Astros Manager Joe Espada Reveals Starting Lineup for Spring Opener

Spring training baseball activities have been happening, but the Houston Astros will take the field in an exhibition game against the Washington Nationals on Saturday to get the next step in getting ready for opening day underway.

While this 2019 World Series rematch doesn't have the same stars named in the lineup for either franchise, this is a chance for Houston manager Joe Espada to get a taste of what he's got to work with this season, with players projected to start in the MLB and those projected to begin in Triple-A.

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Going into his third season as Astros manager, Espada is ready to get this franchise back to the playoffs after missing it for the first time since 2016. The first step in that process begins on Saturday, and here's the starting lineup for the spring training opener.

Astros Starting Lineup vs. Nationals

Colton Gordon pitches — Houston Astros pitcher Colton Gordon (61) delivers the pitch toward home plate. | William Liang-Imagn Images

As reported by MLB.com's Brian McTaggart, the Astros starting lineup against Washington will go as follows:

1. CF Zach Cole
2. 2B Brice Matthews
3. RF Cam Smith
4. LF Joey Loperfido
5. 1B Zach Dezenzo
6. 3B Shay Whitcomb
7. DH Will Bush
8. SS Nick Allen
9. C César Salazar

Colton Gordon, who made his MLB debut last season with Houston after getting drafted by the franchise in the eighth round of the 2021 MLB Draft, will be the starting pitcher for the game. Last season didn't go well for Gordon at the MLB level, as he looks to get 2026 off on the right foot.

Of the players in the starting lineup who are likely to begin with the Astros on the opening day roster come late March are Loperfido, Allen, Salazar, Smith, and Cole. At least that's how FanGraphs sees things panning out. Top prospect Brice Matthews got a small taste of the bigs last season, but will likely begin in Triple-A.

Brice Matthews smiles for picture day. — Houston Astros infielder Brice Matthews (o) poses for a photo during media day | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The first spring training game should be taken with a grain of salt when it comes to production, but it should be taken seriously if you're a player getting the starting nod. This is the chance to show the organization that you're ready to get the call up to the MLB, even if you don't make it out of spring training.

The Astros depth needs to be ready this season, as their core players at the pro level could be in danger of injury this season, such as Jose Altuve or Yordan Alvarez.

Alvarez missed a majority of time last season due to injury, which is something one of these young outfielders needs to be prepared for should that injury cause any setback this year as well.