New Astros general manager Randy Flores has some work to do this winter. Aside from hiring a new manager to replace Joe Espada, Flores will have to finalize a roster for 2027. Houston enters the year as reigning AL West champions but after a .500 campaign, there is some work to be done.
Biggest needs for Astros
Last winter, the Astros honed in on starting pitching, bringing in Tatsuya Imai, Ryan Weiss, and planned starter Nate Pearson for help during the winter. However, that strategy didn’t bring the desired results. In fact, the best signing that the Astros made in the 2025-26 offseason wound up being a Minor League signing.
Right now, the Astros’ rotation options include Hunter Brown, Peter Lambert, Ethan Pecko, Hayden Wesneski, plus depth options like Cristian Javier and Mike Burrows. A starting pitching addition would obviously make sense — but can the Astros do that for 2027?
After that, as well as the obvious depth bullpen addition (the club did see Stephen Okert go to free agency), that may be the only realistic things that would make sense for the Astros.
The Astros’ lineup, as of now, will return the entire lineup for the club in 2026. Yordan Alvarez, Isaac Paredes, Jose Altuve, Yainer Diaz, Cam Smith, and Jeremy Pena (who will be a free agent after 2027) are all still on the roster. There are also the depth pieces, like outfielders Brice Matthews, Taylor Trammell, and Lucas Spence.
Matthews didn’t have a great season in 2026; he slashed just .201/.255/.322, plus a 37% Whiff% against four-seam fastballs. The fastball, particularly up, was a problem for Matthews in the Minors. And so far, it’s been a real issue for him in the big leagues.
Trammell hit just .192 but got on base at a fair clip and hit 20 extra-base hits in limited playing time. Spence, a rookie last year, didn’t hit in his first stint in the Majors but exploded late for a three-home-run game in West Sacramento. The tools are there.
With all that said, the Astros don’t need to be big buyers when it comes to adding to the lineup.
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