Batting practice. Not a game. Not a dive for a grounder. Batting practice put Carlos Correa and Yainer Diaz on the injured list in a 24-hour stretch. The Astros are 14-22 and held together with roster tape and spite.

Then Tuesday happened. Peter Lambert — released from his minor league deal in March, re-signed two days later, option number eight in a rotation that ran out of options — threw seven shutout innings against Shohei Ohtani and the defending champions. Brayden Shumake, only in the lineup because Correa got hurt warming up, hit Ohtani's first home run allowed all season. Final score 2-1. Best win of the year.

Also this week: Josh Hader pitches in a real game for the first time since August, Yordan Alvarez wins AL Player of the Month, and all four affiliates check in with developing prospects worth watching.

Prospect Spotlight: Jason Schiavone — the 11th round pick who cost $150,000 and leads the entire Astros organization with 11 home runs before May.

The Astros Universe covers the full Houston Astros organization every Wednesday — Single-A to the Show. Follow us on X: @AstrosUniverse

Spencer Arrigetti walked into a Yankees series with a battered rotation behind him and delivered seven innings, eight strikeouts, and ended an eight-game New York winning streak. Three starts, three wins, 2.45 ERA. The AAA callup nobody was talking about in March is the most reliable arm on this staff.

Also this week: Kai-Wei Teng gets the first rotation start of his Astros career, Hunter Brown's return gets pushed to late May at the earliest, Bennett Sosa's comeback debut goes sideways in spectacular fashion, and Yordan Alvarez is leading the majors in hits, OBP, OPS, total bases, and extra base hits through 26 games.

On the farm, the Fayetteville Woodpeckers complete the first six-game sweep in franchise history with Kevin Alvarez delivering the walk-off single. The Corpus Christi Hooks watch Bryce Mayer strike out 15 batters in his last two starts combined.

Prospect Spotlight: Bryce Mayer — the 16th round pick who cost $175,000 and is currently the best pitching prospect in the Houston Astros system.

The Astros Universe covers the full Houston Astros organization every Wednesday — Single-A to the Show. Follow us on X: @AstrosUniverse

Sixteen players on the injured list. A 9-16 record. A rotation ERA that is the worst in baseball. The Houston Astros are a MASH unit that also plays baseball right now, and somehow it's still a compelling watch.

This week: Spencer Arrigetti quietly becomes the most trustworthy arm in the rotation, Jose Altuve plays his 2000th career game and goes 0-for-5 in the same night, and the Yankees are coming to Daikin Park this weekend.

On the farm, Sugarland recorded three walk-off wins in one series and a 28-year-old Australian signed Saturday morning and threw five shutout innings the same afternoon. The Corpus Christi Hooks went 5-1 with two grand slams in the same game. And Ethan Peco struck out eight batters in three rehab innings at Fayetteville.

Prospect Spotlight: Caesar Hernandez — the 22-year-old Cuban outfielder hitting .452 at High-A Asheville with zero strikeouts through nine games.

The Astros Universe covers the full Houston Astros organization every Wednesday — Single-A to the Show. Follow us on X: @AstrosUniverse

This week the Astros Universe starts where it has to — with Phil Garner. Scrap Iron passed away Saturday at 76 after more than two years fighting pancreatic cancer. The man who managed Houston to its first World Series in 2005 deserved the first few minutes of this show.

Then the baseball happened. A 1-9 road trip. An eight game losing streak — the longest since 2013. Hunter Brown, Tatsuya Imai, and Jeremy Peña all on the IL simultaneously. Colton Gordon making his MLB debut in the middle of a rotation fire drill.

There was good news. Josh Hader threw live batting practice Tuesday. Sugarland recorded three walk-off wins in a single series. And down in Fayetteville, Xavier Neyens hit his first professional home run at 116 miles per hour — a ball hit so hard it would rank among the hardest contact in Astros MLB history.

Prospect Spotlight: Xavier Neyens — the 19-year-old first round pick with 70-grade power and a swing that just announced itself to the entire organization.

The Astros Universe covers the full Houston Astros organization every Wednesday — Single-A to the Show. Follow us on X: @AstrosUniverse

Hunter Brown is on the IL with a grade two shoulder strain. The ace is out for weeks, potentially months. That's the gut punch that opened this week.

Then Tatsuya Imai went out to West Sacramento, made one mechanical fix, and threw five and two thirds innings of shutout ball with nine strikeouts to earn his first career MLB win. One ace out. One ace in.

Also this week: the Astros go 1-4 but lead the American League in runs scored, Isaac Paredes keeps driving in winning runs despite the front office trying to trade him all offseason, and all four minor league affiliates play their first games within 48 hours of each other.

Prospect Spotlight: Kevin Alvarez — the 18-year-old Cuban-born number one prospect in the system who delivered a walk-off double in his second professional game at Fayetteville.

The Astros Universe covers the full Houston Astros organization every Wednesday — Single-A to the Show. Follow us on X: @AstrosUniverse

The Houston Astros went 0-2 to start the season and ended the week leading the majors in runs scored. Week one was a lot.

Lance McCullers Jr. took the mound Monday against Boston and delivered seven innings, one run, and nine strikeouts — his longest outing since September 2022. The crowd gave him a standing ovation. It was earned.

Also this week: Tatsuya Imai makes his MLB debut at Daikin Park with four walks in three innings, the Astros score 11 unanswered runs in a single comeback win, Isaac Paredes keeps making the front office regret trying to trade him, and all four minor league affiliates open within 48 hours of each other.

Prospect Spotlight: Miguel Olla, the $75,000 signing from the Dominican Republic who carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning in his 2026 debut.

The Astros Universe covers the full Houston Astros organization every Wednesday — Single-A to the Show. Follow us on X: @AstrosUniverse