The Houston Astros scheduled right-handed pitching prospect Hunter Brown for their Wednesday contest against the Boston Red Sox, per Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle. Brown will be just the second pitching prospect to start a Grapefruit League game this spring for Houston, as Forrest Whitley is scheduled to start Monday.
The consensus No. 1 prospect in Houston’s system, Brown, made seven Major League appearances last season. The righty sported a 0.89 ERA through his 20.1 innings of work, striking out 22 batters and issuing seven walks. Although his strikeout rate dropped with the promotion, Brown still offered reliable in innings as a starter and out of the bullpen.
Brown started two Grapefruit League games last year, marking his only two Major League spring training appearances of 2022. The 2019 fifth-round pick allowed one run in 5.2 innings pitched, before he took the Pacific Coast League by storm. For Triple-A Sugar Land, Brown led the league for the majority of the year in ERA (2.55) and strikeouts (134). He will graduate from prospect status after 30 more innings or 24 games.
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