Astros Former World Series MVP May Be Sleeper for Major Breakout Campaign

This Houston Astros players has been tabbed as a breakout sleeper as the regular season gets underway.

Mar 11, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; Houston Astros shortstop Jeremy Pena (3) looks on against the New York Mets during the second inning at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros lineup is going to look vastly different in 2025 than it has in recent years.

Two more homegrown stars moved on this past offseason. Third baseman Alex Bregman signed a three-year, $120 million deal with the Boston Red Sox in free agency, while right fielder Kyle Tucker was traded to the Chicago Cubs.

Former MVP Jose Altuve, who has played only second base in his professional career, is moving to left field to help compensate for the lack of production the team received from their outfield in 2024.

It is an incredibly risky move as his athleticism led to waning defensive production at the keystone. Thus far, things have not gone well for him in the outfield as the Astros could quickly be rethinking that decision.

Houston’s outfield defense will be a topic out of the gate as the starting right fielder is going to be top prospect Cam Smith.

Acquired in the Tucker blockbuster, he was a first-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft as a third baseman. Having two natural infielders patrolling the corner outfield spots is certainly a risk, but the offensive potential is immense.

Also acquired in the return package was Isaac Paredes, who is going to step into Bregman’s spot at the hot corner.

Taking over at first base will be Christian Walker, who signed a three-year, $60 million deal in free agency. He is coming over from the Arizona Diamondbacks after winning three National League Gold Glove Awards in a row and averaging 32 home runs per campaign over that span.

It is going to take a complete team effort to replace the offensive production that was lost, but one player the team will be counting on to take a leap in 2025 is shortstop Jeremy Pena.

Another homegrown talent, he burst onto the scene in 2022 as the replacement for Carlos Correa, who departed in free agency.

He finished fifth in the AL Rookie of the Year voting and won the Gold Glove Award. Where he really made a name for himself was in the postseason, where he took his production to another level.

Pena had a slash line of .345/.367/.638 across 61 plate appearances in the 2022 playoffs, hitting four home runs with five doubles and eight RBI, being named MVP of the ALCS and World Series.

That success has never truly been captured during the regular season. He is just about a league-average producer for his career with a 99 OPS+ and 100 Rbat+.

But he is coming off a 2024 in which he had a career-high with 160 hits, 70 RBI and 20 stolen bases. Entering his age-27 season, his arrow is pointing straight up, and he is considered the top sleeper in Houston by Matt Brandon of Sports Illustrated.

“Houston predominantly deployed him in the fourth to sixth spots in the batting order, enhancing his counting stats. Pena is on the cusp of becoming a 20/20 player in terms of surface-level stats, bolstered by consistent playing time. Additionally, there remains room for growth in his batting average, offering further upside in 2025,” Brandon wrote.

If spring training is a sign of things to come, the Pena breakout in 2025 is going to be massive.

During Grapefruit League play, he had a slash line of .475/.475/.825, launching four home runs with two doubles, 10 RBI and one stolen base.

His production being taken to the next level would be a huge help for Houston remaining in the mix as playoff contenders this year.

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