Houston Astros Top Three First Base Prospects For 2018
We continue our look at the top three prospects at each position moving to the first base position this week.
Top Three Prospects By Position:
1. Yordan Alvarez (A+)
Alvarez was originally signed by the Dodgers out of Cuba for $2 million and the Astros snagged him in the trade that sent Fields to Los Angeles. Alvarez was seen as a raw prospect coming into this year but he turned heads crushing the ball in Quad Cities with a 207 wRC+ in 32 games. He was promoted to Buies Creek and was solid there as well cutting down on his strikeout rate and driving in 36 in 58 games. He played some in the outfield but should start moving up the ranks as a first base prospect. Overall he had a 139 wRC+ as a 20 year old between A/A+. Alvarez has as much upside with the bat as anyone in the Astros system. 2018 could be a big year for him.
2017 Stats: 90 G, .304 BA/.379 OBP/.481 SLG, 17 2B, 12 HR, 69 RBI, 8 SB, 42 BB/77 SO
2. Troy Sieber (A)
Sieber was a 24th round pick by the Astros in the 2016 draft. He had a very good junior year at Saint Leo hitting .457 with 16 HR. After the draft he spent time between GCL and Greeneville and hit .253 in 52 games. In 2017 he put together a very solid season hitting .289 with a .403 OBP. That also came with a 16.1 BB% and 20.4 K% good for an .862 OPS. Overall Sieber had a 146 wRC+ as a 22 year old in full season ball. While he might not have a ton of power, he is the prototypical Luhnow pick as a guy who gets on base.
2017 Stats: 57 G, .289 BA/.403 OBP/.457 SLG, 12 2B, 7 HR, 33 RBI, 37 BB/49 SO
3. Jake Adams (A-)
Adams was the Astros 6th round pick in the 2017 draft. Adams came with the promise of huge power as he hit 29 HR in 61 games at Iowa his junior season. Unfortunately his debut season didn’t go as well as he struggled to make contact striking out 68 times in 48 games. Adams did have 10 HR in 48 games but overall the season was not a good one. Adams is only 21 so he will still have time to turn it around.
2017 Stats: 48 G, .170 BA/.280 OBP/.388 SLG, 6 2B, 10 HR, 21 RBI, 24 BB/68 SO
Other Notables:
Dexture McCall (AA): McCall was a solid performer last year with Quad Cities hitting .286 in 108 games. His numbers were down a bit this year hitting .231 in 54 games for Buies Creek. He was eventually promoted to Corpus Christi where he hit .242 with 6 HR in 37 games. Overall he had a combined .707 OPS. He will be 24 for the 2018 season.
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**Photo Credit: Richard Guill**
