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The Crawfish Boxes

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Astros vs. Mets 3/1/2026 Spring Training Game Thread

The Astros (1-5-2) visit Port St. Lucie today to take on the New York Mets (4-3-1) at Clover Park. RHP Jason Alexander will start for the Astros vs. Mets RHP Clay Holmes. Today is the third game of six scheduled meetings between the Astros and Mets this Spring. The Astros are 0-1-1 thus far vs. […]

Astros Lance McCullers Jr. and the 8 Pitches of Hope

His first Grapefruit League appearance of 2026 didn’t last long, but it was certainly encouraging. Maybe there’s still a little gas left in the tank after all. Friday’s 2026 Grapefruit League debut by Lance McCullers Jr. may not have seemed like much, but it was huge. For Lance, for the Astros, for fans who may […]

Astros vs. Pirates 2/28/2026 Spring Training Game Thread

3B Isaac Paredes will make his 2026 Grapefruit League debut today. The Houston Astros (1-4-2) welcome the Pittsburgh Pirates (6-2) to West Palm Beach. RHP Mike Burrows will make his second start and appearance of the Spring as he takes on Buccos RHP Braxton Ashcraft. RHP Mike Burrows takes on his former club with today’s […]

Astros vs. Nationals 2/27/2026 Spring Training Game Thread

Jose Altuve and Lance McCullers Jr. will each make their Grapefruit League debuts today. The Houston Astros (1-4-1) take on the Washington Nationals (4-2-1) in Grapefruit League action. RHP Lance McCullers Jr. is set to make his 2026 Grapefruit League debut. He made his return to the mound in 2025 after missing the entire 2023-24 […]

Can the Astros Offense Be Good Enough to Win the West?

The team has made no significant new investment into an offense that was 21st in MLB last season. While there has been an obvious and understandable focus on pitching this offseason for the Houston Astros after being devastated by pitching injuries in 2025, it shouldn’t be ignored that this was not a good offensive team […]

Astros (SS) vs Cardinals 2/26/2026 Spring Training Game Thread

The Houston Astros travel to Jupiter, FL to take on the St. Louis Cardinals. The Astros will be playing a split squad game. Peter Lambert gets the start for Houston. This is his first start of the spring and his second appearance. In his first appearance, he pitched one scoreless inning while allowing 2 hits […]

Mets vs. Astros (SS) 2/26/2026 Spring Training Game Thread

The Houston Astros (1-2-1) host the New York Mets (2-2-1) in a split squad game today in Palm Beach, FL. Tatsuya Imai makes his first appearance of the spring in this game. Imai was the Astros top free agent signing of the offseason and currently projects as their third starter while offering number 2 starter […]

Astros Spring Prospect Profiles: Miguel Ullola

Over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be rolling out a series of prospect previews for Spring Training. This week we looking at an arm that could help in 2026: Miguel Ullola Ullola is the latest in a long line of international arms developed by the Astros that also signed for a pretty small bonus. […]

In The Lab: Astros Third Base Offense

We continue our trip throughout the diamond with a stop at the hot corner. Officially, the Astros are likely to have three players on the final 26 man roster that can play third base. However, we profiled Isaac Paredes at first base since he is likely to get more time there and Nick Allen will […]

Astros vs. Marlins 2/25/2026 Spring Training Game Thread

RHP Hunter Brown, who was announced by Joe Espada as the Astros Opening Day starter, will make his Spring debut today. In 2025, Brown established himself as one of the top starters in the Majors, going 12-9 in 31 starts with a 2.43 ERA with 206 strikeouts in 185.1 innings of work. Among AL starters, […]

Astros’ Hader Likely to Miss Opening Day

Hader is still throwing off flat ground as he recovers from a sprained shoulder capsule and biceps tendinitis. This is not worst case scenario, but the back of the Astros bullpen just took another step closer to it. Closer Josh Hader is still only throwing off flat ground, and is unlikely to be ready for […]

Catch Me If You Can, Astros Edition

The Astros Don’t Have to Fix Backup Catcher First, But They Absolutely Have to Fix It Houston Astros fans have spent the first stretch of spring training circling the obvious needs. A left-handed bat in the outfield. Another dependable arm for the rotation. Speculation around Isaac Paredes and potential roster reshuffling. Those conversations are fair. They’re also missing something. The […]

Astros vs. Mets Spring Training Game Thread

The Houston Astros will return from an off day Monday to take on the New York Mets in another Grapefruit League matchup. The Astros dropped their first two spring matchups, falling to the Nationals and the Cardinals. Right-hander Jason Alexander will make his spring debut for Houston in Tuesday’s matchup. Righty Jack Wenninger will get […]

Astros Spring Prospect Profiles: Zach Cole

Over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be rolling out a series of prospect previews for Spring Training. This week we look at one possibly one of the highest potential players in the system: Zach Cole Zach Cole was selected by the Astros in the 10th round of the 2022 draft after hitting .361 as […]

In The Lab: Astros Second Base Offense

This one is going to be a longer piece because I am adding some additional information. However, I think it is crucial information, so I hope everyone stays until the end. Officially, the Astros have three primary second basemen in camp. There might only be one on the final roster because Nick Allen can play […]

Let’s Overreact to Astros First Spring Training Game

The Astros opened their spring training schedule with a 2-1 loss to the Nationals on Saturday afternoon in West Palm Beach. While no veterans were in action, Joe Espada’s lineup was littered with guys fighting to make the Opening Day roster, making the first half of the game somewhat interesting. Here are some notes and […]

Astros Spring Prospect Profiles: AJ Blubaugh

Over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be rolling out a series of prospect previews for Spring Training. This week we look at one of the top arms: AJ Blubaugh. Blubaugh was selected in the seventh round of the 2022 draft out of the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee after a solid, albeit limited, college career. In […]

In The Lab: Looking at First Base Offense

These articles are a part of a series and are designed to be consumed as an entire series, but I know we get new readers every day. So, we will reset the conversation to the beginning. This series is about looking at specific underlying numbers to get a handle on what hitters might do in […]

The 5 Most Irreplaceable Astros

Nothing can derail a season like a rash of injuries — just ask the 2025 Astros.No team used the injured list more. Yordan Alvarez was limited to 48 games, Isaac Paredes missed 60 games, and Jeremy Peña and Jake Meyers also were out significant time. On the mound, the Astros used 33 different pitchers (plus […]

Did Astros Miss the Boat in Trade Market?

Team could be looking at an infield logjam that could compromise their outfield depth. In the aftermath of Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reporting that the Astros could be looking at OF Michael Conforto as a left-handed hitting option in the outfield primarily because they are finding their trade options dwindling, it is impossible not to […]

In The Lab: Looking at Astros Catcher Offense

In one of my first editions of the lab, I mentioned something I called “magical thinking.” I think the kids call it wishcasting but I’m not necessarily down on the lingo. The idea behind magical thinking is that the person practicing it thinks of the most positive result from a particular player or situation and […]

Astros Spring Prospect Profiles: Brice Matthews

Over the next couple of weeks, I’ll be rolling out a series of prospect previews for Spring Training. We begin with arguably the Astros’ top prospect in camp this year: Brice Matthews. Brice Matthews, a Houston native and Atascocita High School graduate, went on to play college baseball at Nebraska. After solid freshman and sophomore […]

Hey Astros, Don’t Trade Parades!

Opinion: Stop Trying to Trade Isaac Paredes. The Astros Need Him. There, I said it. I don’t want the Houston Astros to trade Isaac Paredes. And every time I hear another expert, another national analyst, or even another Astros fan casually toss his name into trade proposals like he’s some expendable spare part, it makes […]

In The Lab: What Can the Astros Expect From Joey Loperfido?

Analysis is a tricky game and any good analyst should acknowledge as many factors as possible. We saw earlier that Dana Brown said the Astros were not done. So, any full analysis of the Jesus Sanchez for Joey Loperfido trade would have to include what the Astros do beyond that. Good analysis would also involve […]

Could Astros Listen to Yordan, Keep Paredes?

There’s only one real way to make the current situation work, and that involves the Astros giving in to Yordan Alvarez’ desires. We have reached a point that seemed impossible to navigate all offseason. The Houston Astros have fully opened Spring Training and both Isaac Paredes and Christian Walker are still on the team. It […]