I like the strategy of leaning into the player development, especially on the pitching side. The Astros continue to put an emphasis on pitching frames, with all of the pitchers listed at 6'2" or over. They did seem to be more willing to take pitchers whose primary secondary pitch is a change up than in the past. The hitters they've taken so far have been up the middle players with power. They seemed to be willing to gamble on hitters untested against top competition in search of big tools. I'd guess the Astros have some money left over for tomorrow, but not a whole lot. I'd expect an upside play or two followed by some college hitters.
Last season we took a couple of young high school players with high ceilings at 11 & 12 presumably hoping to sign one or failing that signing the other. Somehow we got them both. I expect the same approach this season but probably not the same result.
It’ll be interesting to see how much he signs for. Gotta assume that getting drafted less than a month removed from TJS means he will be a big below slot guy.
Interesting. Whom do you see that they might have to pay way over the slot for? This is all very interesting.
Player dev is still an ace up their sleeve. Every forward-thinking front office does it, but to have Scouting do the initial leg work then the Player Dev department chime in with "of your list, this is who we think we can improve the most and how" is really an incredible competitive advantage.
Caden Powell and Dylan Howard might require overslot bonuses. There are dozens of highly rated HS prospects still available who would require overslot bonuses. Owen Paino, Terrence Kiel II, Jay Abernathy, Myles Bailey, and Anderson French would be my favorites.
Wow, How did you get all of this knowledge of prospects? I'm pretty good with NFL draftable prospects, but have very little knowledge of draftable baseball prospects.
For the draft I am forming opinions based on EXTREMELY limited info/research so take my opinion on draftees with an even bigger grain of salt than for minor leaguers; I really don’t know much at all. But basically I just read all the blurbs from the draft prospect lists from the 4-5 reputable sites then watch YouTube clips for the prospects who stand out to me.
When it comes to the MLB draft, past like the 6th round, you are dealing almost entirely with the quality of scouting you have. Teams usually (not the White Sox) are good at adjusting what they are doing scouting wise to make sure big advantages in the later rounds become flat, so it comes down to the individual scout and the player.
I was thinking Powell, myself. A kid hitting exit velo of 111+ is the kind of kid I would take a flyer on, especially at a key position. Here's to drafting a few more like that!
The Houston Astros kick off Day 3 with... Round 11, Pick 343: Jason Schiavone, C, James Madison Going back to the smaller D1 Virginia schools to start off. Hit 9 homers last season and then led the Dukes with 18 this season.
Round 12, Pick 373: Ryan Verdugo, RHP, Cal State Bakersfield If he doesn't sign, he's transfer portaling to Kentucky.
