Houston Astros AM: Roster Battles Could Come Down to the Wire

Following a weekend full of games, the Houston Astros currently hold a 2-2 record early this spring, after winning their game against the Tigers, and tying the Braves by a score of 2-2 in a game they failed to record a hit. Here, we’ll look at what some of the team’s beat writers are saying about the Astros after an exciting weekend of baseball!

As Evan Drellich of Chron.com writes, the Houston Astros may have two roster spots come down to the wire, and neither is the one that Ken Rosenthal mentioned last week. Instead, A.J. Hinch (via Drellich) thinks that the utility spot, and a spot in the bullpen could come down the the final days of camp, with the final decision being determined by who has already filled out the roster.

In that same article, Drellich writes that both Jonathan Villar and Marwin Gonzalez will be operating outside of their comfort zones in the coming days, with Villar set to get some time in the outfield on Wednesday, while Gonzalez will be giving first base a shot.

Stephen Ruiz of the Orlando Sentinel has a great piece on how the Astros impending switch of spring venues will affect not only Osceola County, but the Atlanta Braves as well.

Brian McTaggart of MLB.com has a piece on Scott Feldman‘s quickened delivery. Felman says in the piece, “I don’t want to be last in the game in stolen bases [allowed] like I was last year, so I’ll try to improve on it.” Executive advisor Nolan Ryan also asked why Feldman doesn’t use a changeup, a pitch that he had in college, so this spring, Feldman is working on his changeup. Thanks, Nolan Ryan!

On Monday, Collin McHugh (3 innings), Roberto Hernandez (2 innings), Mark Appel (2 innings) and Asher Wojciechowski (2 innings) are scheduled to pitch against the offense-heavy Toronto Blue Jays.

If you’ve missed anything from the team at Climbing Tal’s Hill recently, here are some good reads:

Ten Years Later: The Journey of the Houston Astros by Andy Pondillo

Keuchel: Bold Prediction by Jason Burke

Next: Astros Prospects That Could Contribute in 2015

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