The Astros will not bring back manager Joe Espada. They announced Tuesday that they will not renew his contract, which was set to expire at the end of the month, according to MLB Trade Rumors' Steve Adams. Espada managed Houston from 2024 to 2026 and will become a free agent. Adams also reports that there will be other staff changes. Bench coach Omar Lopez will not be back in that role. The feed summary cuts off before it says what Lopez's future is or who else is affected.
The timing is the notable part. Yahoo Sports noted that the news came one day after a report that Espada had been granted permission to interview for the Mariners manager role. Of the sources we have, only Yahoo links the two events. Nothing we have says whether the interview request influenced Houston's decision, so we can't say how the two are connected. Outlets also describe the move differently. MLB.com and Sportsnet say the Astros "part ways" with him. The r/baseball post, which cites a Cormier report, says he was "dismissed." MLB Trade Rumors' account is a non-renewal at contract expiry.
Our data lists Dan Wilson as Seattle's 2026 manager, so we can't confirm from our own tables that the job is open. Seattle's season gives context for a change. The Mariners finished 76-86, third in the AL West and 5.0 games behind Houston. Their last three games were a 7-5 loss and then wins of 8-4 and 7-3, all against the Angels.
Houston's results were not bad enough to make this look like a fire-the-manager year. The Astros finished 81-81 and are listed first in the AL West, a game ahead of Texas at 80-82. They did that with a run differential of minus 32, which is below even. They won their last two games at the Athletics, 13-2 on Sept. 26 and 9-0 on Sept. 27, and then lost 7-3 to the White Sox on Sept. 30.
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Strk | Diff |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 81 | 81 | .500 | – | W2 | -32 | |
| 80 | 82 | .494 | 1.0 | L1 | -46 | |
| 76 | 86 | .469 | 5.0 | W2 | -58 | |
| 64 | 98 | .395 | 17.0 | L2 | -238 | |
| 62 | 100 | .383 | 19.0 | L2 | -97 |
Our archive has only Espada's 2026 season as Astros manager and keeps no career managerial record for him, so we can't put a win-loss number on his three years in Houston.
The next steps are for Espada's contract to expire at the end of the month and for Houston to name a replacement and settle the rest of its staff. Neither the Astros nor the outlets have given a timeline for a successor. Whether Espada's interview with Seattle goes ahead is also not addressed in the reporting we have.
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