Whitley posted a video on his personal Twitter account Friday of him throwing off a mound at the Astros' spring training complex.

EDGE Analysis

The game's top pitching prospect has not pitched in a game since May 23 due to shoulder fatigue, but he has been ramping up his throwing program of late. The hope is that Whitley can return to the Triple-A rotation in the coming weeks. He will need to pitch much better this time around in the Pacific Coast League in order to earn a promotion to the majors in the second half.

Whitley (shoulder) is expected to resume mound work within the next couple weeks, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

Whitley was placed on the minor-league injured list in late May with right shoulder fatigue and has since been at the Astros' spring training facility in Florida. The 21-year-old is expected to return to minor-league games around the third week of July, assuming he avoids any setbacks.

Whitley (shoulder) has been working out with the training staff in the gym but is not yet ready to throw, Hunter Atkins of the Houston Chronicle reports.

EDGE Analysis

Whitley was placed on the minor-league 7-day injured list with shoulder fatigue. "He looks good. He feels good. We're going to give him a little more time before he starts throwing again. Once he does, we'll come up with a plan," said Houston general manager Jeff Luhnow. With Whitley unavailable and Corbin Martin getting sent back to Triple-A Round Rock because of poor performance, pitching depth in the system is being tested.

Whitley was placed on the seven-day injured list with shoulder fatigue Wednesday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

EDGE Analysis

The Astros will hope that Whitley's shoulder fatigue is the primary explanation for his awful start to the season for Triple-A Round Rock. He's struggled to a 12.21 ERA in 24.1 innings and seen his strikeout rate (which typically sits above 30 percent) fall to 24.4 percent while his walk rate spiked to 12.6 percent. He'll head to the Astros' spring training facility to rehab and sort himself out, so it sounds as though he could be taken out of the firing line for quite some time. Any plans of him making his big-league debut any time soon appear to have been put on hold, but he's close enough to the majors and talented enough that a late-season debut remains possible if he can return to being healthy and effective.

Whitley has a 10.80 ERA over 18.1 innings for Triple-A Round Rock.

EDGE Analysis

The Astros bypassed Whitley, their top-ranked prospect, in favor of Corbin Martin, who will start in place of a struggling Collin McHugh on Sunday. Whitley has been knocked around during his first taste of the most elite level of the minor leagues. He was tagged for three home runs in his most recent start Friday and has given up seven long balls thus far. It's no wonder why Houston tabbed Martin as a replacement starter instead of Whitley.

Whitley lasted 1.1 innings Monday in his start for Triple-A Round Rock, conceding five runs on four hits and two walks while striking out one in a 10-2 loss to Memphis.

EDGE Analysis

Making his second appearance of the season, Whitley endured one of the roughest outings of his largely immaculate minor-league career. The right-hander wasn't merely the victim of bad luck on balls in play either, as all four of the hits he surrendered were doubles. One poor outing in a hitter-friendly environment won't dim Whitley's long-term outlook or change his standing as baseball's top pitching prospect, though it could give the Astros some pause about accelerating his arrival to the majors.

Whitley is opening the year with Triple-A Round Rock, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

He will be pitching in games right away this season, which is noteworthy, as the Astros could have opted to hold him back in extended spring training in an effort to make sure he still had plenty in the tank for a postseason run. They can still manage his innings and make that happen going this route, of course, and he should quickly show that he has little left to prove against minor-league hitters. He could be promoted to the majors at any moment this season.

Whitley walked two and struck out four over four hitless innings Friday against the Cardinals.

EDGE Analysis

Whitley was sent to minor-league camp earlier this week but did not let that disappointment impact Friday's start. With just 10 starts at the Double-A level, Whitley will head back to the minors this season to build up innings.

Whitley was reassigned to minor-league camp Tuesday, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

EDGE Analysis

Whitley has allowed just two runs in eight innings of work this spring, recording an 11:2 K:BB, though he was never considered likely to break camp with the team. He has just 10 starts at the Double-A level under his belt, but his talent level is high enough that he's expected to debut at some point this season.

Whitley allowed one run on two hits and one walk while striking out six in Friday's game against the Cardinals.

EDGE Analysis

Whitley got to face some serious major-league talent and gave up a first-pitch home run to Matt Carpenter before settling in. He fanned Paul Goldschmidt twice and Paul DeJong. "There were definitely some positives I could take from it, along with some negative," he told Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. "I seem to dwelling on those a little bit more than I should be, but I was pretty happy with last night. I was able to execute two-strike pitches pretty well and get a decent amount of strikeouts. That was pretty big, something I hadn't been doing a lot the last two outings. That's a positive I could take away." He's performed well overall this spring, but Whitley is not expected to be part of Houston's staff to start 2019.