WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — For the second straight spring, efficiency could drive the Houston Astros to create an Opening Day roster spot for a first-round decide embarking on a place change. Cam Smith secured one final season after acing a mid-spring change from third base to proper area.
It appears Brice Matthews could also be in the course of one thing comparable. Smith stays entrenched because the Astros proper fielder, however Matthews’ marvelous spring has made him a viable candidate to contribute in Houston’s in any other case unsettled outfield.
That Matthews began Friday night time’s Grapefruit League sport in left area solely furthered the thought. No place on the membership is more in flux, and Houston performs in a ballpark that’s forgiving to inexperienced gamers patrolling the place. Jose Altuve and Yordan Alvarez are the obvious examples.
Matthews is much more athletic than each of them. He performed some outfield at Atascocita High School and, final season, began in heart area eight instances for Triple-A Sugar Land. Matthews has spent nearly all of his skilled profession as an infielder, however Houston’s major-league roster has no room for one more one.
As a outcome, supervisor Joe Espada entered spring coaching with a plan to extend Matthews’ versatility and create a possible path for him onto the Opening Day roster. Matthews has performed elements of six Grapefruit League video games in heart area, impressing group officers with how properly he’s acclimated to a brand new position.
“A lot of it comes naturally,” outfield coach Jason Bell stated. “He’s fast. He’s athletic. He gets pretty good reads, and it allows him the freedom to just roam and glide to the ball. His routes have been really good so far, but it seems like the athleticism will allow him to be pretty good out there.”
Center area offers the simplest reads on fly balls, however Bell believes Matthews’ athleticism will permit him to learn more troublesome batted balls within the corners. Range is one in all Matthews’ largest strengths as an infielder, which Bell stated “is partially athleticism and the other part is the view and perception off the bat.”
“Because that’s already a skill he has,” Bell added, “I believe it will translate well to the outfield.”
Whether it’s sufficient for Matthews to make the group as an outfielder is a legit query, however the Astros’ actions show it’s into consideration. Asked on Friday whether or not he would really feel snug taking part in Matthews within the outfield throughout a major-league sport, Espada replied: “Yes.”
“He’s having a heck of a spring,” Espada stated on Thursday. “Swinging the bat well, playing all over the field, stealing bases. The athleticism is what we’re looking for. He gives you the versatility for me to do a lot of things with him on the field.”
Matthews’ offensive efficiency deserves critical consideration for the Opening Day roster. He stole seven bases, labored six walks and sported an .840 OPS after his first 33 Grapefruit League at-bats. If Matthews isn’t primarily an outfielder, although, it’s troublesome to discover a path for normal at-bats — one thing Espada prioritizes for any prospect he carries on the lively roster.
Matthews additionally hits right-handed, which runs counter to Houston’s want for steadiness. It is why group officers hoped left-handed hitting Zach Cole might seize a corner-outfield spot in spring coaching. Instead, Cole has struck out 17 instances in 34 Grapefruit League at-bats, placing him in peril of starting the season at Triple-A Sugar Land.
Matchups could render the steadiness considerations moot. Houston might face as many as 4 left-handed starters in its season-opening, seven-game homestand. Two of them, Boston’s Ranger Suárez and Garrett Crochet, have already been introduced as possible starters in opposition to the Astros. Yusei Kikuchi and Reid Detmers might issue into the season-opening collection in opposition to the Angels, too.
Against all of them, Matthews might present one other athletic, right-handed bat that might bolster the lineup. Platooning him with a left-handed hitter — be it Alvarez, Cole or Joey Loperfido — could possibly be a short-term resolution to Houston’s unsettled state of affairs in left area.
Cam Smith has an .866 OPS in 14 spring coaching video games. (Rich Storry / Getty Images)
When Cam Smith returns to the dugout after a house run or large hit, he expects the apparent query. He by no means desires to know the reply.
“Your boys ask you what pitch you got, and you’re like, ‘I don’t know, I just swung at it.’ That’s where I want to be,” Smith stated earlier this spring. “That’s where I want to live. That’s where the elite hitters live.”
Being the centerpiece of a blockbuster commerce invitations these expectations. That Smith failed to fulfill them as a rookie isn’t an indictment of his promise or status. He performed a brand new place, endured the pains of adjusting to major-league life and did it with outsized expectations at age 22.
Some perspective arrived this offseason, one which featured no ensures from common supervisor Dana Brown. Finishing final season with an 87 OPS+ and eight extra-base hits throughout his remaining 170 plate appearances didn’t warrant any for Smith.
To get some, Smith needed to get out of his personal approach.
“It’s easy in baseball to get in your own way and try to be a perfectionist. But that time is for the cages, it’s not for on the field when you’re trying to compete,” Smith stated. “That’s what I fell into last year: trying to think about mechanics in the box or changing my approach. It’s a reactionary game. If you’re thinking, you’re not on time. I found that out the hard way. But I’m glad I learned it early.”
Because he did, Smith is taking part in with more freedom. He refers to it as “being autonomous and reactionary.”
“You don’t think at all,” Smith stated.
A free thoughts has fueled a resurgent spring for Smith, who’s slashing .278/.366/.500 after 36 at-bats. Smith is pulling the ball with more authority and utilizing the center of the sector, a byproduct of his contact level being more out in entrance of house plate.
“He’s been very consistent, putting some good swings on pitches that we know he can handle,” Espada stated. “He’s coming into his own. He looks really good offensively. I really like the at-bats.”
Smith’s spot on Houston’s Opening Day roster is secured because of this. Once there, he now is aware of easy methods to suppose.
The launch of Houston’s media information this week supplied more perception into Dana Brown’s self-described “deep dive” into the Astros’ maligned return-to-play process. Other than to reiterate {that a} evaluation befell, Brown has refused to disclose any specifics of what — if any — changes have been enacted after an injury-marred 2025 season.
As it seems, Houston employed a brand new director of sports activities drugs and efficiency: Dr. Brad DeWeese, who beforehand served because the director of participant efficiency for Penn State’s baseball group.
DeWeese has prior expertise with the New York Jets and San Francisco 49ers, in response to his media information biography. He changed Adam Decker, who departed the Astros this winter after 4 seasons as director of sports activities drugs and efficiency. According to Decker’s LinkedIn web page, he now holds the identical place for the Toronto Tempo, a WNBA group scheduled to debut in 2026.
In addition to DeWeese, the Astros employed Rafael Freitas as their new assistant athletic coach. Freitas previously served because the Pittsburgh Pirates’ head athletic coach for the previous 5 seasons. In Houston, he’ll assume the position vacated by Eric Velazquez, who was promoted to go athletic coach after the group parted methods with Jeremiah Randall.
DeWeese and Freitas be a part of head power and conditioning coach Mike Jasperson as new faces in what should be described as an overhauled sports activities drugs division. Hires like this are hardly ever handled as information, however given the fixed reminders from gamers and different group personnel concerning the rash of accidents to the 2025 Astros, analyzing them feels apt.