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Tatsuya Imai said a small adjustment has helped him find more velocity this spring: SP Cristian Javier will be away from the team for a few days due to a personal matter: Brian McTaggart of MLB.com identifies 5 players he thinks have a good shot to make the Opening Day roster Lance McCullers Jr. on […]
about 8 hours ago | 0 reads
Hader has missed most of Spring Training with biceps tendinitis. Houston Astros closer Josh Hader will begin the season on IL, according to a report by Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Hader, who missed the last 2 months on the 2025 season with a shoulder capsule strain, experienced biceps tendinitis while rehabbing and was shut down. […]
about 14 hours ago | 0 reads
The Houston Astros (6-8-3) travel to Jupiter, FL to take on the Miami Marlins (6-9-1). RHP Tatsuya Imai will be on the mound for the Astros, opposite RHP Max Meyer for the Marlins. TODAY’S STARTER: RHP Tatsuya Imai is set to make his third start of the Grapefruit League. In his last start on March […]
about 14 hours ago | 0 reads
Every analyst has their favorite metrics and mine are usually the ones that can be used for pitchers and hitters. Some of the numbers point more to luck and some of them are underlying numbers that can help explain why someone is good or not. When we use those kinds of reciprocal numbers then what […]
about 17 hours ago | 0 reads
Things may be progressing well for Astros closer Josh Hader, according to this update from Brian McTaggart: While it should still be considered unlikely Hader would be ready Opening Day, this update does indicate that if Hader has to start the season on IL, he could potentially only miss the minimum required time. Having Hader […]
1 day ago | 0 reads
The Houston Astros (5-8-3) host the Baltimore Orioles (7-8-2) in Grapefruit League play. RHP Lance McCullers Jr. is set to start for the Astros, with RHP Levi Wells starting for the Orioles. TODAY’S STARTER: This is Lance McCullers Jr.’s second appearance of the spring. He previously pitched one shutout inning on Feb 27 vs. the […]
1 day ago | 0 reads
There’s some interesting decisions that have to be made. Where could the Astros be leaning as of today? This article updates my previous roster projection: https://www.crawfishboxes.com/houston-astros-analysis/72007/astros-2026-roster-and-depth-chart-projections-as-of-february-1 Let’s start with the rotation: Now, Arrighetti hasn’t been sharp, and his velocity hasn’t been consistent. He’s also only pitched twice, so there’s time. Weiss went 2.1 IP in […]
2 days ago | 3 reads
At some point, the Houston Astros need to stop overthinking this and simply accept reality. Yordan Alvarez can play left field. And more importantly, if the Astros are serious about maximizing their championship window, they should let him. For years now, the organization has treated Alvarez with extreme caution defensively. The reasoning is obvious: he’s […]
3 days ago | 1 read
The Houston Astros (4-8-3) host the St. Louis Cardinals (8-5-1) in Grapefruit League play. RHP Cristian Javier will get the start for the Astros opposite RHP Richard Fitts for the Cardinals. TODAY’S STARTER: RHP Cristian Javier is set to make his second start of the Spring and his first Grapefruit League start this year. He […]
3 days ago | 2 reads
Baseball season is back, and spring training is in full swing. With that, there has been opportunities for prospects to play with the Major League club and show what they can do. While it’s still early, below are a few prospects that have stood out so far in Spring Training. Hitter – Walker Janek Janek was […]
3 days ago | 2 reads
We finally get to the end of the positions on the hitting side of the equation. Keep in mind, we are trying to include all of the relevant candidates to be on the opening day roster. Fans and analysts alike sometimes forget the dimension of time. In other words, what the roster looks like on […]
3 days ago | 1 read
As we hit the midpoint of Spring Training, here are some new developments and comments from Joe Espada on the current state of the Astros: SS Jeremy Pena is fielding grounders, but not throwing yet: RHP Jason Alexander has been optioned to minor league camp. CL Josh Hader will throw a bullpen soon. 2B Brice […]
4 days ago | 0 reads
The Houston Astros (4-7-3) take on the Washington Nationals (7-4-3) in Grapefruit League play. RHP Hunter Brown is set to make his third start of the Spring, with LHP Andrew Alvarez starting for the Nationals. BROTHER BROWN: RHP Hunter Brown, who is making his third start this Spring, established himself as one of the top […]
4 days ago | 2 reads
As Patrick so ably reported to you yesterday, the Houston Astros have agreed to a minor league contract with Christian Vazquez with an invitation to Spring Training. Fortunately, he has been working out with team Puerto Rico, so he will not be coming in completely cold and presumably could reasonably build up enough plate appearances […]
4 days ago | 1 read
Houston brings back a member of it’s 2022 World Series Champion team to back up Yainer Diaz. The Houston Astros finally addressed their backup catcher situation today, bringing back catcher Christian Vazquez on a minor league deal. Vazquez was a member of the Astros’ 2022 World Championship team, acquired at the deadline to boost catcher […]
5 days ago | 4 reads
The Houston Astros (3-7-3) host the Miami Marlins (6-6) in Grapefruit League play. RHP Jason Alexander will make his third start of the Spring opposite RHP Chris Paddack for the Marlins. Isaac Paredes will make his first appearance at second base this spring. TODAY’S STARTER: Today will be the third start of the Spring for […]
5 days ago | 4 reads
On Thursday, the Astros released their roster for the Spring Breakout game, which will be played on March 19. The Spring Breakout event showcases some of the top young talent from each organization’s farm system. This year’s roster is highlighted by several of the Astros’ top prospects, along with a few players fans may be […]
6 days ago | 2 reads
The Houston Astros (2-7-3) host the Washington Nationals (6-3-3) in Grapefruit League play. RHP Mike Burrows will be on the mound for the Astros for the third time this Spring, RHP Cade Cavalli will start for the Nationals. TODAY’S STARTER: RHP Mike Burrows has made two appearances in the Grapefruit League this Spring. He’s combined […]
6 days ago | 2 reads
As we pass through the diamond, I should note that I have been playing a little footloose and fancy free with the outfield distinctions. In point of fact, just about every outfielder outside of Yordan Alvarez is capable of playing all three spots and most of them likely will play multiple positions. So, who I […]
6 days ago | 3 reads
The Houston Astros (2-6-3) travel to Jupiter, FL to take on the Miami Marlins (4-6). RHP Tatsuya Imai is set to make his second start of the Spring and will be opposed by 2022 NL Cy Young Award winner RHP Sandy Alcantara. ABOUT IMAI: In January, the Astros signed free agent RHP Tatsuya Imai to […]
7 days ago | 3 reads
With the 2026 season opener three weeks away, most of the Astros’ Opening Day 26-man roster is coming into focus. A few spots, however, remain unsettled. Here’s my first pass at how things could shake out: Starting pitchers: Hunter Brown, Christian Javier, Tatsuya Imai, Mike Burrows, Spencer Arrighetti, Lance McCullers Jr Also considered: Colton Gordon, AJ Blubaugh […]
7 days ago | 3 reads
There’s a new top prospect in the organization entering 2026, and five new entrants to the list. MLB.com has published their new Astros Top 30 Prospects list for 2026. OF Kevin Alvarez is the Astros new top prospect. See the full updated list below: https://www.mlb.com/milb/prospects/astros There are quite a lot of changes from the list […]
8 days ago | 2 reads
The Houston Astros (1-6-3) travel to Sarasota to take on the Baltimore Orioles (5-4-1) in Grapefruit League action. LHP Colton Gordon will make his third appearance of the Spring for the Astros, while RHP Shane Baz will take the mound for the Orioles. TODAY’S STARTER: LHP Colton Gordon is coming off a productive rookie season, […]
8 days ago | 3 reads
Let’s start off by being honest. Left field is a bit of a quagmire for the Astros as they aren’t sure if Yordan Alvarez will get a majority of the starts out there or if they can follow through with their plan to DH him. I should not that in the Hall of Fame Index […]
8 days ago | 1 read
The Astros will host Team Venezuela for an exhibition this evening at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches ahead of this year’s World Baseball Classic. RHP Cristian Javier is set to make his Spring debut while Team Venezuela will start SEA RHP Eduard Bazardo, who’s been scoreless through two appearances (1.1 IP) this Spring. Isaac Paredes will […]
8 days ago | 3 reads