4 former Astros players shining in spring training to the frustration of fans

So far, the Houston Astros have been pretty fortunate to retain most of the core that helped begin this run of seven straight playoff appearances. More than anything, that speaks to how good of a job the franchise has done to develop their own young players and keep improving the roster year after year.

Sadly, Houston hasn't been able to keep everyone, and there are a lot of reasons for that. Some guys simply got too expensive for the Astros keep while maintaining a balanced roster, others thought they could find greener pastures elsewhere, and some players the team just ... decided to move on from, due to age/performance/injuries/etc.

The goal here is to look at how some of these former Astros are thriving this spring. This won't just be a look at the guys that left the team since last year, but instead looking further back at some names that will be familiar to Astros fans from years past.

Phil Maton

One of the losses the Astros experienced this past offseason that hasn't gotten enough attention was when reliever Phil Maton hit free agency. Maton wasn't throwing in the highest leverage situations, but he was a lock for 65+ quality appearances in those sixth/seventh inning scenarios, and was one of the best in the league at bridging the gap to the late inning guys. Unfortunately, Maton did find a deal to his liking elsewhere, as the 30-year-old reliever inked a one-year deal with the Rays.

Maton has done little this spring to make the Astros regret losing him any less. He has only made three appearances, but he has yet to give up an earned run and has five strikeouts against just one walk. Given the questions that Houston has with their bullpen at the moment, they could end up really missing Maton in 2024.

George Springer

Astros fans that have been following the team for any appreciable amount of time are well aware of what George Springer did during his time with Houston. In his seven seasons with the Astros, Springer slashed .270/.361/.491 with 174 homers across 3,567 plate appearances. By nearly every measure, he was a game-changer.

Unfortunately, Springer's tantalizing tools were in high demand once he hit free agency before the 2021 season. Houston would have loved to keep him around, but his expected price tag was widely expected even back then to lead him to a different team. Ultimately, he decided to sign with Toronto on a six-year, $150 million deal.

Springer's first season with the Blue Jays was marred by a quad injury and his production has decreased every year in Toronto. After posting a .907 OPS in his shortened 2021 season, his .814 OPS in 2022 and .732 OPS in 2023 made it look like Houston may have made the right choice not to lock him up for the long-term.

However, his work this spring has been decidedly better than that. In 11 games down at camp, Springer is slashing .357/.471/.714 with three homers and six walks against three strikeouts. Spring training numbers can absolutely be a mirage, but these numbers sure shouldn't make fans feel any better about Springer not being around.

Myles Straw

Myles Straw started his pro career as an unassuming 12th round pick in the 2015 MLB Draft by the Astros out of a small college. However, he quickly made a name for himself in the minor leagues as a plus hitter who could really run and defend, and ended up making his big league debut in 2018 with Houston.

While Straw's time with the Astros wasn't bad, it certainly was pretty underwhelming. His defense was more hit and miss than expected, his speed wasn't really taken advantage of, and his lack of power pushed his OPS in his first three seasons with Houston in the big leagues down to .649, which is not what you want to see. The Astros saw the writing on the wall and traded Straw to Cleveland for the aforementioned Maton and Yainer Diaz.

That trade has been looking great for the Astros overall. Maton was a stellar middle reliever with Houston, and Diaz has turned into one of the best young catchers in baseball, especially now that Martin Maldonado is out of the picture. Meanwhile, Straw did win a Gold Glove with the Guardians, but his bat has regressed even further to the point where it looks like he has been swinging a toothpick the last two seasons.

This spring, Straw seems to be a new man. His 1.088 OPS ranks sixth among all Guardians hitters and he has mixed a few doubles in along the way. He may never be an impact bat, but he could make the Astros' end of that deal a little less lopsided with a strong 2024 season.