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One of the best young prospects in the Houston Astros' farm system is Shay Whitcomb. The 26-year-old had a cup of coffee in the big leagues last season, but failed to land on the Astros Opening Day roster out of spring training. Based on his torrid start to the season at Triple-A Sugar Land, however, it won't be long before he forces the Astros' hand. Whitcomb has officially put Brendan Rodgers on notice.
Rodgers is just not getting it done. The Astros' infielder has been a strikeout machine the past few weeks, and that problem been amplified over his last seven games. During that stretch, Rodgers is hitting .174/.208/.348 with a 52% strikeout rate. The Astros cannot continue to run Rodgers out on a regular basis, and having seen Joe Espada's lineups the past few days, it appears reality has already begun to set in.
Astros roster move feels inevitable as Shay Whitcomb keeps outshining Brendan Rodgers
With Mauricio Dubón and even Jose Altuve on the roster, there's no immediacy would require Houston to make a move at the moment. Whitcomb, however, has earned a call-up and should be rewarded. He's hitting .277/.362/.613 with a 148 wRC+ and 10.7 walk rate. He's also striking out only 23.2% of the time, compared to Rodgers whose strikeout rate is an inexcusable 37.1%.
Rodgers signed a minor-league deal with Houston this past offseason that turned into a major-league pact after being added to the Astros Opening Day roster. Both Rodgers and Luis Guillorme were seen as insurance plans at second base, especially as Houston attempted to transition Altuve from the infield dirt to the outfield grass.
With that plan all but final now — Altuve has started just seven games at second base and 24 in left field — it would seem that Houston can now look to upgrade the infield. Of course Dubón can still field the position, but he has a meager .589 OPS and 68 wRC+ this season. Neither he, nor Rodgers, has done much of anything this season to maintain a spot in the everyday lineup.
Whitcomb, on the other hand, has done everything asked of him and more. It's time for the Astros to reward their young infielder, and see if his second attempt to stick in the big leagues works better than his initial endeavor last season.