I'm more concerned with Mark Appel. He had an appendectomy procedure earlier in the year and took his time to workout this spring. He pitched a good exhibition game but his fastball was only clocking at 92 to 93 MPH. Hopefully an extended spring training will help him regain some arm strength.

The Astros need all the good young arms they can get. They already go two or three deep at every position in the minor leagues except catcher. That is why ESPN rated them as the number one farm system in baseball last month. Whether they draft Carlos Rodon or even that high school phenom, Brady Aiken, we're likely to draft a starting pitcher number one overall in the 2014 MLB Draft on June 5.

http://www.mymlbdraft.com/MLB-Mock-Draft

Latest mock has us taking Brady Aiken at 1 and the Marlins selecting Carlos Rodon at 2 for what it's worth.

Here's a good article on ten young arms to watch for the 2015 MLB Draft next year

http://throughthefencebaseball.com/sneak-peak-2015-mlb-draft-10-college-arms-watch/42607

Seems like Michael Matuella from Duke is the early projection as the top pick next year.

Michael Matuella, RHP, Duke
The 6’-6”, 225 pound right-hander has been the talk of the 2015 MLB draft and is considered the early favorite to go first overall due to his size and four-pitch arsenal. He suffered a lat sprain in his first start of the season and missed a month. When he came back, he was on a limited pitch count but the reins have since been released and he has been dazzling. His fastball can touch 97 mph and he has been sitting 93-96 mph. He adds two potential plus off-speed pitches in a 79-82 mph, 12-6 curveball with great depth and an 83-86 mph slider with tight spin. His change-up sits 87-89 and is a decent offering already. Over 25.1 innings this year, he has 34 K/7 BB and is holding opponents to a .128 batting average. He is still considered a bit raw as he has added a couple of pitches this year and he works primarily off his fastball right now, but the upside is ridiculous once he puts it all together.

If we suck this year maybe we'll be in the mix for Matuella in next year's draft. We picked up a rare win over Oakland last night.

Carlos Rodon struck out a season high 15 hitters just two days ago (Friday Night). A tough 1-0 complete game loss.

http://throughthefencebaseball.com/2014-mlb-mock-draft-7-0-first-round/42690

The "ThroughTheFenceBaseball" mock still has the Astros taking him number one overall on June 5. They have Brady Aiken going fourth overall to the Cubs. Two other starting pitchers going second and third, Tyler Kolek to the Marlins and Tyler Beede to the White Sox.

1. Houston Astros — Carlos Rodon, LHP, North Carolina State
Rodon was brilliant against Georgia Tech on April 25, striking out a season-high 15 to two walks in a complete game loss. He allowed one run on six hits and was using his ridiculous slider to embarrass hitters all night. His fastball was popping the mitt at 97 mph and he looked like he was enjoying himself out there. He now has a 2.03 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 94 K/26 BB over 80 innings. No one ever knows what the Astros are going to do, but I just don’t see them passing on The Rodon.

Rodon Fans 15 in 1-0 Loss
Carlos Rodon struck out 15, including 10 of his first 11 batters faced, in a 1-0 loss on Friday night against Georgia Tech at Doak Field at Dail Park. Rodon seemed a little upset after he recorded his last out in the top of the ninth, but scouts attending the game weren't sure if it was because of his great performance or his teammates lack of run support.

There are a lot of good starting pitchers in the upcoming draft but I'd rather go with the guy with the most upside and better stuff.

That moneyball lineup of the Athletics already tested Collin McHugh in the top of the 1st. They had two walks, one single but didn't score. They made him throw 21 pitches, no strikeouts. I admire the way those Oakland hitters approach the game. They don't swing at junk pitches very often and they make the pitchers throw strikes. I'll be surprised if McHugh can even throw 6 innings today.

I'll be surprised if McHugh gets another qs this season.

I do believe he's slated to pitch next weekend (Saturday or Sunday) against Seattle. The same team he dazzled with a three-hit shutout and 12 Ks over 6.2 innings. We have an off day on Monday, and then play two with the Nationals and three with the Mariners in Houston.

Collin McHugh may pitch a quality start today? Two shutout innings. He had a 1-2-3 with 1 K in the 2nd inning. Bounced back after a sluggish first.

I stand by my statement. I will surprised if he throws another qs this season.

We can't seem to score anyways which is sad. The Astros have one or two games per week when they'll score enough runs to win.

Four shutout innings in the books for Collin McHugh. 2 Ks and 3 BBs but he's only allowed 1 hit. He has a 1-0 lead. Hopefully he can keep it up and pick up his second win. So far as an Astro, he has 10.2 shutout innings with 14 Ks and 3 BBs. 0.00 ERA.

Unbelievable changeup with precise location... 11 straight Oakland hitters retired.

6 shutout innings for Collin McHugh. 5 Ks and 3 BBs with 1 hit allowed.

Astros lead 1-0 in the middle of the 6th