Yeah, I am not a fan of this development. Not at all.

It’s a small quibble on my end that likely means relatively nothing, but, still, I’m curious what the process here was.

Between my actual job and working on the new site, I’ve been kind of busy this week. But here’s a thought I have had swirling in my head regarding Roddery Muñoz: Why did the Astros take him in the Rule 5 when he was available as a free agent earlier in the offseason?

For as much as a backup catcher’s market could be, to be clear. But my uninformed hunch is that they aren’t getting into a large bidding war for his services.

If Caratini’s market is robust as I somewhat expect it to be, I have a feeling the Astros will have a new backup catcher in 2026.

So, time for an update! Following the abrupt departure from TCB, a group of writers from the previous staff decided to start our own Astros-centric blog, called The Launch Angle (@LaunchAngleHOU). Give the new site a follow and check out our introduction post below. Thanks!

Hello and Welcome https://t.co/4LLKbzJvnu

The Astros will pick 17th overall in the MLB Draft. They had a 0.34% chance to win the lottery.

I’m not entirely opposed to trading Isaac for the right deal. That said, if lineup patience, or lack thereof, is a common talking point from the org again, I honestly don’t know what they expected.

https://t.co/iLmyX1sN9V

Shane Baz at Steinbrenner Field: 82 1/3 IP, 5.90 ERA, 4.96 FIP, 18.9% HR/FB On the road: 84 IP, 3.86 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 11.1% HR/FB The stuff was fine, 88th percentile in 4-seam velocity. A young, cost-controlled arm through 2028.

Shane Baz has emerged as one target in the Astros' search for starting pitching. No deal is close and some league sources doubt Baz will be moved, but the interest is real and demonstrates the sort of trade Houston is trying to make. With @Ken_Rosenthal -

Some tibdits from Espada's media session: - Altuve not made a decision about WBC participation. - He wants to avoid using Hader/Abreu for 4 outs early in season. - Alvarez will DH most of the season for health purposes. - Altuve's defensive future uncertain.

The Astros promoted Eric Velazquez to head athletic trainer, GM Dana Brown said. Velazquez had been the assistant athletic trainer. Brown didn't go into further detail, but said the team had a thorough audit of its return to play procedure

Astros GM Dana Brown reiterated today that both Yordan Alvarez and Isaac Paredes will be a "full go" when spring training begins.

Headed to The Hall! Congratulation to Jeff Kent on being elected to the @baseballhall class of 2026!

RT @MLBPipeline: The #Astros have acquire RHP Nico Zeglin from the Cubs in exchange for international bonus pool money. More on the 25-yea…

From the Astros: acquired minor league right-handed pitcher Nico Zeglin from the Cubs in exchange for international bonus pool money. Zeglin, 25, last pitched in 2024, going 7-0 with a 0.95 ERA (7ER/66IP) in 25 appearances across a pair of Class A levels in the Cubs system.

This is tremendous content from @Chandler_Rome and @enosarris.

Inside how MLB teams evaluate player makeup — from top prospects to big-time free agents. With @enosarris -