I think I’m wrong about this. It looks like in 2016 Marisnick was optioned for less than 20 days, so he didn’t lose an option year, in which case he would indeed have one remaining next season. I’m a dumbass.
Doubt it matter much whether he has an option or not. Astros aren't going to want to pay a guy an arbitration salary to sit in the minors.
BA names Freudis Nova the #8 prospect from the GCL this season. With ability to be a good defender at SS, high contact bat, and above average power, his ceiling is enormous. For context, he hit 6 HR in 41g this season, so it’s not at all a stretch to see him hit 25+ if he pans out. Only 6 MLB SS hit more than 20 HR this season, and they were all worth at least 4.9 fWAR (Lindor, Machado, Gregorius, Story, Baez, Bogaerts).
Giron, who turns 18 on February 22, hit .255/.331/.362 with 3 homers and 30 RBI in 67 games. De Paula, 19, appeared in 15 games (4 starts), going 1-1 with a save and a 2.23 ERA in 44.1 innings.
Astros trade intl pool money to the Marlins for 2 prospects, OF Adonis Giron and LHP Brayan De Paula. Couldn’t find anything on De Paula, but BA has this note on Giron: The Marlins signed 17-year-old outfielder Adonis Giron for $350,000 out of the Dominican Republic on July 2. Giron’s calling card is his hitting ability. At 5-foot-11, 170 pounds, he has fast bat speed with a short righthanded swing and consistently performed at a high level in games for the Marlins, making frequent hard contact. Giron is a corner outfielder with average speed that will likely slow down as he ages and an average arm that could tick up once he gets stronger.
BA on Whitley and Toro in the AFL: 2. Forrest Whitley, RHP, Astros Team: Scottsdale Age: 21 Why He’s Here: 0-0, 5.40, 3.1 IP, 1H, 2 R, 2 ER, 8 SO, 2 BB, 0 HR The Scoop: Despite the blemishes on the line, Whitley’s first three innings in his AFL debut were as dominant as any in recent memory. He struck out eight of the first nine hitters he faced, and none of them had much of a chance to do any sort of damage. He crushed the opposition with an elite four-pitch mix that included a 95-97 mph fastball and a double-plus changeup to go with a hammer curveball and above-average cutter. 4. Abraham Toro-Fernandez, 3B, Astros Team: Scottsdale Age: 21 Why He’s Here: .545/.667/1.000 (6-for-11), 4 R, 2 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 4 RBIs, 4 BB, x 1 SO, 0-for-0 SB The Scoop: In a system with Kyle Tucker and Forrest Whitley, it’s easy to fly somewhat under the radar the way Toro-Hernandez did, but the consistent loud contact he’s made in the AFL so far has made him very difficult to ignore. Teams have heavily shifted him when he bats lefthanded, and he beat balls through the extra defenders on multiple occasions. He also added a home run from the right side as well.
As of right now, the Stros have ~1.12M in the intl bonus pool, which means they can sign at least 4 more players (they cannot sign anyone for more than 300K)
Dawson and Toro are both 2nd tier guys that have a chance to move up into elite territory if they get off to good starts in AA in 2019. Would be a huge boost to the system since the position player side is looking pretty thin outside of the 2 studs (Tucker/Alvarez) who will graduate next season. Other 2nd tier prospects who hopefully take the next step in 2019: IF Jonathan Arauz IF Freudis Nova OF Seth Beer OF JJ Matijevic OF Alex McKenna
Trent Thornton now getting love in the AFL; Keith Law has a blurb about his stuff being good. He is striking guys out at a pretty good clip in the AFL. Probably gonna have to add him to the 40 man to avoid him being chosen in the Rule 5.
Saw some video of Dawson in the AFL and was really surprised at how slim he looked. He will still probably k too much to be a star, but he now has the ceiling of a good everyday CF and his floor is rising enough that I’d say he has a pretty high chance of being at least a 4th OF.
I've always assumed his upside comp was Chris Young - borderline 30/30 type with defense, but a sub-par OBP and high K rate.
Great comp, that would be a tremendous outcome for him; Young put up 2 4+ fWAR seasons in his prime and played 13 seasons total (assuming he retired).
Now even Erasmo Pinales getting love from AFL spectators: “...has some of the best pure stuff in the system: a fastball that reaches 97 mph with running and rising action, a short slider and hard curveball that are plus pitches at times and a solid changeup. He's still figuring out command and control.” The number of pitchers in Houston’s system with high 90s + movement stuff is amazing.
