Astros top prospect Forrest Whitley to debut at Minute Maid Park

PHOTOS: Houston Astros top prospects in 2019

Houston Astros right handed pitcher Forrest Whitley (68) throws exercise balls before throwing program at Fitteam Ballpark of The Palm Beaches on Day 9 of spring training on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in West Palm Beach.

>>>Browse through the gallery to see the Astros' top prospects heading into the 2019 season ... less Houston Astros right handed pitcher Forrest Whitley (68) throws exercise balls before throwing program at Fitteam Ballpark of The Palm Beaches on Day 9 of spring training on Friday, Feb. 22, 2019, in West Palm Beach. PHOTOS: Houston Astros top prospects in 2019

Houston Astros right handed pitcher Forrest Whitley (68) throws exercise balls before throwing program at Fitteam Ballpark of The Palm Beaches on Day 9 of spring Houston Astros right handed pitcher Forrest Whitley (68) throws exercise balls before throwing program at Fitteam Ballpark of The Palm Beaches on Day 9 of spring ... more Photo: Yi-Chin Lee, Staff Photographer Photo: Yi-Chin Lee, Staff Photographer Image 1 of / 47 Caption Close Astros top prospect Forrest Whitley to debut at Minute Maid Park 1 / 47 Back to Gallery

LAKELAND, Fla. — Before they toe the Minute Maid Park rubber when it matters, the Astros’ three top pitching prospects will get a trial run next week.

Forrest Whitley and J.B. Bukauskas will start Houston’s two home exhibition games against the Pirates on Monday and Tuesday, respectively. Corbin Martin will pitch in relief of Bukauskas on Tuesday.

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“We’ve always tried to bring some of our guys that may or may not debut and just get an outing out of the way in Minute Maid,” manager A.J. Hinch said Saturday. “They know their way into the ballpark, they get to face major league (hitting), the environment is a little bit different, the third deck is always there. It’s just another step in getting them as comfortable as we can.”

Neither Whitley nor Bukauskas has ever thrown in Minute Maid Park. Martin pitched in the ballpark during the Shriner’s College Classic while at Texas A&M.

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There is precedent for the move. In 2015, the Astros brought Lance McCullers Jr. to Minute Maid Park for their two-game exhibition series against the Royals. McCullers threw two innings in relief during the second game.

Two months later, McCullers made his major league debut.

Hinch said Whitley would throw only three or four innings. Bukauskas and Martin each threw on Saturday against the Tigers. Neither eclipsed four innings, so both may operate on a similar workload to Whitley.

Whitley, regarded as baseball's top pitching prospect, wowed during his first exposure to major league spring training. The lanky righthander punched out 15 batters in 12 Grapefruit League innings with a 1.50 ERA. He was reassigned to minor league camp on March 12 alongside Martin and Bukauskas.

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“I think it’s going to be awesome,” said Bukauskas, who has never pitched in a major league ballpark. “I’m excited, I just need to keep working on the same things I’ve been working on and enjoy the experience.”

On Saturday, Bukauskas struck out five Tigers in two innings. His four-seam fastball sat at 97 mph paired with the devastating putaway slider he can spin at 89 mph. The righthander struggled at times to command his fastball arm side, resulting in three walks.

“We’d like him to be a little more efficient with his pitches,” Hinch said. “But he’s got such good stuff across the board, he can throw quality strikes and get hitters out in the strike zone. He has great chase pitches and is certainly doing well as a young player.”

Hinch said Thursday that “quite a few” of the major league bullpen and starting rotation will not accompany the team to Houston for the exhibition games. All will instead remain Florida to either throw in minor league games or continue preparation for the nearby season-opening series in Tampa Bay.

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