The 2024 MLB Draft is only days away. The Astros are selecting at pick #28 in the first round, and hoping to add another top talent to the system. As the mock draft are coming in hot, this is a list of who the draft pundits have the Astros taking on July 14th.
MLB Pipeline:
Theo Gillen, SS, Westlake HS (TX)
“Right now, a prep infielder like Gillen might have the edge over the college catchers (Janek and Stanford’s Malcolm Moore) or an infielder like Amick.”
I have seen Gillen mocked to the Astros a few times now, which means there might be some legitimate buzz about his happening. The left-handed hitting shortstop is seen as one of the best prep hitters in the class. He has a disciplined approach, and according to Pipeline, has a 20-homer floor. While the Astros have avoided high schoolers in the first round recently, nabbing a prospect like Gillen could be a lot of fun to follow.
Baseball America:
Tommy White, 3B, LSU
“Tommy White should have realistic options starting in the back of the teens into the 20s. Falling to 28 feels like reasonable value for one of college baseball’s premier sluggers, even if he does have some defensive profile questions. Perhaps Houston would prefer going with a college catcher in Malcolm Moore or Walker Janek, and there are a few high school shortstops who are starting to seem more likely to come off the board around this range, too, like Kellon Lindsey, Wyatt Sanford, Carter Johnson and Tyson Lewis.”
Getting a guy with a nickname of Tommy Tanks sounds great. The right-handed slugger from LSU broke onto the scene with a huge sophomore year at LSU hitting 24 homers, driving in 105 runs and batting .374 as LSU went on to win the College World Series. While he is strictly a corner infielder right now, and may not have much to offer defensively, his bat will be his calling card. This season, White hit .330 with 24 homers in 66 games, which was a down year for him. He has a middle of the lineup projection offensively.
The Athletic:
Brody Brecht, RHP, Iowa
“Brecht is a college pitcher who’s less polished than his peers, with athleticism and arm strength that point to more upside, very much the sort of player Houston general manager Dana Brown has liked in his career running drafts.”
Like they mentioned, Brecht is a little unpolished but has good stuff. He runs the fastball up to 101MPH, sitting high 90s, and pairs it with a plus slider which helps generates a ton of strikeouts. This year he racked up 128 strikeouts in 78.1 innings with 3.33 ERA for Iowa. Judging by last year’s class of pitchers, and the development of the ones they already had, I would love to see what the Astros could do with a pitcher like Brecht. This year, we were able to see Bloss dominate and earn a potential MLB callup less than a year after being selected.
ESPN:
Dakota Jordan, OF, Mississippi State
“The Astros are kicking the tires on some prep position players but are believe to be heavily leaning toward college position players for the pick. GM Dana Brown was seen scouting Jordan and DeBarge at conference tournaments with those two and Virginia SS Griff O’Ferrall the leading candidates for this pick.”
Jordan has some of the best raw power in the draft, connecting on 20 HR and posting a .671 slugging percentage this season for the Bulldogs. MLB noted that he struggles with breaking balls, which has led to the high strikeout number, 84 in 63 games this season. Another high potential bat that could join the system. On the flip side, DeBarge (ULL) and O’Ferrall (Virginia) are both good looking infielders who appear would have a smooth transition into professional baseball with their bat to ball skills and defensive versatility up the middle.
CBS Sports:
Billy Amick, 3B, Tennessee
“There’s a chance Amick is selected much higher than this, perhaps even in the 11-15 range. There are a lot of these “college power hitter with some approach and positional questions” types available this year and all it takes is one team to like a player more than everyone else for him to come off the board 10-15 picks earlier than other clubs have him ranked. When he ran drafts for the Braves, GM Dana Brown loved pitchers with huge arms (Spencer Strider being an obvious example), and that could push Houston to a high school pitcher rather than a second tier college bat here..”
Amick has put up a huge junior season for the Volunteers hitting .311 with 23 HR, 64 RBI in 61 games helping Tennessee to the College World Series. Also of note, he hit .413 last season at Clemson and in 11 games in the Cape Cod League (wood bats), Amick hit .368 with a 1.021 OPS, something the big league clubs love to see. Amick would slot it with Brice Matthews as one of the highest potential position players in the Astros minor league system and give them some more infield options for the near future.
The Sporting Tribune:
Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Kansas State
“Following the sign-stealing and trash can banging, the Astros managed the draft penalties placed on them in 2020 and 2021 fairly well by taking advantage of the draft market. Culpepper could be off the board here and even be a teen pick as the one collegiate who has a fair chance of staying in the middle of the dirt while also possessing a solid offensive tool across the board.”
He had a nice year at Kansas State hitting .328 with 15 2B, 6 3B, 11 HR and 17 stolen bases. He has a plus arm and MLB noted he has well above average bat speed. Like Matthews, getting a good athlete up the middle never seems like a bad decision. MLB also noted that Culpepper should have an easy transition to third base if shortstop didn’t work out for him. Culpepper also posted some good numbers in wood bat leagues as well, something big league clubs love to see.
Bleacher Report:
Walker Janek, C, Sam Houston State
“For the second year in a row, Conference USA has a first-round draft prospect, with Florida Atlantic first baseman Nolan Schanuel going No. 11 overall in last year’s draft. Janek hit .364/.476/.709 with 15 doubles, 17 home runs and 58 RBI this spring, and he also swiped 13 bases and won Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year honors behind the plate. His .838 OPS and 11 extra-base hits in 30 games in the Cape Cod League last summer helped answer questions about his ability to handle elite competition.”
This would be another first round pick for Sam Houston State. Janek, who is a righty hitter, is seen as having a plus arm, above average bat speed and solid power. Teams always need catchers, and it’s rare to get a catcher that is good defensively and can hit. Teams don’t really draft for need, but even with Diaz on the roster, the Astros can easily find a spot for Janek in a few years if he ended up being the Astros selection. Janek would be a local product too, being born in Portland, TX.
After perusing the different drafts in here, which player would YOU like the Astros to select?
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