Saturday, April 11

MLB.com Astros beat reporter Brian McTaggart took questions from fans in an r/Astros AMA on Friday. The full conversation can be viewed here, but below is a sampling of the best questions and answers, lightly edited for clarity.

What is the current info on Hunter Brown’s injury? Can we realistically see him back in June-ish, or is it TBD until more details are known?

Brown has a grade 2 right shoulder strain and will be evaluated again in two weeks. That's as much as we've been told for now, but it sounds like he could be out for an extended period of time. Astros manager Joe Espada said the issue is muscular, meaning there is no evidence of ligament damage, which is good news. But because Brown is being shut down for at least a couple of weeks, he'll have to start a throwing program when he's healthy, which will take some time. Plus, the Astros certainly aren't going to rush him back. They will be very cautious with their ace so they don't lose him long-term. But how long will he be out? We don't know yet.

Was the decision to bring up J.P. France more so around availability and familiarity? His stats are nice in Triple-A, but so are a few others on the Space Cowboys’ roster.

Yes, France was throwing very well at Triple-A. In 5 1/3 scoreless innings in relief, he had eight strikeouts against one walk and had allowed two hits. Plus, he threw the ball very well at the end of Spring Training. His role with the Astros will be as a reliever capable of throwing multiple innings. He has neutral lefty-righty splits, and the teams the Astros will face the next two weeks are primarily left-handed dominant. Espada needs arms in the bullpen that can give multiple innings.

Hi, Brian, I just want to know what you personally think Dana Brown's strong suits are as a GM?

Brown comes from a scouting background, and that has been his strength so far with the Astros. He's only got three Drafts under his belt with the Astros, but Brice Matthews -- his first pick as GM of the Astros -- has reached the big leagues, and 2024 first-round pick, catcher Walker Janek, had a terrific spring and looks like he could push to make the big leagues next season.

Braves catcher Drake Baldwin, who won the National League Rookie of the Year Award last year, was drafted by Brown while he was VP of scouting with the Braves. Brown also drafted Red Sox infielder Caleb Durbin, who finished third in NL Rookie of the Year Award voting last year, 2022 NL Rookie of the Year Michael Harris II and runner-up Spencer Strider.

Do you know of any specific changes Christian Walker has made that might have led to his improvement on offense?

Walker's hot start at the plate so far this year is the result of a couple of things. He's talked at length about his swing path, which he's trying to keep higher and more direct to the ball to avoid swinging underneath fastballs and popping them up. He says when his posture is not in a good spot, his “bat path does weird things.” He wants his launch position to be more repeatable. So far, Walker has been catching up to velocity and has been hitting the ball harder. Walker also came to camp about 10 pounds lighter, which will help him at the plate and allow him to move around the field a little freer.

With AJ Blubaugh struggling in a long-relief role recently, do you think we should probably see him used almost exclusively in leverage roles going forward, where his stuff really plays up a ton?

Blubaugh's usage going forward will be something to monitor. His last two outings -- nine earned runs in three innings -- were rough, but his outing Wednesday in Colorado came when he was rushed into the game following the Cristian Javier injury. And it was Colorado, so you cut him slack there. The Astros need long relief options, and Blubaugh pitched very well in that role at the end of his breakout season in '25.

Remember, he hit 98.8 mph with a fastball on Opening Day, which is the second-fastest pitch thrown by any Astros pitcher this year (Christian Roa hit 99.3 mph on April 5 against the A's). I think his value is still in a multi-inning role if he can get swing-and-miss and limit walks, but keep in mind that Blubaugh was a closer in college.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the 1986 Astros team that won the National League West Division and gave the mighty Mets everything they could handle in the NL Championship Series. A member of that team, Davey Lopes, passed away on Wednesday at the age of 80.

Lopes, a four-time All-Star second baseman as part of the vaunted Dodgers infield of the 1970s and one of the greatest basestealers in history, was traded to the Astros from the Cubs on July 21, 1986, for reliever Frank DiPino. Lopes played 37 games for the Astros that season, stealing eight bases, and finished his career as a 42-year-old in 1987 with 47 games in a Houston uniform.

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve notched the 2,400th hit of his career on Monday against the Rockies, putting him 600 hits away from joining Craig Biggio as the only Astros to reach 3,000. Altuve is still a few years away from that milestone, but he could hit 2,500 later this year.

“For me, it’s going to be able to play every day and stay healthy, and I'm doing everything it takes to stay healthy off the field,” he said. “I've got to continue to do that and go one game at a time.”

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