Astros Opening Day lineup confirms awkward Jeremy Peña situation

Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña was healthy enough to avoid an IL stint at the start of the season, but he isn't with the team on Opening Day. Peña is taking live at-bats during workouts with Triple-A Sugar Land, but isn't ready to play in a major league game. That means, already on day 1 of the regular season, the Astros are playing a man short.

The silver lining to Peña's injury is that it creates a temporary solution to the headache that was trying to resolve the infield logjam during the offseason. Both Isaac Paredes and Christian Walker remain with the Astros, and for now, there's a way for both to find their way into the starting lineup.

Jeremy Peña is absent from the Astros' Opening Day starting lineup

Paredes gets the start at third base for the Astros, with Carlos Correa sliding over to shortstop. That leaves first base open for Walker and Yordan Álvarez to serve as Houston's designated hitter.

Álvarez's health was among the reasons why the 2025 season turned into a disaster for the Astros. As is the case on Opening Day, Joe Esapada and Co. are hoping to use Álvarez as the DH as much as possible during the 2026 season.

For as much as the infield logjam has found a solution on Opening Day, it's not sustainable. In fact, the Astros' Opening Day lineup highlights the importance of Peña's presence. When the 28-year-old shortstop is not in the lineup, the Astros don't exactly have a clear leadoff option.

For now, the nod goes to Jose Altuve, and that doesn't feel like an ideal situation. Altuve, given his track record, is going to be given the benefit of the doubt, but he ended the 2025 season in the midst of a brutal offensive slump, and his numbers in spring training were far from encouraging. With the start of the season, perhaps he flips the switch and turns it on, but Father Time is undefeated.

Elsewhere, after spending the final weeks of the offseason looking for a left-handed hitting outfielder, Houston opens with Joey Loperfido, Jake Meyers, and Cam Smith as the starting trio in the outfield. Brice Matthews could factor into that mix throughout the season, but the Astros will need Smith to take a step forward in his development if the group is going to move the needle closer to the team contending.

The Astros' Opening Day lineup is a reminder that if you squint, you could see a decent team, but they might be closer to a reset than they are to being at the center of the conversation in the American League.