HOUSTON — The Houston Astros have finalized their starting rotation for the 2026 season, and Lance McCullers Jr. is back in it.
Manager Joe Espada confirmed Monday that McCullers will serve as Houston’s fifth starter, earning the final rotation spot over Spencer Arrighetti. Behind Opening Day starter Hunter Brown, the rotation will line up with Mike Burrows, Cristian Javier, Tatsuya Imai, and McCullers.
McCullers is slated to start April 7 in the opener of a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox.
Arrighetti, meanwhile, will begin the season at Triple-A Sugar Land.
For McCullers, the decision caps a spring that looked markedly different from his 2025 return. After missing the entire 2023 and 2024 seasons due to arm injuries, he posted a 6.51 ERA across 16 appearances last year before shifting to the bullpen late in the season.
This spring, he looked like himself again.
Across three starts, McCullers allowed just three runs in eight innings, attacking hitters with a level of confidence that had been missing.
“He was aggressive in the zone. He was not holding back,” Espada said. “You have to compete in the box. And he came in with a different demeanor. His mindset was different. He pitched well enough. Really saw a difference in the way he attacked hitters this spring.”
McCullers will get one final tuneup Tuesday when he starts Houston’s second exhibition game against Sugar Land at Daikin Park.
Arrighetti Waiting in the Wings
The decision to option Arrighetti was less about performance and more about timing.
Arrighetti struck out 12 batters across three Grapefruit League outings and returned to the club after briefly leaving camp for the birth of his twins. However, none of his appearances came as a starter, leaving him behind McCullers in terms of workload.
Espada emphasized that Arrighetti remains firmly in Houston’s plans.
“We’re thinking about 162 games, keeping him built up,” Espada said. “Also being smart about how we navigate the first 28 games of the season, trying to put everyone in a position to succeed, and I think right now that’s the best way to put our roster together.”
Six-Man Rotation on the Horizon
The Astros are expected to shift to a six-man rotation around April 10, when they enter a stretch of 13 games in 13 days.
Arrighetti is the logical candidate to fill that sixth spot. Keeping him on a regular starting schedule at Triple-A is the clearest path to get him there.
His assignment also impacts Houston’s bullpen mix. Ryan Weiss, who has expressed a preference to start, may find his path to the roster runs through a long-relief role, alongside Kai-Wei Teng and AJ Blubaugh.
The Astros open the 2026 season Thursday against the Los Angeles Angels at Daikin Park. McCullers is back in the rotation, Arrighetti is on deck, and for a staff that cycled through 15 starters last season, the early clarity offers a notable shift.
Like free Astros gear? See the full Astros 2026 promotions schedule.