Analyzing Poor Grade Astros Received in Jesus Sanchez Trade

It has been a struggle in the second half for the Houston Astros, who have started to see their lead in the American League West shrink.

At the deadline, the AL West was one of the most active in terms of making improvements. Currently, it is a three-horse race between the Astros, Seattle Mariners and Texas Rangers.

All three had different needs, but all of them improved by the deadline. This is going to be a fun race in the second half.

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After seeing the Mariners start to strike first with the additions of Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez, Houston likely knew that they had to improve as well before the deadline came to a close.

Coming into July 31, the top needs for the Astros were to add a middle-of-the-rotation starter and some help for their lineup. Due to Isaac Paredes and Yordan Alvarez both being out, the clear need was for some offensive help.

That certainly ended up being the focus for the team, with Houston adding multiple offensive players.

Bradford Doolittle of ESPN recently wrote about the Astros acquiring Jesus Sanchez from the Miami Marlins in exchange for three prospects. Overall, he gave deal a grade of a ‘C-'

“More than anything, the addition of Sanchez means we aren't likely to see much more, if any, of Jose Altuve playing left field. We'll probably also see much less of Cooper Hummel and his career 55 OPS+. Sanchez is a second-division, platoon-level outfielder.”

The 27-year-old outfielder has been a productive player for the Marlins in 2025. With Miami, he slashed .259/.323/.421, including 10 home runs and 36 RBI.

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Outfield was certainly a need for Houston, and Sanchez will likely be getting a good amount of playing time in left field, with Jose Altuve transitioning back to second base when the dust settles from all of the injuries.

Even though it has been a strong season for the 27-year-old, much of his damage has come against right-handed pitching. He has slashed .286/.350/.467 with nine home runs and 32 RBI.

The numbers against southpaws aren’t very impressive, with Sanchez slashing .130/.190/.204. Once the team starts to get healthy, the slugger should be sliding into a platoon role.

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He simply hasn’t been good against left-handed pitchers, and Houston would be wise to have him avoid them at all costs.

Even though the numbers are good, giving up so much for essentially a platoon player is a steep price to pay for the Astros. However, once the team gets to full strength, they will have some talented depth to be able to hopefully have an improved offense.

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