Astros say longtime second baseman Jose Altuve expected to play mostly in left this season

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — The Houston Astros are planning to play Jose Altuve mostly in left field this season, manager Joe Espada told the Houston Chronicle on Monday.

A nine-time All-Star, three-time batting champion and the 2017 AL MVP, Altuve has played all but two of his 1,767 major league games at second base. He won the Gold Glove in 2015 and in 2020 led the AL with the fewest errors there, with four.

“Right now the plan is for him to play the majority of his games in left field,” Espada said, adding that moving Altuve “back and forth is something that I am going to avoid.”

The idea of moving Altuve to left was first broached when the team was looking to keep third baseman Alex Bregman. If Bregman had returned to Houston, it might have forced newly acquired Isaac Paredes to shift to second base and Altuve to the outfield.

Altuve said at the team's FanFest in January, “Whatever I have to do for him to stay, I’m willing to do it.” Asked about how difficult it would be to switch to the outfield after never playing there before, he said with a smile, “For Alex, nothing will be difficult.”

Even after Bregman signed with Boston, moving Altuve to the outfield still made sense to the team.

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Houston Astros' Jose Altuve bats during the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Houston Astros' Jose Altuve takes a ball inside during the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Houston Astros' Jose Altuve takes up his position in left field during the third inning of a spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Houston Astros' Jose Altuve flies out during the third inning of a spring training baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals Friday, Feb. 28, 2025, in West Palm Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Chelsea was back on the coaching carousel under its American ownership on Thursday after Enzo Maresca left his position as manager following a reported deterioration in his relationship with the Premier League club’s hierarchy.

There was no immediate announcement regarding the successor to Maresca. The BBC and The Athletic reported that Liam Rosenior, who coaches French team Strasbourg — a club in the same ownership group as Chelsea, is a leading contender.

Maresca was midway through his second year in charge, having won the Conference League and Club World Cup in his first season at Chelsea.

However, the team has endured a turbulent last few months — Chelsea has won just one of its last seven Premier League matches to drop to fifth place — while Maresca publicly expressed his unhappiness at a lack of support at the club in a post-match news conference on Dec. 13, when the Italian said he had just experienced his “worst” 48 hours at Chelsea.

“With key objectives still to play for across four competitions including qualification for Champions League football," Chelsea said in a statement, "Enzo and the club believe a change gives the team the best chance of getting the season back on track.”

Chelsea has advanced to the English League Cup semifinals, where it will play Arsenal over two legs, and begins its FA Cup campaign away to second-tier Charlton on Jan. 10. In the Champions League, Chelsea is in 13th place in the 36-team league, two points off the eight automatic qualification spots with two rounds of matches left.

Chelsea is seeking a fifth full-time manager since the takeover of the club by American investors, fronted by Todd Boehly, in May 2022.

In the past 3 1/2 years, Chelsea has spent hundreds of million of pounds (dollars) in what looked from the outside a chaotic bid to sign players to refresh its squad. It now has one of the youngest and most talented squads in the Premier League, with star players including Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez and Estevao, but managers have struggled to get the players to gel as a team after so many changes.

Out of all the managers to have led Chelsea in that period — and they include Thomas Tuchel and Mauricio Pochettino, the current coaches of England and the United States, respectively — Maresca appeared to have handled the chaos the best.

Yet he reportedly didn’t feel appreciated given the tough working conditions and, according to the BBC, recently switched agents. A few weeks ago, media reports in England linked Maresca with a possible move to Manchester City — where he briefly worked under Pep Guardiola — should Guardiola eventually leave, though Maresca played the reports down.

Chelsea’s results have taken a downturn since a 3-0 win over Barcelona in the Champions League in November.

The team’s only league win in the past month was over Everton, 2-0. There have been draws with Arsenal, Newcastle and Bournemouth (twice) and losses to Leeds and Aston Villa.

Its next game is at plays second-place Man City on Sunday.

Chelsea said its achievements under Maresca “will remain an important part of the club’s recent history, and we thank him for his contributions to the club.”

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FILE - Chelsea's head coach Enzo Maresca reacts during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Atalanta and Chelsea, in Bergamo, Italy, on Dec. 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni, File)

FILE - Chelsea's head coach Enzo Maresca sits on a bench ahead of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Qarabag and Chelsea in Baku, Azerbaijan, on Nov. 5, 2025. (AP Photo, File)

Chelsea's head coach Enzo Maresca, left, gives instructions to Estevao during the English Premier League soccer match between Chelsea and Bournemouth in London, England, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2025. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)