Astros' Hitters Fantasy Baseball Preview | Yordan Alvarez, Jose Altuve, Yainer Diaz, Christian Walker, Isaac Paredes and More

Let's continue our fantasy baseball team preview series by looking at the Houston Astros. We'll check out the team's top hitters in this story - check back soon for a writeup on the team's pitchers.

We've covered the Cubs (hitters and pitchers), Royals (hitters and pitchers), Dodgers (hitters and pitchers), Rangers (hitters and pitchers) , Nationals (hitters and pitchers), Orioles (hitters and pitchers), Reds (hitters and pitchers), Red Sox (hitters and pitchers), Mets (hitters and pitchers), Twins (hitters and pitchers), Giants (hitters and pitchers), Athletics (hitters and pitchers), Pirates (hitters and pitchers), Mariners (hitters and pitchers), Rockies (hitters and pitchers), Rays (hitters and pitchers), Braves (hitters and pitchers) and White Sox (hitters and pitchers) already.

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Top Fantasy Hitters

Several Houston hitters appear on the ADP list right now.

Leading the way is Yordan Alvarez, who is going at pick 13.1 on average.

Jose Altuve is the next hitter at pick 44.1. Catcher Yainer Diaz is at pick 71.05, while Christian Walker is at 77.1.

Isaac Paredes appears at pick 127.33. Jeremy Pena is going at pick 166.79 on average.

Alvarez is a borderline first-round pick, and probably would be if not for durability concerns. He played in 147 games last season, but only has played over 135 games one other time since 2021.

In his 147 games last season, Alvarez had a .308 average and .392 on-base percentage. He has a career .298 average and .390 OBP and is entering his age-27/28 season, so there's no reason to expect a dropoff yet. Alvarez also had 35 home runs, 86 RBIs, six stolen bases and 88 runs scored last season.

The Astros' lineup looks a little different this season, but Alvarez still has very talented hitters around him, which should help him put up a huge fantasy season again. He'll probably be the designated hitter most nights, but also has left field eligibility. 

I have no issues taking Alvarez around his ADP - if he plays in a similar amount of games to last year, he has a pretty strong fantasy floor. If he ends up playing in more games, he could challenge for the No. 1 fantasy hitter spot.

Altuve is going to turn 35 this season, but he keeps chugging along.

In 153 games last season, Altuve had a .295 average and .350 OBP. He added 20 homers, 65 RBIs, 22 stolen bases and 94 runs scored.

He's one of the top fantasy second basemen in the game, and I'd expect him to put up similar numbers to last season. Getting Altuve around his ADP feels like pretty solid value, but I'm not sure there's much room to exceed expectations, so I'd prefer to get him a round or so after that ADP.

Diaz is one of the top options at a weak fantasy catcher position.

In 148 games last season, Diaz had a .299 average and .325 OBP. He added 16 home runs, 84 RBIs, two stolen bases and 70 runs scored.

He's more known as a contact guy, but has decent power numbers, making him a pretty good all-around fantasy hitter. He might have first base eligibility in your league, which would make him even more valuable for fantasy. 

I have no problem taking Diaz around his ADP (especially if he has 1B eligibility), but I think you might be able to land him in the 80s as well. You don't need to draft another fantasy catcher if you land Diaz, and I think he will safely finish inside the top-five fantasy catchers if he stays healthy - he finished third a season ago.

Walker moved from the Diamondbacks to the Astros this offseason, so basically one good offense to another.

He was on a torrid pace before a late-season injury derailed things. In 130 games, Walker had a .251 average and .335 OBP, along with 26 home runs, 84 RBIs, two stolen bases and 72 runs scored.

As long as he stays healthy all season, Walker should finish inside the top-10 fantasy first basemen - he took 15th last season. His ADP seems like pretty good value, with room to exceed expectations. You wouldn't need to take another fantasy 1B if you land Walker, but having a backup option for the nearly 34-year-old seems like a wise move.

Paredes played for the Cubs and Rays last season, then was moved to the Astros this offseason.

In 153 games last season, Paredes had a .238 average and .346 OBP. He added 19 homers, 80 RBIs, one stolen base and 64 runs scored.

Landing with Houston is a boost to his fantasy outlook for sure, especially if he hits second like FanGraphs is projecting. He should have first and third base eligibility, and if he does, then I'm fine taking him around his ADP. I'd grab a second fantasy third baseman in case Paredes doesn't work out in Houston, or gets hurt.

Pena had one of his better seasons in his third go round in 2024.

In 157 games, Pena had a .266 average and .308 OBP. He added 15 homers, 70 RBIs, 20 stolen bases and 78 runs scored.

Those are pretty well-rounded numbers, so I'm a bit surprised to see his ADP where it is. He is at a stacked fantasy position, but I see a ton of value in getting Pena late in a standard league draft.

If you missed on the top options and wanted an everyday option, Pena could be your guy. I'd prefer him as a secondary option that you could start at an extra infield or utility spot though.

Other Starting Options

Going back to FanGraphs, Chas McCormick, Brendan Rodgers and Jake Meyers are three more projected starters we should talk about. Victor Caratini is the backup catcher, and can also play first. Jon Singleton is another first base option, while Mauricio Dubon and Ben Gamel are other projected bench bats. Pedro Leon and Taylor Trammell are more outfield options, but are injured right now.

McCormick had a .211 average and .271 OBP across 94 games last season. He has a career .250 average and .324 OBP, so there's some bounceback potential with him. McCormick is just a deep-league option to kick off the season though.

Rodgers is a sneaky good option projected to hit near the bottom of the order. In 135 games with Colorado last season, he hit .267 and got on at a .314 clip. He also had 13 homers, 54 RBIs, one stolen base and 67 runs scored.

We'll see if he can keep those numbers up when not spending half his games in Colorado, but if he can, Rodgers could be a standard league option for stretches. He's a deep-league option to open the season.

In 148 games last season, Meyers had a .219 average, .286 OBP, 13 homers, 61 RBIs, 11 stolen bases and 51 runs scored. He's probably going to top out as a deep-league option as his career marks are pretty similar.

Caratini would need an injury to Diaz, Walker or Alvarez to be a good fantasy asset. Singleton could also take over for Walker or Alvarez when they are out or injured. Dubon and Gamel could get enough starts if others get injured, but I don't see either being more than deep-league options. Dubon is still a fantasy option because he is eligible at several positions.

Leon or Trammell could replace Gamel on the bench when they are healthy. An outfielder injury would need to occur for either to be big fantasy assets this season though.

Top Prospects

Cam Smith is the only top-100 prospect for Houston, ranking 58th.

Smith has a 2026 ETA . In his first 32 minor league games last season, he had a .313 average and .396 OBP, along with seven homers, 24 RBIs, two stolen bases, 20 runs scored, 15 walks and 24 strikeouts.

Brice Matthews, Jacob Melton, Zach Dezenzo, Shay Whitcomb and Leon are other top-30 prospects of the team who could help out this season.

Matthews is a shortstop and third baseman who has played 114 minor league games. He has a .248 average and .378 OBP, along with 19 homers, 55 RBIs, 50 stolen bases, 74 runs scored, 71 walks and 149 strikeouts.

Melton is an outfielder who has 227 minor league games under his belt. He has a .250 average, .325 OBP, 42 homers, 122 RBIs, 81 stolen bases, 153 runs scored, 94 walks and 229 strikeouts so far.

Dezenzo got in 19 MLB games last season, hitting .242 and posting a .277 OBP. He had two homers, eight RBIs, no stolen bases, five runs scored, three walks and 22 strikeouts. He can play first and third base.

Whitcomb played 20 MLB games last season, tallying a .220 average, .304 OBP, no homers, five RBIs, no stolen bases, one run scored, five walks and eight strikeouts. He can play the infield or outfield.

Collin Price, Miguel Palma, Will Bush, Tommy Sacco Jr. and Kenedy Corona are some other hitters age 25 or below who are in big league camp with the team this spring.