Astros Crawfish Boil: March 18, 2016

Astros News

AJ Reed's 3-Run Homer Helps Astros Beat Braves 5-3 - ABC News
AJ Reed's 3-Run Homer Helps Astros Beat Braves 5-3

In Astros' first-base battle, Tyler White's numbers hard to ignore - Houston Chronicle
Tyler White went to the Dominican Republic this winter hoping to improve his defense at first base heading into his initial big league camp with the Astros. The humble slugger with an unorthodox tomahawk swing never imagined he would achieve cult status.

Astros thin the competition at backup catcher - Houston Chronicle
Although the Astros will continue looking for catching options on the waiver and trade market, they trimmed the list of backup options to two by optioning Alfredo Gonzalez to minor-league camp Thursday afternoon.

Astros' Luke Gregerson to make second appearance this weekend - Houston Chronicle
Reliever Luke Gregerson, who made his spring debut with an inning in a minor-league game Wednesday, will make his next appearance this weekend. He'll either pitch in a minor-league game on Saturday during the Astros' day off from the Grapefruit League schedule or on Sunday against the Phillies in Clearwater.

Red Sox, Tigers, Astros among the best in AL | The Gazette
The Gazette | Baseball is back. Major League Baseball have begun spring training and are playing exhibitions. The skies are blue, the grass is green - well, maybe down ther

MLB News

Friday features 4 World Baseball Classic games - SBNation.com
Friday's Say Hey, Baseball includes day two of dual WBC qualifiers, the fallout from the Adam LaRoche situation, and the shape of the Dodgers' rotation.

The unwritten rules of bringing your kid into a baseball clubhouse - SBNation.com
Adam LaRoche retired because his kid couldn't hang out in the clubhouse. That seems like a big deal, and we should explore it.

Goose Gossage's comments exemplify everything wrong with baseball today - Pinstripe Alley
An old guy shouting into a microphone yields bad results. The Yankees would be smart to distance themselves from comments that show so many of the problems facing baseball today.

Ryan Howard fighting desperately against the platoon - The Good Phight
Ryan Howard will hit the righties, Darin Ruf will take the lefties. They both play first base. The platoon makes sense on paper. But it doesn't make sense to Ryan Howard.