Hughes, Radel, Mendes, Johnson, and Peterson should all rank among Houston’s top 20 prospects but none of them will be higher than 4th to start out. Dornin is a nice 4th tier prospect like Nick Monistere, he would rank in the 20-40 range. Theres a handful of HS guys left that would really elevate the expectation but otherwise we just have to hope Dans Brown and his guys know way more than the industry and other teams.
I said I wasn't going to derail this thread. I never said it was a bad trade. Just not the winner some think it is. Lets take this to the 2026 general thread if you want to talk further about this.
In part that shows how the system has grown over the past couple of years . Even if we drafted LeBron , he probably wouldn't rank above neyens and alvarez yet . Frey has had a down year and pecko is near the majors . I do feel like these guys will move quickly , at least the first 3 picks . What does a guy drafting for his job look like ? He is grabbing players that should move quickly . We can hope he saved money and it looks like he think he did a little bit with johnson and peterson . This is looking like a well rounded, solid first day . If the bat on Hughes is real then this draft could be awesome . Obviously have only just seen clips , but I like the pitchers we took Both of those college guys have 4-5 pitch arsenals. Both have room to grow as they are freaking 21/22 whatever they are . I kinda like that we didn't take any velocitymaxxers so to speak . We need to hire Zach grienke to do our pitching development. I hope we keep getting some more live arms . I wouldn't mind another couple of HS players . One hidden aspect of lunhows genius ,.perhaps stated out loud, is that he wanted winning minor league teams to help create the culture of winning to trickle up . Now , we already have a culture of winning at the MLB level , but if you have more good players on your teams your players will perform better ... Aka batters getting protection and AB's with risp ... Pitchers facing batters desperate to catch up or supported by good defense. Supposedly you could get data to factor in some of this , but you need the eye test too . Lunhow traded a lot of value from our farm system , it's hard to say what part of prospect valuation includes statistical performance , and to what degree that data is influenced by the strength of the team. But I bet he benefitted a good percent . He could also give meaningful options in negations while keeping certain players off the table I hope Dana continues to strengthen our system . For all teams , every draft should be a net benefit . It's all how it plays out in the results . Starting grades do stick for a little while , but overall information gets updated.
Just responding to posters. I did tell him if he wanted to talk further we could move the discussion to another thread.
I personally like this draft class a lot All of the “upside” guys have such a huge failure rate. Our system badly needs some bat to ball guys, and pitchers who can throw strikes
Yep if you’re looking for optimism it’s there. The 3 hitters they drafted all probably have some of the best hit tools in the system and Kevin Alvarez might be Houston’s only prospect who has an overall better offensive profile than Hughes. I really don’t like drafting players who are limited defensively in the first round.
Via Matt Kiwahara of the Chronicle with quotes from Astros’ scouting director, Cam Pendino After taking a left-handed hitter with their first pick in this year’s MLB draft, the Houston Astros plucked college pitchers with their next two selections Saturday. Houston selected right-hander Jack Radel out of Notre Dame with the No. 28 overall pick, the prospect promotion incentive (PPI) pick it received for Hunter Brown’s top-three AL Cy Young finish in 2025. Radel, listed at 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds, had a 3.29 ERA over 87 ⅔ innings as a starter in his junior season at Notre Dame. He totaled 116 strikeouts and 22 walks in those 15 starts and had a 3.64-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in three college seasons. A native of Sioux Falls, S.D., Radel was ranked as the No. 37 overall prospect available in this draft by Baseball America and No. 44 by MLB Pipeline. Astros director of amateur scouting Cam Pendino, still, said the team did not expect Radel to be available at No. 28. “The fastball is super loud, and that’s the attraction here,” Pendino said on a video call. “He’s up to 98 (mph), he was sitting 94-95 through the course of the spring. He’s got excellent extension. It’s a loud fastball that’s going to get up on hitters” Radel also threw a slider, cutter, changeup and curveball in college, per Baseball America. Pendino said the Astros believe Radel can execute the slider and cutter well to his glove-side — inside to left-handed hitters — and their pitching department can help him improve his secondary pitches. “We think he’s the type of guy who has a lot of potential to move as a premium starting pitcher,” said Pendino. “When you have that combination of size, strikes, fastball quality and secondary promise, that’s a great combination.” The No. 28 pick carries a slot value of $3,363,600 this year. Houston had four of the first 93 picks in this draft and the league’s 11th-largest bonus pool, a chance to bolster a minor-league system that is ranked among the sport’s thinnest by outside evaluators. With the No. 57 pick, the Astros drafted left-hander Wes Mendes out of Florida State. Mendes spent two seasons at Florida State after transferring from Ole Miss and made 22 starts as a junior in 2026, posting a 3.38 ERA with 173 strikeouts and 31 walks in 120 innings. “Really exciting combination of strikes, fastball and changeup quality, execution versus both sides, really took a step forward this year,” Pendino said of Mendes, who had a 5.42 ERA across 78 innings in his first season at Florida State. “We think he’s got a chance to be a rotation piece. We think he’s going to move relatively quickly, we don’t want to put limits on him. But between Jack and Wes, we are really excited about the pitching crop that we acquired today.” With their final three picks on day one, the Astros selected two prep infielders and one college infielder. They used their third-round pick on Keon Johnson, a prep shortstop out of First Presbyterian Day School in Macon, Ga. The Astros think Johnson has a “really exciting blend of bat-to-ball and pitch recognition” and that their hitting instructors “can really help unlock the contact quality there,” Pendino said. With the No. 133 pick, a compensatory pick for Framber Valdez declining the qualifying offer and signing elsewhere in free agency last offseason, the Astros selected infielder Beau Peterson from Mill Valley High School in Shawnee, Kan. Peterson also pitched in high school, but Houston views him as a “left-handed premium bat who’s got power” and will play third base, Pendino said. Johnson and Peterson have commitments to Vanderbilt and University of Texas, respectively. Pendino said the Astros are confident they will be able to sign both players. At No. 121 overall, the Astros drafted infielder Kam Durnin from University of Missouri. Durnin, a right-handed hitting shortstop listed at 6-foot-1, played two seasons at Wichita State before transferring to Missouri, where he posted a .329/.438/.507 slash line in his junior season. Durnin attended an Astros pre-draft workout in Chicago and “put on a show,” Pendino said. “We put a high bar internally in terms of how we grade out shortstops,” Pendino said, “and we give that kid every chance to be a really quality major-league shortstop.” Rounds 5-through-20 of the draft will be held Sunday. Houston will make its first pick of day two at No. 153.
Quoted for truth. And if one of these guys breakout into a star level player even better. Take solid guys early and try to hit on home run picks later is my philosophy. But I know nothing when it comes to these picks. I just watch the college WS.
Tigers and Rays have really changed MLB in the amount of left handed contact hitters throughout their lineup. Their own draft strategy changed the Astros way of thinking.
