2024 Astros Minor League Thread

Yeah the prospect ranking aspect of the prospect promotion incentive is bullshit. It should just be of a rookie is up all season and finishes in the top 3 of ROY voting, his team gets a pick.

 

Well that pisses me off … their 1st baseman and supposed 4th best 1st base prospect in baseball is someone the Indians returned in Rule V and someone the Astros were interested in getting before the Marlins swooped in and got him… that probably would have solved the 1st base issue. Shitty Marlins.

 

Speaking of Yanier. Look at Franciso Alvarez wasnt he the top prospect in all of baseball at one point. We'll look at their stats and see who turned out more successful. I know the kid is younger than Yanier and still has time to get better. You can't tell me he was the #1 prospect as a catcher. And Yainer didn't deserved to be anywhere in the top 100?

 

I remember Luhnow once said they had their own internal prospect listing independent of what we see on the MLB app, a list they keep very close to their vest.

so regardless of what MLB says is their prospect ranking, the Astros know which horses to hitch their wagon. Proven by dealing Korey Lee because they were all in on Yainer Diaz.

But the MLB ranking is set by the establishment guard (National clique), and they are a prideful bunch. They make sure to always push their narrative.

I always look at the Byron Buxton vs Carlos Correa pick. Even after Correa proved himself to be the superior choice, the establishment kept angling for Buxton.

Who knows if neither player were riddled with injuries how it would have turned out. But few can argue that the impact Correa had was exactly what the Astros needed at the time.

Carlos wasn’t resigned by Houston because his contract demands from Houston were in excess to what the market was willing to give him. He needed to go find out and he did. Plus his injury history was too much for Houston to stomach with that level of financial commitment. But that was all independent of Correa being the right choice. The bonus was the Astros got gravy along with Correa: Correa + McCullers > Byron Buxton. Most would say Correa > Buxton one to one…

 

Better not happen with Dezenzo. He better be ranked in the top 100 across the board because he will finish top 5 in ROY voting next year. I'm glad they stuck him back down in AAA to preserve that rookie status.

 

Ok

DD

 

Price went 1-4, Deming 0-3, Torres 1er in 0.1ip gave up the walkoff

 

Spoiler: Snake Diggit's Final 2024 Astros Prospects Rankings

1. CF Jacob Melton 50 (1)
2. SS Brice Matthews 50 (7)
3. 3B Zach Dezenzo 50 (4) I'm taking him off the graduated list because he is still prospect eligible
   
4. C Walker Janek 50 (NR)
5. P AJ Blubaugh 50 (HM)
6. OF Luis Baez 50 (8)
7. P Miguel Ullola 45+ (17) Late season promotion to AAA was a good sign
   
8. P Ryan Forcucci 45+ (NR) We'll have to wait awhile to see how good he is. This ranking is based on his bonus and pre-injury value.
9. P Anderson Brito 45+ (HM)
10. P Alonzo Tredwell 45+ (18) Will move up or down dramatically next season
11. CF Zach Cole 45+ (HM)
12. P Ethan Pecko 45+ (HM) Breakout candidate
13. P Colton Gordon 45+ (24) Nice finish in AAA
    
14. P Ryan Gusto 45+ (10) Nice finish in AAA
    
15. CF Pedro Leon 45+ (5)
16. P Jose Fleury 45 (16) He's a sleeper; worth watching how he does against elite prospects in AFL
17. IF Jeron Williams 45 (HM) Breakout candidate
18. SS Chase Jaworsky 45 (13) Breakout candidate
19. CF Kenni Gomez 45 (20) Breakout candidate
20. P James Hicks 45 (HM) Breakout candidate
    
21. OF Nehomar Ochoa Jr. 45 (14) Breakout candidate
22. OF Kenedy Corona 45 (6) Made it through the season on the 40 man, that's a good sign even though he was awful for most of the year
23. P Trey Dombroski 45 (HM) Breakout candidate
24. C Jancel Villarroel 45 (HM)
25. P Alex Santos II 40+ (11) Breakout candidate worth watching in AFL
26. P Forrest Whitley 40+ (25) I'm taking him off the graduated list since he finished the year prospect eligible
    
27. P Andrew Taylor 40+ (26)
28. IF Pescanel Ferreras 40+ (NR)
29. SS Tommy Sacco Jr. 40+ (HM)
    
30. P Alimber Santa 40+ (HM)

Honorable Mention:
C: Miguel Palma, Collin Price, Luis Encarnacion, Will Bush, John Garcia, Carlos Cauro, Kedaur Trujillo, Andrews Sosa, Alexi Quiroz; Bush and Encarnacion are breakout candidates

IF: Sandro Pereira, Waner Luciano, Alberto Hernandez, German Ramirez, Camilo Diaz, Alejandro Nunez, Narbe Cruz, Austin Deming, Caden Powell; Powell, Diaz, and Ramirez are breakout candidates

OF: Yamal Encarnacion, Quincy Hamilton, Colin Barber, Joseph Sullivan, Cesar Hernandez, Esmil Valencia, Tyler Whitaker, Luis Rives, Logan Cerny, Anthony Huezo, Karniel Pratt, Cam Fisher, Eduardo Perez, Evan Wagner, Ryan Boettcher; Encarnacion, Valencia, and Huezo are breakout candidates.

P: All of them, ymmv

Graduated/Traded: Joey Loperfido (2), P Spencer Arrighetti (3), Will Wagner (12), Jake Bloss (15), P Bryan King (HM), SS Shay Whitcomb (HM), P Kelly Austin (HM)

Fell off: OF Colin Barber (9), OF Tyler Whitaker (19), IF Camilo Diaz (21), P Abel Mercedes (22), OF Cesar Hernandez (23), P Jaime Melendez (27), C Will Bush (28), P Drew Strotman (29), C Miguel Palma 40+ (30); Barber has been a big disappointment. Otherwise no major busts.

 

They seem to have real good quality and depth in the pitching/OF and are really lacking in the infield.

I see quite a few of the pitchers making an impact in a couple of years. Some of the OF bats could make a big difference too.

 

I really like where the farm is at. I definitely think it’s in better shape now than it was this time last year. The middle levels are a bit shallow in position players and their best prospects have warts but overall I really like their depth at every position except probably 1B.

 

What do you think of Baez bat? I've seen a few clips of him and it appears his hit tool will translate. In the field he can be a very good LF, but it wouldn't hurt my feelings if they trained him up at 1st base.

 

I think his odds of being a major league quality hitter are high, but just not sure exactly how good he will be, and I am still a little skeptical about his defensive value. A Nelson Cruz ceiling is great, I am just not sure how likely it is that he reaches it.

 

I'm thinking Cruz is a good comparison.

Hopefully they teach him how to play 1st base.

 

Every team does.

 

There are a lot of prospects that go under the radar for the sports national media’s taste.

And that is why guys like Valdez, Pena, Blanco, Díaz, don’t even sniff a top 100 of prospects. Yet they become extremely valuable contributors at the ML level.

I still remember an opposing GM complaining how the Astros were too in love with their prospects to make any sort of a deal. Well, it seems the Astros didn’t want to be robbed blind…

 

@Nook