Hunter

Brown

Brown has been cleared to begin playing catch and will need several weeks to ramp-up his throwing program after hitting the shelf with a shoulder strain back in early April. The 27-year-old fantasy ace’s return timeline should become clearer once he progresses to facing hitters again in live batting practice sessions. It’s undoubtedly a positive sign that he’s throwing again.

Astros general manager Dana Brown told reporters Brown will be reevaluated in two weeks and isn’t dealing with any ligament damage in his shoulder. It’s hardly an encouraging update after Brown was placed on the injured list over the weekend with a shoulder strain. The 27-year-old fantasy ace was off to an exceptional start to the season, allowing just one run with a 17/6 K/BB ratio over 10 2/3 innings. The best-case scenario would involve him beginning a throwing program in a couple of weeks without setbacks, but fantasy managers should still anticipate an extended absence since he’ll need time to build up his arm strength and pitch count before returning to Houston’s rotation.

Ugh. Brown came out of Friday’s bullpen session complaining of some soreness in his shoulder and will now hit the shelf for at least a couple of weeks as the Astros allow it to calm down. Hopefully that’s all it is and the Astros’ ace is able to return before the end of April. Christian Roa was recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land in a corresponding move, though that’s likely just as a fresh bullpen arm until Spencer Arrighetti arrives to take Brown’s spot in the Astros’ rotation.

With the Red Sox looking at 21 called strikes, Brown needed just 78 pitches to get 18 outs tonight. He has 17 strikeouts while allowing just one run in 10 2/3 innings to date, and now he gets to face the Rockies next time out. It is at Coors Field, but that’s usually not the same kind of issue in April as it might be in July.

The 27-year-old hurler scattered four hits on the afternoon, though he also issued four walks which led to an elevated pitch count and his early removal from the game. In total, Brown threw just 59 of his 102 pitches for strikes, generating 11 swings and misses to post a CSW of 26 percent. Even if he had made it through five innings, the Astros didn’t provide a single run of support for him, so he would not have earned a victory. He’ll look to keep on rolling when he takes on the Red Sox his next time out at home on Tuesday.

Espada added that Spencer Arrighetti will open the season back at Triple-A Sugar Land before being an option once they expand to a six-man rotation. It’ll be Cristian Javier and Tatsuya Imai taking the ball over the weekend against the Angels before Lance McCullers Jr. starts Monday’s series opener against the Red Sox.

The Astros will transition to a six-man rotation around mid-April when they hit a stretch of 13 consecutive games without an off-day. Hunter Brown and Tatsuya Imai are the only locks right now with Cristian Javier, Mike Burrows and Lance McCullers Jr. figuring to break camp in the rotation as well. The battle for the sixth spot in the rotation involves a combination of Spencer Arrighetti, AJ Blubaugh and Peter Lambert. The other option is to bring up someone like Jason Alexander or Colton Gordon a couple weeks into the year.

Brown also struggled with his command in this one, issuing three walks while striking out six. He threw only 52 of his 83 pitches for strikes, getting 10 whiffs and posting a CSW of 34 percent. The damage done against him all came in the third inning as Liam Hicks and Nathan Matroella drove in runs with RBI singles and Juan Matheus plated another on a ground out. Brown finishes the spring with a solid 2.84 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and a 20/7 K/BB ratio over 12 2/3 innings in his four starts. He’ll do battle against the Angels as the Astros kick of their season on Thursday.

The 27-year-old right-hander walked two batters in the contest and did not allow a hit. At no point in the game did the Nationals put multiple runners on base against him. Brown generated 11 swings and misses on 62 pitches on the afternoon — five of them on his sinker — while registering an elite CSW of 40 percent. He showed once again on Sunday why he’s a consensus top 10 starting pitcher heading into fantasy drafts.

Brown had issues landing strikes, as he walked a pair before being pulled in the third. He also struck out three, so the stuff was fine, as usual. Brown is set to be the ace of the Astros, and there’s a very good chance he’ll be a fantasy one in turn.