Astros: 4 Different Center Field Routes with Marte Signing Elsewhere

With Jake Meyers undergoing surgery for a torn labrum in mid-November and being unavailable at the beginning of the 2022 season, the Houston Astros‘ starting center fielding job is open for an undetermined period of time.

That is until Meyers is able to recover, rehab and be ready to play after Opening Day, but how long that takes is up in the air according to general manager James Click.

What should the Astros do with the center field position until that time? Here are four options.

Chas McCormick/Jose Siri Platoon

While Meyers was the presumed starting center fielder prior to his injury, Chas McCormick has proven that he can field the position well and hit with power. McCormick’s power diminished post All-Star break, and he struck out 104 times in 284 at-bats, so that will need to change, but platooning McCormick and Jose Siri is a possibility.

This will also allow for Kyle Tucker to fill in at the position as needed, while spending the majority of his time in right field. Siri hit four home runs in 46 regular season at-bats, but was questionable defensively, with several near misses on collisions in the outfield.

This option would likely see McCormick face righties (.262/.314./.427) while Siri, who batted .333 in 15 at-bats vs. lefties, faces the southpaws for the most part. I’m more bullish on McCormick than most and would point out that while his average against left-handers was lower (.244), his OBP (.330) and SLG (.500) were better than against righties.

Should the Astros trade for a center fielder?

There’s another line of thinking that says with either Meyers or McCormick the Astros will be below average offensively in center. There are projections that indicate this to be the case.

However, there are also projections that show Meyers and McCormick combining for 24 home runs, so it depends on what source you trust, if any. If you’re on the “Astros need to make a trade” even with a healthy Meyers, Cedric Mullins is a center fielder that’s reportedly on the trading block.

For Mullins in particular, and likely any starting caliber center fielder, the price may be too high for what theoretically would be a short-term solution, if you see Jake Meyers as your eventual full-time center fielder.

And for those on the “trade for Byron Buxton train,” the center fielder signed a team friendly extension with the Minnesota Twins on Sunday. The deal feels like a steal for the Twins, while Buxton gets a few escalators and a full no-trade clause.

At the end of the day, do the Astros have enough assets to even consider this option and would they want to give up major-league assets and likely deplete their minor league talent for a short term solution?  My guess is no to both, but if the answer is yes, then what happens when Meyers returns?

Should the Astros move Kyle Tucker to center field?

Tucker hasn’t played much center field in the Major Leagues, but he did play almost 1,100 minor- league innings at the position. Meyer’s injury also forced him to put in some time at the position this past postseason.

One version of this has Tucker moving to center, Michael Brantley to right field and signing a veteran outfielder to play left. While Tucker was adequate in center as a defender, he’s not going to give you the range and defense of Meyer or McCormick on a day to day basis.

This option would also mean multiple position changes and for that reason, it’s not optimal. Who would play left in this scenario?  Some of the available left fielders (age) are Kyle Schwarber (29), Tommy Pham (34), Andrew McCutchen (35), Joc Pederson (30), Michael Conforto (28) and Clint Frazier (27).

While McCormick (249.2 innings) and Siri (22 innings) have both played left field, there would seem to be little benefit to moving the entire outfield if either is going to be in the lineup on a regular basis.