Astros: Three players trending down heading to the Pacific Northwest

Don’t let a successful home stand for the Astros take away from the struggles.

There is a lot to like about these Astros. Like, a lot. I can’t emphasize that point any more. At the same time, players will struggle. We saw plenty of that during the opening week of the season. And, no, I don’t want to relive that week.

No matter what time of the year, odds are that a few players on each roster will struggle. The Astros are no different. Let’s take a look at three players struggling as the club heads to the Pacific Northwest.

Trending down: Josh James

Personally, I like James a lot. I think he has a bright future in the majors, either as a starter or reliever. At this point, I am not sure where he will eventually settle, but he is a member of the Astros’ bullpen to start the season. However, James hasn’t had the best week. During the course of this home stand, he threw three innings over three games. It was a relatively small sample, however, he surrendered six runs in total.

His last two appearances, in particular, were troublesome. In two innings of work against the A’s last Sunday, the hard throwing right-hander allowed two runs over two innings. The other appearance came against the Yankees on Wednesday and James failed to record an out as New York mounted a comeback. Four runs on two hits, including a home run, and two walks. Can’t help but wonder if James is still shaking off the rust from his spring training injury and the time he missed.

Trending down: Josh Reddick

There are some encouraging signs about Reddick’s performance this season. For one, he is hitting well against the shift (151 wRC+), however, his latest home stand wasn’t exactly stellar. In five games, Reddick only collected four hits (all singles) while posting a .551 OPS. Like how I mentioned above about James, Reddick’s performance is a small sample, but his numbers are something to watch following last year’s disappointment.

Trending down: Tyler White

Thanks to a strong performance in last year’s second half (147 wRC+), White had an inside track to a spot on the active roster. While he may not be the most dynamic hitter in the Astros’ lineup, there is a lot to like about what White brings to the table. However, he did just endure a rough home stand where he posted a .393 OPS in seven at-bats. Again, like Reddick, White’s performance is a small sample. It is unreasonable to determine something with meaning based on seven at-bats during one home stand.

However, if he continues to struggle as the season progresses, we may see White lose additional playing to Aledmys Diaz at first base and Michael Brantley at DH. Also, top prospect Yordan Alvarez is tearing it up in Round Rock with five home runs and a 1.469 OPS in just 26 at-bats. I don’t foresee Houston making a sudden change with White, but it is something to keep in mind.