This story was excerpted from Brian McTaggart's Astros Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

HOUSTON -- The Astros¡¯ equipment truck will pull out of the Daikin Park loading dock on Thursday afternoon and begin the 1,121-mile drive east to West Palm Beach, Fla., where pitchers and catchers will report next week for the start of Spring Training.

In the rearview mirror will be a hectic offseason in which four key members of the 2022 World Series championship team -- third baseman Alex Bregman, right fielder Kyle Tucker, reliever Ryan Pressly and starting pitcher Justin Verlander -- moved on. Tucker and Pressly were traded to the Cubs, Verlander signed with the Giants and Bregman, who remains a free agent, is unlikely to return to Houston.

Christian Walker takes over as the starter at first base, Isaac Paredes replaces Bregman at third base and will we really see Jose Altuve taking fly balls in left field in Florida? That remains to be seen, but there¡¯s no doubt the Astros enter spring with more questions than they¡¯ve had in recent years.

¡°I¡¯m excited to get down to West Palm Beach, and our fans are going to be looking forward to the caliber of the team we¡¯re going to put on the field,¡± second-year manager Joe Espada said.

Here are three questions the Astros must answer this spring:

1. Which arms will compete for rotation slots?
The 2025 rotation will again be anchored by Framber Valdez, Hunter Brown, Ronel Blanco and Spencer Arrighetti -- each of whom made at least 28 starts last year. Hayden Wesneski, acquired from the Cubs in the Tucker trade, is penciled in as the No. 5 starter, but the Astros used 12 starting pitchers last year.

Neither Luis Garcia, Cristian Javier nor Lance McCullers Jr. will be ready for Opening Day, so where¡¯s the depth coming from? Left-hander Colton Gordon (the team¡¯s No. 12 prospect, per MLB Pipeline) was added to the 40-man roster after posting a 3.94 ERA in 25 games (24 starts) in 123 1/3 innings last year in Triple-A. Ryan Gusto, a 6-foot-4 right-hander who was set to make his Major League debut before last year¡¯s season finale was rained out in Cleveland, will also compete.

No. 8 prospect Miguel Ullola, who last year led the Minors in average against (.163) and finished third in strikeouts (171 in 130 1/3 innings) while compiling a 4.28 ERA, mostly at Double-A, could put himself on the radar with a strong spring. A.J. Blubaugh (No. 10) is another prospect who could take a jump this year.

2. Which young players will push to make the club?
With the Astros lacking the depth across the board that they¡¯ve had in years past, there are opportunities for playing time. Zach Dezenzo (No. 6 prospect) will compete to make the team, primarily as a left fielder. Outfielder Jacob Melton (No. 2) has a real opportunity to make an impact this season and could push to make the club out of camp if someone else underperforms.

Espada said he¡¯s going to give the youngsters a long look in the spring, so expect the team¡¯s No. 1 prospect, Cam Smith, to get plenty of run in Grapefruit League play. Acquired in the Tucker trade, Smith slashed .313/.396/.609 in 32 games combined between Single-A Myrtle Beach, High-A South Bend and Double-A Tennessee last year and could set himself up for a 2025 debut with a good spring.

3. Will relief pitching depth emerge?
Last week¡¯s trade of Pressly to the Cubs saved the Astros $8.5 million against this year¡¯s payroll, but also left them with a hole in the back end of the bullpen. Pressly had a down season after being moved to a setup role in 2024, but he still leaves some key innings to be filled. Josh Hader returns as closer and Bryan Abreu takes over as primary setup man, but there will be plenty of competition for spots after that. Who from among Tayler Scott, Bryan King, Kaleb Ort, Nick Hernandez, Steven Okert, Glenn Otto, Shawn Dubin and Forrest Whitley will emerge as options?