Jose Altuve asked manager Joe Espada to move him out of the leadoff spot and into the second hole for the Houston Astros. The reason? He wanted more time to get to the dugout from left field. Altuve is playing left for the first time in his career after spending his first 14 MLB seasons at second base.

With the Houston Astros offense struggling, Jose Altuve slotted second in their batting order Monday for the first time since 2023, a move aimed at sparking both the lineup and Altuve. Altuve has primarily led off since 2021,

Houston is a solid-but-unspectacular 14-13 on the season and 1.5 games back of the Seattle Mariners in the early American League West standings. Having Altuve return to his normal form is the best way to close that gap, and he showed what he was capable of from a new spot in the lineup Monday.