Yesterday, Astros prospects took on the Marlins in the Spring Breakout game, and rather than provide a traditional recap, the focus here is on the positives and the players who stood out. The Astros came away with a 7-6 win in an entertaining matchup.
James Hicks
Hicks got the start for the Astros and, after a breakout Arizona Fall League, he turned in a nice performance on Thursday. The right-hander allowed zero earned runs over 2 innings while striking out 4. The defense committed three errors behind
him, so two runs scored unearned, but it was a good performance for him. He topped out at 94.8 MPH with the sinker and got three whiffs with his changeup.
Cole Hertzler
Hertzler was drafted by the Astros in the 5th round of the 2024 draft, and despite having just 21 professional innings, the upside is clearly there. The right-hander was up to 95.5 MPH with the fastball, but his curveball and slider were the real weapons. He threw nine curveballs and three sliders and got six whiffs. He finished the day striking out 5 over 3 scoreless innings.
Leomar Rosario
Rosario is a 22-year-old relief pitcher in the system who pitched in Single-A last year but had some command issues, as he walked 40 in 49 innings. He has an electric arm and was sharp on Thursday. In one inning of work, Rosario got 5 whiffs and struck out the side as his fastball hit 100.2 MPH and sat at a 99.7 MPH average.
Alimber Santa
Santa has gotten some decent run this Spring Training and got the 9th inning of the game on Thursday. In his one inning, he allowed zero runs and struck out 2 batters, hitting 96.8 MPH with his fastball and generating 2 whiffs on the sweeper.
Xavier Neyens
This was the first bit of action we saw from Xavier Neyens, the Astros’ first-round pick in 2025. While he had some miscues early defensively, he did draw three walks in five plate appearances, and keep in mind he is just 19 years old.
Chase Call
Call was the Astros’ 16th-round pick in the 2025 draft, and while he only got two plate appearances Thursday, he made the most of them. In his first appearance, he connected on a 108.6 MPH single, the hardest-hit ball of the day for either team. In his second appearance, he drew a six-pitch walk.
Joseph Sullivan
Sullivan had a breakout 2025 season, and in yesterday’s game, he did what he did all last year. While he didn’t get a hit, he ended up drawing two walks and stealing three bases. He stole 42 bases last year.
Lucas Spence
Spence, also a breakout prospect from 2025, received three plate appearances and went 0-for-1 with 2 walks. But his one batted ball was the second-hardest-hit ball of the game on a 106.2 MPH groundout. He also added a stolen base.
Arturo Flores
Flores has kind of flown under the radar, but after a solid year in 2025 making it to Single-A at 19, he found himself on the Spring Breakout roster. He only had one at-bat but made the most of it, connecting on a 101.0 MPH 2-run double to help cut the lead to just one run
