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The Houston Astros have a few weeks of spring training under their belts now and that means we should start to see their roster take shape very quickly. Generally speaking, the first waves of cuts will be taking the minor league invitees to big league camp and shifting them back to minor league camp before we start seeing the veteran NRIs get the thumbs up or thumbs down.
While sending prospects back to minor league camp isn't a huge deal in a vacuum, what DOES matter is which ones get sent as that can provide clarity as to which players are actually in the running for a big league roster spot. It usually takes a couple waves of cuts before too many conclusions can be drawn, but the Astros made a pretty significant wave of spring training roster cuts Sunday that were pretty illuminating by themselves.
The Astros assigned the following players to minor-league camp, per Joe Espada: A.J. Blubaugh, Colton Gordon, Rhett Kouba, Zach Dezenzo, Will Wagner, Miguel Palma, Jacob Melton.
— Matt Kawahara (@matthewkawahara) March 3, 2024
Astros send multiple top prospects including Melton, Dezenzo, and Wagner back to minor league camp
The spring training roster competition that these moved impacted the most was in the outfield. There was some hope that Jacob Melton or even a Will Wagner or Zach Dezenzo could impress enough at the plate to threaten Jake Meyers' roster spot, but the Astros seem to love him enough to send their top position prospects back to minor league camp. Kenedy Corona is still around and is on the 40-man roster, so hope remains. Of note, Joey Loperfido also remains in camp and it sure seems like he is getting legitimate consideration for an Opening Day roster spot.
Interesting to see who *hasn’t* been assigned to Minor camp yet - which is Joey Loperfido.
— Ari Alexander (@AriA1exander) March 3, 2024
Getting the feeling he’s getting a legit look as a bench option. https://t.co/Myk0bi1tmT
The competition on the pitching side was condensed down as well with Blubaugh, Gordon, and Kouba being trimmed from big league camp. While these guys had a puncher's chance of making waves this spring, the Astros have several vets in camp as well as Spencer Arrighetti competing in camp for that fifth rotation spot, it is now clear that Houston likes the options they have right now without having to force the issue with pitching prospects that could use some more seasoning.
This wave of spring training cuts weren't overly surprising, but were a reminder that the 2024 regular season is coming up fast. The Astros don't have a ton of decisions to make ahead of the start of the season, but the ones they do have are going to get resolved here very, very soon.