Bregman will start at shortstop in Friday's Grapefruit League opener, Hunter Atkins of the Houston Chronicle reports.

EDGE Analysis

Manager A.J. Hinch said Bregman, who was Houston's primary third baseman last season, will be moved around the diamond this season. Bregman will get starts at shortstop and see some time at second base. Hinch appears determined to build a flexible unit after he announced Tuesday that he plans to have first baseman Yulieski Gurriel play multiple infield positions in 2018. Shortstop is nothing new to Bregman, who played 30 games at the position last season and was his natural position coming up the ranks.

Bregman estimated that he reduced his body fat from roughly 14 percent to between eight and 10 percent during the offseason through improved dieting and training, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic Houston reports.

EDGE Analysis

Though the 5-foot-10 Bregman said he still checks in roughly around the 200 pounds he weighed a season ago, a before-and-after photograph posted on Twitter last week by Dynamic Sports Training, the Houston-based facility where he trained this offseason, reveals an improved physique for the infielder. Bregman is hopeful that his offseason work to strengthen his core will translate to a full season of power production, something that didn't really show up for the 23-year-old until the second half of 2017. After the All-Star break, Bregman slashed .315/.367/.539 and came up clutch in the postseason, producing four homers off three of the game's top pitchers -- Chris Sale, Clayton Kershaw and Kenley Jansen -- to help lead the Astros to their first World Series title. If his offseason training regimen is any indication, Bregman looks primed to carry his momentum into 2018 and should be better equipped to avoid another early-season lull without the World Baseball Classic on the docket this spring.

Bregman isn't in the lineup Sunday against Boston.

EDGE Analysis

Over the last seven games, Bregman has gone 12-for-31 (.387) with three home runs and 11 RBI. His recent surge at the plate is coming at the right time as Houston is set to begin postseason play Thursday against the Red Sox. J.D. Davis will start at the hot corner in Bregman's place Sunday.

Bregman went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run in Friday's victory over the Red Sox.

EDGE Analysis

The young infielder provided all the offense for Houston in this one, as his RBI single in the third and his two-run shot in the fifth were enough to outpace the stymied Red Sox offense. Bregman has a 1.275 OPS during his current seven-game hit streak and now holds a .287/.355/.480 slash line on the season.

Bregman went 1-for-5 with a two-run, homer, a walk and another run scored in Thursday's 12-2 win at Boston.

EDGE Analysis

Bregman made it 5-0 with a two-run shot in the second inning. He came into this game slashing .336/.410/.562 against left-handed pitching, so it's not surprising the 2015 second overall pick was able to find success against Boston southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez. Bregman's been productive down the stretch with seven runs scored and eight RBI in his past six games.

Bregman went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run in Sunday's 7-5 loss to the Angels.

EDGE Analysis

Bregman had gone 27 games without a home run before hitting his 17th blast of the season Sunday. He had been a slugging machine for one 30-game stretch after the All-Star break, looking like a shoe-in to reach 20 homers, but has fallen off during the month of September. Still, he rebounded nicely after a shaky first half to post respectable numbers at a corner infield position. As the 23-year-old former shortstop adds to his frame, we expect to see more power over longer stretches.

Bregman will hit leadoff in Saturday's game against the Angels.

EDGE Analysis

George Springer has been in the leadoff spot for all but one game since Aug. 14, but he'll sit Saturday, giving Bregman a chance to hit atop the order for the second time this season.

Bregman is not in the lineup Wednesday against the White Sox.

EDGE Analysis

Bregman will receive a rare night off Wednesday and give way to Marwin Gonzalez at third base. Bregman, who's hit .279 with an .809 OPS over 144 games this season, figures to rejoin the lineup for Thursday's series finale against the White Sox.

Bregman went 2-for-4 with a stolen base, an RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's 5-1 win over Texas.

EDGE Analysis

The Astros foundered through the month of August, finishing up their worst month of the season with an 11-17 record, but Bregman enjoyed his best month. He slashed .345/.395/.584/.979 over 28 games. The 23-year-old, who played his 23rd game at shortstop Thursday, is closing in on a 20-20 season, sitting at 16 homers and 15 steals entering the final month of the season.

Bregman went 3-for-5 with an RBI in a blowout loss to the Rangers on Tuesday.

EDGE Analysis

Bregman's somewhat quietly been one of the league's most productive hitters for the past month; dating back to July 30, he's posted a .357/.408/.634 batting line with six homers, 22 RBI and five steals over his last 28 games. That's helped him lift his season average to .288, and while Bregman's season-long counting stats aren't all that impressive, he's clearly developing into the high-end hitter everyone expected him to become. Even worse news for the rest of the league: He's only 23 years old.