WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — On peculiar ground stood José Altuve, with grass, not dirt, nestled beneath his size-8.5, white New Balance cleats.
As the mid-morning Florida sun began to click on its penetrating heat, Houston’s diminutive baseball talisman scampered through a series of outfield drills on Field No. 2 at the Astros’ spring training complex. He appeared eager, relaxed, energized by the newness of the activity, yet his movements carried an unmistakable sense of unfamiliarity.
The foreignness of it all was understandable. The day before — Houston’s first official full-squad workout — was Altuve’s first major public showing in left field.