WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The makeshift pitcher’s mound the Astros set up at a team hotel after the coronavirus disrupted the sport a year ago came into use again this week for a group of pitchers who were sent to quarantine after being exposed to the virus.

Two of those pitchers -- Luis Garcia and Bryan Abreu -- returned to an actual pitcher’s mound on Saturday, when they threw one inning apiece in the Astros’ “B” game against the Nationals at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Garcia started and struck out two batters in one inning, while Abreu walked the first two batters he faced before getting a strikeout and inducing a double play.

“Last year, it was an experience,” said Garcia, who made his Major League debut last year and posted a 2.92 ERA in five regular-season games. “It was confidence for me. This year, I have more confidence.”

When the pandemic forced things to shut down a year ago, a group of Latin pitchers couldn’t immediately return home -- and the Spring Training facility was off limits. The Astros sent a pitching mound to the hotel where they were staying. It came in handy again, when eight pitchers were forced to quarantine earlier this month.

Seven of the eight pitchers returned to workouts this week, with veteran Pedro Báez -- who tested positive for the virus -- still out of action.

Garcia, ranked as Houston’s No. 6 prospect by MLB Pipeline, figures to play a more prominent role for the Astros this year. Pitching depth will be tested going from a 60-game season back to a 162-game season.

“I’m just trying to do my job,” he said.

Abreu, meanwhile, saw his stock fall in 2020, when he came to Summer Camp at Minute Maid Park out of shape following a COVID diagnosis and then allowed 10 of the 20 batters he faced in the regular season to reach base. The Astros’ No. 14-ranked prospect, Abreu is in a much better frame of mind a year later and said the team wants him to be a starter.

“I’m more prepared for every situation that I can get,” he said. “Last year, the COVID was just beginning and everybody was scared of it -- and now everybody can handle it the best way we can. I have the chance to work out and do more stuff so I could get in better shape than last year.”

Alvarez to be limited to DH in return

Any work the Astros want to get slugger Yordan Alvarez in the outfield will apparently have to wait. Astros manager Dusty Baker said on Saturday that Alvarez -- set to make his Grapefruit League debut on Sunday against the Nationals -- will probably be limited to DH duties the rest of the spring.

The Astros have been bringing Alvarez along slowly after he underwent arthroscopic surgery on both knees last August, but they’ve said all along he will be ready for the start of the season. Alvarez slugged 27 homers and drove in 78 runs in 87 games in '19 en route to being named AL Rookie of the Year unanimously.

Alvarez has played some outfield during his career and getting him more comfortable defensively would give the Astros additional flexibility when it comes to their DH spot.

“We just can’t take that chance,” Baker said. “We’re barely getting him back to DH. … He has to get to the point, or there’s going to be a play somewhere along the line, where he’s just going to be as natural as possible. And when that day happens, then he’ll ease his mind that he won’t get hurt again.”

Last year, Alvarez suffered a setback with a COVID diagnosis and then had surgery on both knees after playing in only two games. The surgery repaired a slight tear of the patellar tendon in his right knee and a routine cleanup was performed on his left knee.

Worth noting

• Outfielder Steven Souza Jr., a non-roster invitee to camp, got four at-bats in Saturday’s “B” game before he was seen limping off the field with a trainer. The team said he fouled a ball off his left foot.

• The Astros got back-to-back homers in the first inning of the “B” game from Alex DeGoti and Taylor Jones. Pedro Leon, Houston’s No. 2-ranked prospect, led off the game with a Triple-A and scored on DeGoti’s homer. Houston won, 6-5.