WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — For three weeks now, Dusty Baker’s preached his philosophy on young players. The veteran Astros skipper suggests — and almost expects — the younger Astros will start quicker and produce faster than veterans who ease their way into spring training.

The battle for regular-season playing time between Kyle Tucker and Josh Reddick in right field could be rooted in those results. Earlier this spring, Baker acknowledged the longer a conversation continues, the more it favors the veteran Reddick.

Through 10 Grapefruit League games, Tucker’s received more at-bats than any Astros player. He does not have a hit. The skid extended to 0-for-15 on Tuesday, when Tucker struck out twice in three at-bats against the Cardinals. Before that game, he’d punched out only once. He bounced out in one at-bat against the Marlins on Wednesday, stretching his funk to 0-for-16.

“It’s still spring training,” Tucker said before Wednesday's game. “It’s kind of ‘whatever’ in spring training. I try and go out there and play and try to do well. But, I mean, if you don’t, at the end of the day it’s still spring training and you’re still gearing up for the season, so that’s when you really want to start doing well.”

Tucker’s struggles are not rare, especially in spring training. Baker pointed to everyday players Yuli Gurriel (2-for-11) and Carlos Correa (2-for-10) who were still searching for continuity entering Wednesday’s game. Baker absolved Tucker because he’s a “long lever guy” and, in Baker’s estimation, “the shorter lever guys tend to have a shorter stroke (and) tend to get it quicker than the guys like him.”

“I remember one year, Steve Garvey, I think he had two hits the whole spring,” Baker said. “Then he got three the opening game like nothing. I’ve seen guys have hot springs and start off cold.

“You don’t know how a guy is going to start off. But I’m urging these guys now to hopefully feel that they’re ready or getting ready. We’ve had some guys with slow starts."

Tucker said he’s felt better offensively during his last two or three appearances. Rust was evident in his first few games, he said, and he claimed “the (at-bats) have been better the last couple times up there.”

Teams continue to deploy a pull-side shift against the lefthanded hitting Tucker, who lamented some of his weak groundouts to second base this spring. He’s focused on shooting the ball up the middle and hitting to shortstop.

Tucker did not start Wednesday against the Marlins, ceding the spot to Reddick, who appeared in just his third Grapefruit League game after undergoing arthroscopic shoulder surgery this offseason.

“You still go out there and play, you still want to do well and everything,” Tucker said. “But if you don’t get a hit, it doesn’t count as much … I go out there and try to play and have good (at-bats) regardless. It’s just not working out right now, but it’ll turn around.”

ASTROS INSIDER: Follow the Houston Chronicle’s spring training coverage as the Astros prepare for the 2020 season.