The Houston Astros keep running into the same problem: they still don’t have a reliable left-handed-hitting outfielder, and the trade deadline is their next chance to fix it.
They already took a swing at the issue last year with Jesus Sanchez, and that move went nowhere. Over the offseason, they flipped Sanchez to bring back Joey Loperfido, and that didn’t work out either.
Loperfido is now down in Sugar Land. Taylor Trammell hasn’t solved anything.
LaMonte Wade is the latest try, but the early returns are rough, with a 32.4% strikeout rate through his first 10 games.
The trouble for Houston is that the usual deadline escape routes aren’t really there. The farm system doesn’t give them much to trade, and the payroll situation is tight if they want to stay under the luxury tax. The Lance McCullers Jr. trade did open up some space, but Chandler Rome of The Athletic reported that the Astros are only saving $2.5 million.
That leaves Houston shopping in a thin market. There aren’t many impact outfield bats available, regardless of handedness.
One name that stands out is Jung Hoo Lee of the San Francisco Giants. He’s a contact-heavy hitter and went into the All-Star break with a .302/.333/.429 line, but the price tag is the problem: $21 million per season for three more years.
That’s not a realistic fit for Houston.
If the Astros are looking for something cheaper with upside, Rockies outfielder Mickey Moniak looks like the best match, flaws and all.
Moniak has the kind of draft pedigree that still gets attention - he was the first overall pick in 2016 - and he can handle center field well enough, which matters after Jake Meyers’ demotion. He’s also under team control for another year after this one and is making just $4 million this season, so he wouldn’t add much to Houston’s books over the final two months.
On paper, the numbers look promising. Moniak is hitting .278/.326/.574 with 15 homers in 62 games this season.
Last year, he posted a .270/.306/.518 line with 24 home runs in 135 games. But those numbers come with a big Coors Field warning label.
Away from Denver, the production drops hard. In 2026, Moniak is hitting .231/.283/.385 on the road.
In 2025, he hit .230/.255/.425 away from Coors. Before that, his career line in Philadelphia and, for the most part, Anaheim sits at .230/.272/.402.
That’s the risk with Moniak: the swing-and-miss is real, and he doesn’t walk enough. Still, he bats left-handed, brings power, and has athleticism.
If he can clean up the holes in his swing, there’s something there. The hope for Houston would be closer to his 2023 season, when he hit .280/.307/.495 with 14 homers in 85 games.
For the Astros, that combination of affordability and upside may be as good as it gets.
In Other News...
Dana Brown Just Sent Astros Fans A Trade Deadline Message
Houstons front office has already made one move, but Dana Brown made it clear the work is not done. After sending Lance McCullers Jr. and Colton Gordon to Milwaukee, the Astros created room on the roster and added some flexibility as they wait on injured pitchers to work their way back, a sign the deadline plan is still very much in motion.
Brown said the club is still looking to improve and is focused on adding a left-handed bat before the Aug. 3 deadline. Houston also wants to see how its returning pitchers look before making its next call, with Ronel Blanco expected back soon and Hayden Wesneski needing a little more rehab time, leaving the Astros with a few moving parts to sort through in the final stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Late-Inning Problem Just Got Harder To Ignore
The Astros have spent much of the season leaning on a bullpen that has generally kept runs off the board since May 1, especially when the leverage climbs and the matchups turn toward left-handed arms. But the formula has started to look a little too fragile for comfort, with Houston still trying to patch together the right-handed side of the relief corps while also managing a rotation that has not made the late innings any easier.
Bryan Kings recent run of trouble against right-handed hitters has only sharpened the concern, because the Astros have been able to get by with this approach only if those matchups keep holding. With the trade deadline drawing closer, the front office is staring at a familiar kind of summer pressure: the need to find help before a bullpen built on a few specific strengths gets exposed in the spots that matter most. [Read more 🡒]