
Aledmys Diaz: C
Diaz arrived in Houston with a strike against him already. He had the unenviable position of replacing Astros fan-favorite Marwin Gonzalez. But barring an injury or two, Diaz did alright for himself. Nothing flashy, but what you might expect from a backup utility player.
He slashed .271/.356/.467 with an OPS+ of 114. By the way, all better numbers than the output of Gonzalez this year, and $10 million cheaper. This season’s performance by Diaz is pretty close to his career average.
His home run and RBI production were down, but mainly due to missed time with a couple of trips to the Injured List, one of those stints for 47 days. Diaz got in only 69 games this season. Unfortunately, he was out almost the entire time Correa was also on the Injured list and that’s exactly the reason you have a backup utility player, to fill in when needed.
When Diaz was healthy, he did come in quite useful, playing five different positions, not including when he acted as the designated hitter. He manned 1st and 2nd in 23 games each, 3rd 19 times, and SS and LF a couple of games. So it’s safe to say he’d be a valuable player on the roster if he can be durable enough. He was on just a one-year contract with the Astros and is now a free agent. We’ll have to wait and see if they bring him back.
Please keep in mind, these are the grades that I have given these players. So before you beat me up, just realize that they are based on my opinion. As always, I’m sure there are as many opinions out there as there are readers. Be sure to stand by for the next report card installment as I dive into grade the pitchers in the Astros starting rotation.