Crowe thinking about playing in winter ball

ARLINGTON -- Trevor Crowe has never played winter ball before, but the 29-year-old Astros outfielder is considering playing in Venezuela this offseason for about a month to try to get an extra 100 at-bats or so.

Crowe, who entered Tuesday hitting .232 in 155 at-bats with the Astros, has been making some adjustments with his swing and wants to keeping refining it.

"Just less movement with my lower body and keeping my head and hands in a good position to see the baseball and take a good swing," he said.

Crowe, a former first-round Draft pick, isn't sure where he'll fit in with the Astros next year. He's arbitration eligible and is out of options, so it wouldn't be surprising if he wasn't in Houston in 2014. He wouldn't hurt his cause by putting up some numbers this winter, too.

"Obviously, there are some things that come into play," Crowe said about next season. "The decision is more in their hands, you know?"