Astros' Former Top Prospect Could Make Roster

As the offseason progresses for the Houston Astros, options to upgrade this roster continues to get thinner and thinner.

They seemingly were in on reliever Jordan Hicks, who grew up in the area and a fan of the team, before he agreed to a contract with the San Francisco Giants.

Bullpen is likely the only area that the Astros will spend money to upgrade after already having a full rotation with others returning from injury and a lineup that is still one of the most feared in the entire sport.

But with financial limitations, it's going to be hard for Dana Brown to find top talent.

That's why Chandler Rome of The Athletic thinks Houston's former top prospect, Forrest Whitley, is going to have a real shot to make the Opening Day roster.

"He will report to spring training as a reliever for a team that just lost 185 innings from its bullpen and will not have Bryan Abreu for the first two games of the season. Spots should be up for grabs and Brown has seemed bullish Whitley can win one," he writes.

This would be extremely interesting to see.

After being drafted in the first round two years prior, Whitley was ranked as the Astros' No. 1 prospect in 2018, according to MLB Pipeline. In 2017, he posted a 2.83 ERA with 143 strikeouts in 92 1/3 innings pitched across three minor league levels.

But, in 2018 he was suspended 50 games for violating MLB's drug prevention and treatment program and began to struggle when he faced increased competition.

Still, there's no denying the talent he has.

For four-straight years, he was rated as Houston's top prospect, over the likes of Kyle Tucker, Yordan Alvarez, Jeremy Pena, Framber Valdez, Bryan Abreu and others who reached the bigs before him.

If Whitley has turned the corner and was able to tap into that potential, he could be a major piece for the Astros this year as they chase another championship.