The Houston Astros took to the road, and a pair of pitchers impressed in this edition of Spring Training winners and losers.
The most important developments from Monday’s spring training games include a variety of debuts of high-profile starting pitchers. Several of them are expected to play key roles this season. Not all of those debuts went well.
Long-term, however, the most important development may have involved a bus trip a certain much-villified team took to Lakeland.
Winners: The Houston Astros.
Having spent the winter in public relations hell, Astros regulars finally showed up for a true road game Monday against the Detroit Tigers. Reaction of the 5,000 fans was generally muted, just a few catcalls aimed largely at Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman.
To the extent there was a negative reaction, the Astros shrugged it off. Altuve doubled home a run in the third inning, Bregman doubled in the first inning, and the Astros rolled to an 11-1 victory.