Astros manager pumps brakes on Jose Altuve outfield transition following spring training miscue

Well, that wasn't pretty, was it? Yikes! For those of you who missed it, Houston Astros outfielder — that still sounds weird — Jose Altuve made his first major miscue in left field.

A sky high fly ball to left field during the second inning of Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the St. Louis Cardinals had Altuve backing up onto the warning track. Altuve drifted back near the wall, completely mistimed his jump, and the ball fell to the ground.

Jake Meyers came over from center field to throw the ball back into the infield, but by the time it arrived, Cardinals' hitter Ivan Herrera was already digging for third. It was a painful reminder that Altuve is still trying to figure out the intricacies of his new position, and there are bound to be some growing pains.

Astros manager pumps brakes on Jose Altuve outfield transition following spring training miscue

The Astros are following through with their offseason plans, and fair or not, every single ball that Altuve camps under this spring has been, and will continue to be, severely critiqued. Astros manager Joe Espada hasn't lost faith in his newly-minted left fielder, but his most recent comments don't exactly signal that this plan is unfolding how they'd hoped.

Espada used words like "progress" and "effort" when talking about Altuve's adjustment to the outfield. Okay, that's fine if we're talking about high school players, but this is the big leagues. Progress and effort are meaningless if you lose the game. Espada then told The Athletic (subscription required), he wants to “use our next two weeks wisely” before making any final decisions. If that's not a dodge, nothing is.

The fact of the matter is that Astros GM Dana Brown put Espada and the Houston coaching staff in a tough spot. Without Kyle Tucker in the lineup anymore, Houston is lacking a big bat in the outfield. Altuve's defense at second base was also failing, so moving him off the keystone made sense. But at what cost?

The Astros have less than two weeks to figure out how they plan to handle the situation in left field. There's also the matter of whether or not Cam Smith will break camp with the big league ball club, which could, in turn, affect Altuve as well.

Houston's best lineup might include an outfield of Smith, Meyers, and Chas McCormick with Altuve back at second base. While the Astros appear to have gone all-in on moving the former MVP off the infield dirt, it's obvious from Espada's comments that nothing is set in stone just yet.

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