Houston Astros: Breaking News, Rumors & Highlights

Astros Must Leave Winter Meetings with Starting Pitcher Backup Plan

The MLB Winter Meetings are getting underway this week, and the Houston Astros have a number of needs. The Winter Meetings are the time when deals or the foundation for deals are made.

Features

The Morning Bark

The Quiz of the Day

Astros Entering Unfamiliar Territory as MLB Draft Lottery Approaches

The Houston Astros are used to go going to the MLB winter meetings as a playoff team looking to reload and make another run. Well, Houston wants to reload this offseason, but it will do so as a non-playoff team for the first time since the 2016 season.

MLB News / Houston Astros on SI / December 7

Guardians Offer Intriguing Outfield Trade Candidate For Astros

The Houston Astros have some work to do this offseason to bolster their roster if they are going to return to the playoffs in 2026 after coming up short last season.

Houston Astros News / Houston Astros on SI / December 7

Astros Have Chance to Pursue Reunion with Franchise Legend in Free Agency

The Houston Astros enter the offseason coming off the official end of their run of dominance over the American League, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2016 at the end of a frustrating campaign.

Cal Raleigh News / Yardbarker Quizzes

The 'Most home runs by a switch hitter' quiz

A Major League switch hitter has hit at least 35 home runs on 35 occasions in MLB history. How many of the switch hitters to reach that milestone can you name in five minutes?

The 'MLB home run leaders since 1997' quiz

The 'Multiple MLB 30/30 seasons' quiz

The 'MLB home run record by position' quiz

Framber Valdez News / Just Baseball / December 7

Framber Valdez: Arsenal Breakdown and Contract Projection

Framber Valdez has established himself as one of the premier groundball specialists in modern baseball, driven by an arsenal built on late arm-side movement, downhill plane, and shape deception.

Athletics News / Yardbarker

25 MLB players on the brink of stardom in 2026

The stars were out in full force during the 2025 World Series. From Max Scherzer in Toronto to Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, and of course, Shohei Ohtani, in Los Angeles, there was no shortage of the game's best under the brightest lights.

Houston Astros News / Houston Astros on SI / December 6

MLB Insider Names Houston Astros Perfect Landing Spot for Twins Ace

Even though nothing is official quite yet in regards to the Houston Astros and Framber Valdez the general consensus is that their long term starter is not going to be returning for 2026.

Amos Willingham News / Houston Astros on SI / December 6

Can Amos Willingham Offer Astros Extra Help in Bullpen Next Season?

The offseason is the time of year to take chances on pitchers that could offer high reward at low risk. The Houston Astros may have made one of those moves last month.

Houston Astros News / Just Baseball / December 6

The Astros Are the Most Interesting Team to Watch This Winter

As we enter the Winter Meetings portion of the offseason calendar, movement should start to heat up as it does every year. Trades typically get to the finish line while agents, players, and teams have more interactions with each other than they do at any other point in the offseason.

Framber Valdez News / MLB on ClutchPoints / December 6

The 2 favorites to sign Framber Valdez in free agency

As the Framber Valdez free agency market develops, momentum is building around two major destinations. According to MLB free agency rumors, the Baltimore Orioles rotation and the New York Mets pitching staff are emerging as the most aggressive suitors for the 32-year-old left-hander.

Houston Astros News / Houston Astros on SI / December 5

Astros Outright Veteran Outfielder, Rookie Reliever to Clear 40-Man Spots

After missing the playoffs for the first time since 2016, the Houston Astros are getting ready for a bit of a re-tool. It won't be a full blown rebuild as there is plenty of talent with Jose Altuve, Hunter Brown, Jeremy Peña and Yordan Alvarez leading the way.

Ranger Suarez News / Crawfish Boxes / December 5

Astros Hot on Ranger Trail?

The Houston Astros are hot on the trail of free agent SP Ranger Suarez, according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com. In his recent article regarding the top 5 free agent starters on the market, Feinsand noted the Astros, Cubs and Orioles as the three teams as the most serious threats to signing Suarez away from Philadelphia.

MLB News / Yardbarker

The 25 greatest pitching seasons from the modern MLB era

America's favorite pastime has more memorable performances than any sport. As such, figuring out which pitchers had the best seasons ever is no easy task.

Houston Astros News / MLB Trade Rumors / December 5

Astros send Taylor Trammell, Logan VanWey to Triple-A

The Houston Astros have sent outfielder Taylor Trammell and right-hander Logan VanWey outright to Triple-A Sugar Land. Chandler Rome of The Athletic was among those to pass the info along.

Houston Astros News / Houston Astros on SI / December 5

Astros Have Lots To Do Before Next Week's Rapidly Approaching Winter Meetings

The Houston Astros were ridiculed by injuries last season which was arguably the reason for their second half demise which kept them out of the playoffs entirely.

Click here to get Yardbarker's Quiz of the Day emailed to you!

The 'SEC football champions since 1992' quiz

The 'Receiving leaders by NFL team' quiz

The '100-scrimmage-yard games since 2023' quiz

The 'Most passing + rushing TD games in a season' quiz

Houston Astros News / Houston Astros on SI / December 5

Astros Confirmed by Insider to Have Serious Interest in Top Free Agent Ace

The Houston Astros entered the offseason as a team who was always going to need to add to their pitching staff ,both at the back end depth wise and the top.

Ranger Suarez News / MLB Trade Rumors / December 5

Astros, Orioles among clubs interested in Ranger Suarez

Left-hander Ranger Suárez is one of the top free agent starting pitchers still available.

Houston Astros News / Crawfish Boxes / December 5

The Astros Prospect Who Made a Huge Jump in 2025 (And Why It Matters)

From 2014 to 2020, it seemed like the Astros welcomed a new impact prospect every season, and each one stepped in and made an immediate difference. From George Springer to Carlos Correa to Yordan Alvarez, those arrivals played a major role in defining the organization’s golden era.

Houston Astros News / Crawfish Boxes / December 5

In The Lab: Astros Catching BPO

We saw in our previous piece that the Astros stood in 19th in MLB with a .651 team BPO. For those that haven’t read the first piece, we noted that bases per out is a more comprehensive way of looking at offense and pitching because it includes a base running element.

MLB News / MLB on ClutchPoints / December 4

Astros quietly lands pitcher in trade with Cubs

During this off-season, the Houston Astros have been emphasizing going after pitchers. On Thursday, that continued when the Astros officially announced

Houston Astros News / Last Word On Sports / December 4

Astros New Pitching Coach Hire Has Big Shoes to Fill

The Houston Astros have had quite the turnover in their coaching staff over the offseason so far, and it started right after the 2025 season was over, much earlier than expected, with no postseason appearance. The Astros are looking to get back to the promised land, and the changes are not just on the field.

Nico Zeglin News / Crawfish Boxes / December 4

Astros Acquire Minor League Pitcher Nico Zeglin

The Houston Astros announced that they have acquired minor league pitcher Nico Zeglin from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for $250K international bonus pool money.

Houston Astros News / Houston Astros on SI / December 4

Astros Desperately Need Starting Pitchers Before Winter Meetings Begin

The Houston Astros enter the Winter Meetings with a glaring problem. Their starting rotation lacks depth and reliability, having missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

Jose Altuve News / MLB on ClutchPoints / December 4

Astros veteran Jose Altuve’s ex-teammate tells Yankees fans to give it a rest with buzzer theory

Discussions around the Houston Astros resurfaced Thursday when former Astros outfielder Josh Reddick reignited the long-running debate surrounding the Jose Altuve buzzer theory.

Houston Astros News / Larry Brown Sports / December 3

Astros linked to 1 All-Star pitcher in trade rumors

The Houston Astros may be ready to come of their hibernation. Houston is interested in a potential trade for Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan, MLB reporter Jon Heyman revealed on Wednesday during an appearance on “B/R Walkoff.” Heyman notes that the Astros would like to add another pitcher to pair with ace Hunter Brown.

Framber Valdez News / MLB on ClutchPoints / December 3

Astros targeting SP trade with expected loss of Framber Valdez

The Houston Astros missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016 last year. Even with Jose Altuve and Carlos Correa around, they could not recreate their old magic.

Jesus Sanchez News / MLB Trade Rumors / December 3

Astros have received interest in OF Jesus Sanchez

Sánchez had a very poor finish to the 2025 season, batting .199/.269/.342 over 160 plate appearances after being acquired from Miami at the trade deadline.

Houston Astros News / Just Baseball / December 2

Houston Astros 2025-2026 Offseason Wish List

The Houston Astros got a taste of unfamiliar territory in 2025, missing the postseason for the first time since 2016. A lot of faces remained from their most recent World Series title in 2022, including Jose Altuve, Yordan Alvarez, Framber Valdez, and Jeremy Pena.

Houston Astros News / Last Word On Sports / November 29

Astros Could See Another Reunion with Future HOFer in 2026

The Houston Astros clearly struggled in a number of key categories as they missed the postseason for the first time since 2016, and one of them was starting pitching. While ace Hunter Brown was terrific and one of the top nominees for the 2025 American League Cy Young Award, the rest of the rotation struggled throughout the year.