Carlos Correa, Jose Altuve fuel an explosive Astros offense

As the 2017 fantasy baseball season approaches, we take a look at the biggest news and story lines from each club. We'll feature one team each weekday ... and we'll finish up on Feb. 15, the first day all teams will have their pitchers and catchers on the field for workouts.

The Houston Astros took a step backwards last season after making the playoffs in 2015 for the first time in a decade. With an excellent young core -- and several impact additions this offseason -- the Astros have taken a full-throttle approach to reaching that lofty goal once again. But do they have enough pitching?

2016 at a glance

Record: 84-78 (3rd in AL West)
Hitting: 15th (4.47 R/G)
Pitching: 11th (4.06 ERA)

Arrivals

OF Carlos Beltran
C Brian McCann
OF Josh Reddick
OF Nori Aoki
SP Charlie Morton

Interestingly, the four position players the Astros have acquired (so far) this offseason all hit left-handed (Beltran is a switch-hitter, but he was considerably better last year from the left side). A coincidence? Or just an effort to get stronger on the more common side of the platoon? The top of the order is rock-solid, but there's a pretty good chance the Astros will go the platoon route with most spots in the bottom half.

Morton has one of the highest ground-ball rates among major-league starters, which should play well at hitter-friendly Minute Maid Park, but he's 33 and coming off a hamstring injury that limited him to just four starts in 2016.

Players to watch

2B Jose Altuve
SS Carlos Correa
OF George Springer
SP Dallas Keuchel

Altuve added power to his repertoire last season and is one of the game's few true five-category stars. A top-3 overall pick.

Correa put up excellent stats (.274, 20 HR, 96 RBI, 13 SB), but they somehow came as a disappointment after his incredible rookie season -- despite a 30 point increase in BABIP. Was his .233 isolated power in 2015 a fluke? (It was .177 last year. ) A rebound in HR/FB rate could get him back in the elite territory.

Springer settled into the leadoff spot and finished sixth in the majors with 116 runs scored. He also hit 29 homers. One area for improvement is in the running game, where he was just 9-for-19 in steal attempts.

Keuchel won the AL Cy Young Award in 2015, but saw his ERA jump by more than two runs per game last season. He still gets a ton of ground balls, but an increased walk rate -- and the loss of more than 1 mph off his average fastball velocity -- are troublesome signs.

Sleepers

SP Lance McCullers
3B Alex Bregman

Elbow and shoulder injuries limited McCullers to 14 starts and 81 innings in 2016. However, his curveball ranked alongside Corey Kluber's as the best in the game (21.5 runs above average, according to Fangraphs). He should be healthy when camp opens, and fantasy owners are extremely anxious to see what he can do in a full season.

USA TODAY Sports' Minor League Player of the Year, Bregman shook off a 2-for-42 start to his MLB career and ended up hitting .264 with eight homers and 34 RBI in 201 at-bats.

Bullpen

Closer: Ken Giles
Next: Luke Gregerson/Will Harris

You can't completely discount Giles' awful April, but if you do ... you get a dominant reliever who held batters to a .210/.288/.348 slash line with 88 strikeouts in 55 2/3 innings (14.2 K/9).

Harris and Gregerson also tallied double-digit saves in 2016, which could make the bullpen look ripe for a committee. Or perhaps more likely ... a sturdy bridge to Giles getting 30+ saves.

Position battles

Platoons, platoons all around. Against left-handed pitchers, Evan Gattis can catch, with Teoscar Hernandez and Jake Marisnick joining the outfield. 1B/3B Marwin Gonzalez is a valuable utilityman who could easily see another 400 at-bats anywhere around the infield or in left field. (He just missed fantasy eligibility in the outfield by one game. He played 19 there last season.)

Yulieski Gurriel looks like the front-runner at first base, but it's a new position for him, so don't expect a full season from him. However, he could slide over to third and bump Bregman to the outfield.

Prospects

SP Joe Musgrove
1B A.J. Reed

Morton's arrival solidifies the starting rotation, but if injuries or ineffectiveness become issues, Musgrove is very close to being ready to step in.

With his big-time power numbers, Reed was close to the top of every prospect list last spring. But he struggled mightily (.164) when he got the call to Houston. His star may have dimmed, but he's still only 23. Making consistent contact will be the key.

Projected batting order

1. CF George Springer
2. 2B Jose Altuve
3. SS Carlos Correa
4. DH Carlos Beltran
5. C Brian McCann*
6. 3B Alex Bregman
7. RF Josh Reddick
8. 1B Yulieski Gurriel
9. LF Nori Aoki^

* Platoon with Evan Gattis
^ Platoon with Teoscar Hernandez

Projected rotation

1. LHP Dallas Keuchel
2. RHP Collin McHugh
3. RHP Lance McCullers
4. RHP Mike Fiers
5. RHP Charlie Morton