Houston Astros: Lucas Harrell Looked Like the Future on Saturday Night

On Saturday at Minute Maid Park in Houston, the story was supposed to be 49-year-old Jamie Moyer, the second-oldest player to pitch in a major league game. 

Apparently, Lucas Harrell wasn't paying attention to that story. 

Making his first start of the season, and only the sixth of his major league career, Harrell—who, at 26, is almost half Moyer's age—was the pitcher worth talking about in the Houston Astros' 7-3 win over the Colorado Rockies.

Pitching seven innings, Harrell allowed no runs and three hits against a rather imposing Rockies lineup. He also struck out four batters while walking none. 

That's not bad at all for a player who was claimed on waivers last season and had to fight for a spot on the opening day roster during spring training. For an Astros team going with young players for 2012's rebuilding project, Harrell's effort may have established him as a building block in the organization's future.

Players like Harrell demonstrate why general manager Jeff Luhnow made the right decision last week in releasing veteran Livan Hernandez. Yes, a pitching staff full of youngsters ideally needs a veteran presence to provide some guidance and throw a load of innings to prevent those young arms from being overworked.

But a team like the Astros needs to find out what kinds of players it has in its organization. Prospects and unproven players need to see the field so Luhnow and his staff know who can be relied on and which holes truly need to be filled from here on out. Yes, it's only one start, but Harrell looks to give the Astros one less starting pitcher to worry about.

The only thing Harrell needs to keep doing, as MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports, is keep listening to his catcher. After the game, Harrell credited veteran backstop Chris Snyder with guiding him through rough patches and doing what was necessary to get hitters out.

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"I shook him off maybe three or four times to get a different pitch," Harrell said. "One time I shook him off and he shook his head back and put down the same sign, and I threw it and got the guy out. I turned and looked at him and gave him a smile. He knows what he's talking about."

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If Snyder establishes a rapport with Harrell, that might actually give manager Brad Mills another problem. As mentioned, the young players need to play and the Astros have a promising young catcher in Jason Castro.

Would making Snyder the designated catcher for Harrell mean less playing time for Castro? The two catchers are effectively in a platoon, with Snyder playing against left-handers. But what happens when Harrell is scheduled to pitch, and the Astros' lineup is facing a right-hander? 

But it's only been one game, as Mills reminded reporters after the game. It's far too early to make such designations and set roles in stone. 

If Harrell keeps pitching this well, however, he might force Mills into making a decision for the benefit of a player's development.