Former Houston Astros Top Prospect Heating Up During Spring Training

One Houston Astros who is entering an important season has been lights out during spring training in relief.

Houston Astros pitcher Forrest Whitley delivers the pitch in the MLB game between the Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Houston Astros have had an extremely intriguing offseason, making plenty of additions to their roster while also making moves to let some key players go. However, the bullpen has remained similar to the 2024 campaign, with Ryan Pressly and Kendall Graveman being the only two major departures.

With those two leaving, it has opened up some spots for others to make their name known, and one player who has been doing so in spring training is Forrest Whitley.

The 2016 first-round pick for the Astros has taken a decent amount of time to get to the Majors for a myriad of different reasons, but he made his long-awaited debut on April 16 last year.

Whitley only made three appearances for Houston in 2024 despite the early promotion. He pitched 3.1 innings for a 0.00 ERA, allowing two unearned runs, five hits and three walks, while also putting together five strikeouts.

He may have his opportunity to play a larger part in 2025, however, since he has been absolutely lights out during spring training so far.

In two innings of work, he has faced six batters and not allowed a hit, walk, or run, while also recording two strikeouts.

This is a strong start to the spring for the 27-year old who is looking to finally find his place on a Major League roster after once looking like he would be a featured part of this Astros outlook.

He will have the opportunity to do so this season if he can keep performing well since there weren't many additions to fill one of the middle relief positions that remains open.

According to the FanGraphs projection for the bullpen, he makes the list alongside Josh Hader, Bryan Abreu, Tayler Scott, Bryan King, Kaleb Ort, Rafael Montero and Nick Hernandez.

Two others in that group have less than a half-season of service time - Hernandez and King -, so there is room for new options.

What Whitley has done thus far this spring is what the Astros are looking for when it comes to how he can produce at the Major League level, so if he can continue to perform well, he may finally make the Opening Day roster and be a feature part of the team in 2025.