Who is the Astros MiLB hitter of the year?
It was a great year in the Astros system. Some big time performances from the top prospects, some breakout performances from unknown prospects and some great comeback seasons. Check out the best performances below and vote on who you think if the Astros MiLB hitter of the year!
Jake Meyers
Meyers was a solid prospect coming into 2021 but had a true breakout season this year. He has always been solid defensively and has continued to improve, but the bat took off in 2021 in AAA. He hit .343 with a 1.006 OPS and 16 HR in 68 games before earning a promotion to the Astros. His numbers would have lead many categories in the system if he didn’t get called up. Great year for Jake. You can read my interview with him here.
2021 Stats: 68 G, .343 BA/.408 OBP/.598 SLG, 17 2B, 2 3B, 16 HR, 51 RBI, 10 SB, 147 wRC+
Luke Berryhill
Berryhill, originally drafted by the Reds and traded to the Astros last off-season, put up a big season. He started the year in Low-A and crushed slashing .305/.429/.636 with 10 HR, 32 RBI in 35 games. He was promoted to High-A where he hit .277 with 5 HR, 19 RBI in 29 games earning another promotion to Double-A where he hit .313 in 9 games. Overall, Berryhill had a .974 OPS and 159 wRC+ and was awarded the minor league player of the year by the Astros. Read more on him here.
2021 Stats: 73 G, .295 BA/.413 OBP/.561 SLG, 20 2B, 15 HR, 54 RBI, 159 wRC+
Justin Dirden
Dirden was another undrafted free agent following the 2020 draft but put together a great season slashing .274/.397/.537 with 15 HR in 83 games. The outfielder showed a nice combination of power and patience with a 14.9 BB% and a .263 ISO. Overall. he had a 149 wRC+ in 83 games. A really good under the radar season from Dirden and one guy I can’t wait to see in 2022.
2021 Stats: 83 G, .274 BA/.397 OBP/.537 SLG, 18 2B, 6 3B, 15 HR, 58 RBI, 10 SB, 149 wRC+
Shay Whitcomb
Whitcomb was a 5th round pick by the Astros in 2020 and had a breakout 2021 season. He started the year in Low-A and slashed .282/.369/.429 in 41 games earning a promotion to High-A. There his numbers got even better hitting .300 with a .959 OPS. He finished the season with 23 HR and 30 SB overall. Whitcomb had the best numbers of any infielder (not including catcher) in the Astros system in 2021.
2021 Stats: 99 G, .293 BA/.363 OBP/.530 SLG, 25 2B, 23 HR, 78 RBI, 30 SB, 137 wRC+
Jose Siri
Siri put together the best season of his career slashing .318/.369/.552 in 94 games. He also showed power and speed with the 29 2B, 16 HR and 24 SB. Jose was eventually called up to the Astros where he showed off some of his talent crushing a few homers and landing on the Astros playoff roster. He bolstered the Skeeters outfield and provided great depth at the outfield position all season long.
2021 Stats: 94 G, .318 BA/.369 OBP/.552 SLG, 29 2B, 4 3B, 16 HR, 72 RBI, 24 SB, 125 wRC+
Joe Perez
Perez was drafted by the Astros in the 2nd round of the 2017 draft. He started in Low-A and had a 149 wRC+ before a promotion to High A where he had a 8 HR, 27 RBI and a 195 wRC+ in 25 games. He was then promoted to Double-A where he hit .267 with 19 2B, 8 HR in 69 games but finished strong hitting .316 with a .906 OPS over his final 36 games of the season.
2021 Stats: 106 G, .291 BA/.354 OBP/.495 SLG, 34 2B, 18 HR, 61 RBI, 125 wRC+
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**Photo Credit: Ryan Dunsmore/Tammy Tucker/Joe Dwyer**
