Astros prospects: Who are the current Top-5 starting pitchers?

Sep 16, 2015; Arlington, TX, USA; Houston Astros relief pitcher Michael Feliz (68) reacts to hitting Texas Rangers right fielder Shin-Soo Choo (not pictured) with a pitch during the fifth inning at Globe Life Park in Arlington. The Rangers defeat the Astros 14-3. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

The strength of the Astros farm system over the past couple of years has been the depth of the starting pitchers in the pipeline. With the trades to compete in 2015 and get ready for the 2016 season, the Astros have traded a lot of that depth away. Luckily, they did not lose any of that talent in the Rule V draft earlier in December in Brady Rodgers, Chris Devenski, and Reymin Guduan (viewed as a reliever at this point).

Players that they have traded away in trades are Nick Tropeano,, Josh Hader, Adrian Houser, Vincent Velasquez, Mark Appel, and Brett Oberholtzer. Lance McCullers rose up to dominate the big leagues earlier than expected, but the Astros still have talent in the minors. While the fifth spot in the rotation has Scott Feldman penciled in there following Velasquez’s trade, he may not be ready for spring training in 2016.

Who are the Houston Astros top five starting pitching prospects, let’s take a look below?