Astros' Velasquez sidelined by lat strain

Vincent Velasquez already has reported to the Astros' Spring Training facilities in Kissimmee, Florida, but it will be another two to three weeks before the 22-year-old right-hander starts throwing.

The 2010 second-round pick sustained a strained right lat muscle in the Arizona Fall League on Nov. 4, and MLB.com reported Saturday that Velasquez will be kept out of pitching action through the beginning of camp, though he will participate in non-throwing activities.

"I'm not too worried about it," Velasquez told MLB.com. "Me, personally, I'm very optimistic going into it, taking the positive out and just biding my time and trying not to rush it. I'm doing exactly what the trainers want me to do to make it better."

Velasquez, who finished 2014 as Houston's seventh-ranked prospect and is currently MLB.com's No. 86 overall prospect, missed two months last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He dominated in three rehab starts in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League and went 7-4 with a 3.74 ERA over 55 1/3 innings for Class A Advanced Lancaster. In the AFL, he was 2-2 with a 6.59 ERA over 13 2/3 innings.

Asher Wojciechowski, another right-hander in the Astros system, missed all of Spring Training last year with a right lat strain, but Velasquez is likely to get back on the mound before the regular season begins.

"We were hoping he would be a little further along, but the reality is, it's the type of injury that takes a while to resolve itself," Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow told MLB.com. "We're close, and I know he's anxious to get out there and start throwing, but our medical staff doesn't want to clear him until we reach one more milestone. I expect he'll be throwing here in camp at some point, but not right now."