Houston Astros Projected 2025 Batting Order Could Still Be Playoff Worthy

The Houston Astros current projected batting order for next season might not be much worse despite the big name losses.

Oct 1, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve (27) and Houston Astros outfielder Yordan Alvarez (44) warm up before playing against the Detroit Tigers in game one of the Wild Card round for the 2024 MLB Playoffs at Minute Maid Park. / Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros are going to look a lot different next season, but might not be much worse overall.

A playoff berth and World Series contention are both still realistic.

The losses of Kyle Tucker and Alex Bregman are certainly going to hurt, but Dana Brown has done a good job of keeping them competitive in the immediate while Cam Smith continues to progress in the farm system.

Here is the full projected Astros batting order for next season:

1. 2B Jose Altuve

Altuve is getting up there in age, but is still playing at an above-average level. Last year was his worst since the beginning of his career (not counting 2020) and he still posted a .295/.350/.439 slash line. Even with further regression, he should be fine.

2. 3B Isaac Paredes

Paredes is going to be an interesting case. He is a high-potential batter who is coming off of a terrible stint with the Chicago Cubs. His pull-happy hitting approach should fit in well with Daikin Park immediately. He could easily have his best season yet, which would be a win for Houston.

3. DH Yordan Alvarez

With Alvarez still in the lineup, it is hard not to get excited. He has proven to be one of the best pure hitters in baseball and is still only getting better. The top of the Astros lineup remains deadly for opposing pitching.

4. 1B Christian Walker

Walker was a long-time target that Brown finally got to come to Houston. Giving an aging first baseman a large contract hasn't gone great in the past, but the pure power the 33-year-old has will be an improvement over last season.

5. C Yainer Diaz

Diaz lost a little bit of the juice in his swing last year, but still had a solid offensive season. Getting that back will be his biggest focus since he doesn't seem to be someone who is ever going to draw a ton of walks.

6. SS Jeremy Pena

Pena feels like the hardest player in baseball to predict at times, but he still is a solid talent. He has yet to reach the heights of his rookie campaign again, but he is still very young.

7. RF Chas McCormick

This is where the lineup really started to fall apart this past campaign. McCormick was a very exciting offensive talent for the first couple of years of his Astros career, but took a dive during his latest season. He posted just a .211/.271/.306 slash line one year after he had an .842 OPS. There is at least some hope he can turn it around.

8. LF Zach Dezenzo

There is no solid opinion on who will take over as the third outfielder to start the year, but giving Dezenzo a shot makes more sense than one of the other bench guys. His MLB debut wasn't too special, but he has shown a lot of potential in the minors.

9. CF Jake Meyers

Meyers is a fantastic defensive presence, but is a lot ways from average at the plate. His glove is good enough to make up for his bat at least, but his .219/.286/.360 slash line last season left a lot to be desired.