Houston

Astros

Loperfido was originally an Astros prospect but was traded to Toronto in 2024 as part of the Yusei Kikuchi deal. He is now back in Houston after hitting .333/.379/.500 with four home runs in 104 plate appearances for the Blue Jays last year. Loperfido also cut his strikeout rate to 21.4 percent in 91 Triple-A games in 2025 after posting a 28 percent mark in Triple-A in 2024. Improved plate discipline would help Loperfido utilize his plus raw power, and there’s a real chance that Houston gives him a chance to be their starting left fielder against right-handed pitching.

That’s expected to come soon. Diaz’s DWL season ended on Dec. 17 after he was hurt sliding into second base. Manager Joe Espada said the injury factored into Diaz being left off the Dominican Republic’s WBC roster. He likely would have been the choice to split time with Austin Wells behind the plate, but Agustín Ramírez ended up getting the nod.

Imaging revealed inflammation of Hader’s biceps tendon and Espada said he has not thrown the last “10 or 11" days. While this timeline gives him plenty of time to ramp up for the season, we don’t love to hear about inflammation on an MRI in February. We’ll be monitoring Hader’s status closely but this is probably something worth breaking a tie in your draft against Hader for if your league is drafting in the near future. Hader said he is “probably a few weeks behind” but didn’t rule out being ready for Opening Day.

This is all very odd. Olney offers up no actual quotes in his article, and none of the Astros’ beat writers have chimed in on the subject. Hader is coming back from a strained left shoulder that cost him the end of last year, but he said he was back throwing normally in November. If something has changed, we should have more than Olney’s vague report soon.

Rome added that the Red Sox and Pirates are among five legitimate suitors in the Paredes sweepstakes. With spring training kicking off next week it makes sense that Houston would attempt to resolve their existing corner infield logjam before the situation gets uncomfortable. With Carlos Correa taking over at the hot corner and Christian Walker’s albatross contract seemingly unmovable, Paredes lacks a clear role with the Astros heading into next season. His pull-centered approach would be an excellent fit in Fenway Park’s hitter-favorable dimensions although his lackluster defense at third base would adversely impact Boston’s pitching staff. Meanwhile, PNC Park is among the worst in the league for right-handed pull power, which would certainly diminish his fantasy appeal. There should be a resolution on the Paredes sweepstakes at some point in the coming days.

There’s no shortage of versatile utility specialists lurking around the fringes of Houston’s big-league roster with Winkler becoming the latest addition. The 27-year-old got into 14 games for the Marlins last year, going 4-for-16 at the dish with a pair of doubles and one stolen base. He struck out at a nearly 30 percent clip at the Triple-A level last year but managed to post a respectable 632 OPS with six homers and 25 thefts across 281 plate appearances. He represents quality emergency depth for the Astros entering next season.

We assumed France’s potential ability to eat innings at a minimum salary would make him attractive to non-contenders, especially since he has an option year left, but obviously no one thinks he’s a very good bet going forward after he returned from shoulder surgery last summer. He’ll stick with the Astros and head to camp as a non-roster player.

Diaz won out after the Astros filed at just $3 million. The catcher hit .256 with 20 homers, 70 RBI and a 95/20 K/BB ratio over his 567 plate appearances with Houston in 2025.

Isaac Paredes had filed at $9.95 million in arbitration, with the Astros submitting an $8.75 million figure, so this is a nice middle ground. The contract also has a 2027 club option for $13.35 million. That will continue to make Paredes a hot commodity on the trade market this offseason.

Altuve was deemed ineligible because the criteria for WBC insurance coverage was not met. A statement from the MLBPA on Altuve’s behalf stated that the 35-year-old is “is obviously disappointed in this result, but he is looking forward to getting to spring training and preparing himself for a successful season.”