Astros spring stats reveal troubling new problem that wasn't on fans' radar

The biggest concern facing the Houston Astros when the offseason opened was who was going to be the No. 2 starter behind Hunter Brown in the starting rotation. The next greatest area of worry was who would slot in behind that Framber Valdez replacement.

Brown finished third in the Cy Young voting, but every other arm behind him in the rotation was full of question marks. Serious injuries and poor performance upon their returns have plagued Cristian Javier and Lance McCullers Jr. Inexperience and inconsistency have been the name of the game for youngsters like Spencer Arrighetti and AJ Blubaugh.

Houston has added a number of arms to the equation. Entering spring training, the influx didn't provide much more clarity. Tatsuya Imai was a big splash, but coming over from Japan and signing for roughly a third of what he was expected to get, he brought little certainty. The plethora of back-end rotation candidates only served to prove how shaky the situation looked.

In contrast, the veteran-laden lineup wasn't much of a concern. There was some rebalancing needed, with an infielder being swapped out for a left-handed-hitting outfielder, but overall, there seemed to be enough firepower. Health would be key, but with Yordan Alvarez back, they seemed to be in decent shape.

This spring, that couldn't be further from the truth. The Astros' hitters rank dead last in OPS, coming in with a .610 OPS. While individual player samples can be noisy, these struggles come over a substantial stretch of 22 games and 677 at-bats.

The Astros' offense is proving to be a bigger concern than originally thought

Jose Altuve has hit just .107/.167/.214 through 10 games this spring. He'll be 36 in May and is clearly on the decline. You can't put too much stock into spring stats, but given how he's tapered off the last two years, you have to wonder if he's at the point where he falls off the cliff.

Christian Walker has done nothing to make you believe that last season was a fluke. He's batting just .115/.207/.269 over 10 games.

Youngsters like Zach Cole, a player the club was hoping could become the lefty bat they desire in the outfield, have done nothing to inspire confidence with a .172/.306/.276 performance. So while guys like Carlos Correa and Yordan Alvarez have looked pretty good, there have been enough concerning performances by key players to be worried.

The Astros' offense was just middle of the pack last season. By OPS, they ranked 15th in the majors with a .714 mark. A lot of that was chalked up to injuries and missing Alvarez for the majority of the season, but even if Alvarez is back and hitting well, they'll struggle if they aren't getting consistent performances from these other key pieces.

On the flip side, Houston's pitching has been very good. Astros' hurlers have combined for a 3.22 ERA this spring. That is the second-best performance in the league.

Imai has been everything they've hoped for, and has yet to give up an earned run through six spring innings. He's not alone. Even big-time shots in the dark like Peter Lambert and Christian Roa have looked good.

That has been a silver lining for sure, but trying to contend with one strength and one very big weakness is a recipe for a .500 finish.

We don't want to overreact. This might be just some spring wonkiness. That cuts on both fronts, however. There's a possibility that the offense is much better than it seems. There's also a chance that the pitching isn't nearly as good as it has seemed so far.

What we do know is that the guys who are struggling and dragging the performance down showed signs of this last year. That's a reason to be concerned. These are veterans nearing the end, and Father Time waits for no one. If he comes for too many Houston hitters this year, the Astros will be in trouble.