Mike Burrows took a solid step forward Friday night in his return from right elbow neuritis, tossing 4 1/3 scoreless innings for Triple-A Sugar Land against Round Rock.
The Astros right-hander gave up three hits and one walk while striking out three. He needed 67 pitches to get through 4 1/3 frames, and 43 of those were strikes.
His velocity was there, too: Burrows reached 97.1 mph with his four-seam fastball, which averaged 95.6 mph. He generated 10 swings and misses overall, with five of them coming on his changeup.
How many more rehab outings he’ll need before Houston decides he’s ready to come back is still up in the air.
Burrows has been sidelined for more than a month, and this was his first rehab start since landing on the injured list. He had been working out at the club’s facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., after the Astros initially optioned him to the minors, then reversed that move and placed him on the IL instead.
Houston brought Burrows in as one of its biggest offseason moves, acquiring him from the Pirates in a three-team trade that cost the Astros two top prospects. But the results in the big leagues never really settled in.
He posted a 5.99 ERA over 18 games, 17 of them starts, and his final outing before the injury was a rough one: on July 6 against the Nationals, he gave up 10 runs, seven earned, in 4 1/3 innings. At that point, he had the second-highest ERA in the American League.
One reason for the struggles was the way hitters handled his four-seam fastball, which had become extremely hittable. In mid-June, Burrows made changes to his arm angle, with the club noting his arm slot had drifted too low - something that can happen when a pitcher adds a two-seam fastball, as Burrows did last season.
In Other News...
Astros Rotation Gamble Is Getting Harder To Ignore
Houstons decision not to chase another starter at the trade deadline is looking more consequential by the day, even with the club still sitting atop the American League West. General manager Dana Brown pointed to the cost of pitching help and the desire to keep the farm system intact, and the bet has left the Astros leaning hard on a rotation that has been forced to carry a lot of the load while several other arms have either struggled or landed on the injured list.
The bullpen has helped keep the plan afloat, and a recent win showed just how much flexibility the staff can provide when needed. Still, games that require a parade of pitchers have a way of underscoring the same question: whether Houston can keep getting by this way deep into the stretch run, or whether the lack of extra rotation insurance will eventually become the issue that defines the season. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Finally Have A Farm System Story Fans Can Believe In
Houstons farm system has become a point of real interest again, and much of that buzz starts with the 2026 Draft. The Astros landed six players from that class who are already ranked in their Top 30 prospects by MLB Pipeline, a sign that the organization did more than just add depth. First-round picks Logan Hughes and Jack Radel headline the group, while Wes Mendes, Beau Peterson and Keon Johnson give the system a broader base of talent than it has had in some time.
There is also enough high-end name value to make the pipeline feel more credible than aspirational. Kevin Alvarez and Xavier Neyens are both ranked among MLBs Top 100 prospects, giving Houston a pair of players who can anchor the conversation around what comes next. For a club always trying to keep one eye on contention and the other on the future, this is the kind of farm-system story that can change how the next few years are viewed, even if the biggest payoff is still ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Astros Rotation Faces Its First Real Test With Mariners Up Next
The Astros have spent most of the early stretch leaning on a pitching staff that has held up better than expected, with Peter Lambert and Hunter Brown setting the tone and Hayden Wesneski helping after returning from injury. Even while addressing an outfield need by landing Daulton Varsho and sending Spencer Arrighetti elsewhere, Houston has stayed in position to control its division, carrying a two-game lead into a pivotal weekend.
Now comes the part that should tell the Astros a lot about where this group really stands. Seattle is next, the pitching matchups are lined up for the series, and this is the sort of test that can either validate a rotations depth or expose how much cover the front office still needs to build. For a club trying to keep its grip on first place, the Mariners offer a clean early measure of how sturdy Houstons arm depth really is. [Read more 🡒]