Houston Astros' Biggest Question Heading Into the 2024 Season

The Houston Astros have one major question to answer before the 2024 MLB season.

The Houston Astros have questions to answer heading into the season. While the front office hasn't always made huge moves in the offseason, the Astros typically find ways to get better. Even if those deals are small, Houston adds pieces that contribute to winning.

MLB.com wrote about each team's needs before Spring Training. Brian McTaggart gave his thoughts about where the Astros can get better, pointing to the bullpen as an area of need.

"Astros general manager Dana Brown said earlier this month that the club will turn to internal candidates to fill some of the holes created following the departure of veteran relievers Hector Neris, Phil Maton and Ryne Stanek, who are free agents," writes McTaggart.

"Those three combined to throw 185 innings last season, which was about one-third of Houston’s bullpen workload. There’s still a chance Houston could add a high-leverage reliever, so who’s going to be setting up Ryan Pressly, Bryan Abreu, Rafael Montero and Kendall Graveman? Regardless, multiple pitchers already on the roster will need to step up."

Even if Houston adds a reliever, replacing 185 innings is tough to do. They might feel comfortable with what they have in-house, but it wouldn't be surprising to see them add bullpen help. For a team that's always competing for a World Series, they're always looking to upgrade their pitching.

After Yoshinobu Yamamoto signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday night, free agency is expected to start moving a bit. It's been a slow offseason, so hopefully this can be the domino effect.