playing time and at-bats can help him get things back on track and work his way back to the majors. He came into the season with four years and 31 days of service time, adding approximately 38 days to that total this year to put him somewhere around 4.069. Players with over five years of service time cannot be optioned without their consent, but Goodrum is just over 100 days shy of that, with 172 days counting as a full season.

Astros Acquire Mauricio Dubon

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The Astros have acquired utility player Mauricio Dubon from the Giants in exchange for catcher Mike Papierski, as announced by both clubs. Additionally, the Giants have recalled infielder Donovan Walton to replace Dubon on the active roster and assigned Papierski to Triple-A Sacramento.

Dubon, 27, was originally drafted by the Red Sox in in 2013, but went to the Brewers as part of the 2016 Tyler Thornburg trade. He made it up to the big leagues for a two-game cup of coffee before being sent to the Giants as part of the 2019 deadline deal that sent Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black to the Brewers.

Since that time, Dubon has proved to be a useful bench/utility piece for the club. In 179 career games, he’s hit .258/.301/.395 while spending time at second base, third base, shortstop and center field. That batting line amounts to 88 wRC+, about 12% below league average, but his solid defense at multiple positions has still allowed him to accumulate 1.4 wins above replacement for his career, according to FanGraphs.

Those are solid contributions for a part-time player, but it seems that Dubon might have just been squeezed off a talented Giants roster. He and Thairo Estrada play similar roles on the club as right-handed hitting utility options. Tommy La Stella began the season on the injured list after undergoing achilles surgery in October but is currently rehabbing and nearing a return. The club will need to make room for him and it seems like they either preferred Estrada or got an offer on Dubon that tipped the scales in favor of this route. Since Dubon is out of options, sending him to the minors wasn’t going to be possible.

For the Astros, they’ve had disappointing results from their utility players so far this year. Aledmys Diaz is hitting .191/.257/.294 on the year for a wRC+ of 69. Niko Goodrum has been even worse, as his slash line on the year is currently .128/.171/.179, wRC+ of 4. With Jose Altuve and Jeremy Pena both dealing with minor injuries this week, the club’s middle infield mix was starting to look a little wobbly. They’re surely hoping that Dubon can help shore it up.

As for Papierski, he was a ninth round selection of the Astros in the 2017 draft. He’s since worked his way up the minor league ladder, reaching Triple-A last year. His first taste of that level went okay, as he put up a line of .246/.379/.375, 98 wRC+. However, he’s taken a dip so far this year, sitting on a line of .211/.324/.278, 59 wRC+. He’s also been spending less time behind the plate this year, with 11 games at catcher, nine at first base and six at designated hitter. Last year, it was 64 at catcher and 28 at first. If he continues that trend in his new organization, it will put more pressure on him to produce with the bat since he won’t be providing as much defensive value.

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