Houston Astros: Three options to replace Jose Altuve in the field
By T.A. Mock
Slide Yuli Gurriel to second base and Tyler White to first base
The Houston Astros have trotted out the same lineup in four of the five games so far this postseason. Some combination of George Springer leading off, Jose Altuve batting second, Alex Bregman third, Yuli Gurriel fourth, Tyler White fifth, Marwin Gonzalez sixth, Carlos Correa seventh, Martin Maldonado eighth, and Josh Reddick ninth.
This lineup has been largely successful against both the Indians and the Red Sox. If it weren’t for Altuve’s injury, there wouldn’t be a reason to switch things up. Fortunately, or maybe, unfortunately, the Astros have experience in fielding an Altuve-less lineup.
One of the things that the Astros tried out was sliding Gurriel to a position he has never played before, second base. The Astros then platooned first base with several different guys, one of them being White.
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So, if AJ Hinch wanted to keep trotting out the same lineup that has had a lot of success then he could once again slide Gurriel to second base and White to first base while Altuve DHs. This keeps the lineup the same but isn’t ideal defensively.
Gurriel was surprisingly serviceable at second base in spite of not playing the position much. White has grown as a first baseman but as a whole, the right side of the infield would be weaker defensively than one would like. However, the offensive firepower remains the same.