Another busy week down on the farm as the season continues to roll on. Here’s a look at some of the biggest developments across the system with this week’s Pipeline Report.
System Spotlight
Waner Luciano – INF – Fayetteville
Luciano signed with the Astros out of the Dominican Republic in 2022. He showed some promise early and came stateside at just 18 years old, putting together a strong season in the FCL with 10 home runs and an .821 OPS. He moved up to Fayetteville the following year, but struggled offensively during the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
In 2026, something clicked. Luciano played six games in rookie ball before returning to Fayetteville, this time as a 21-year-old. He has been phenomenal this season, hitting .285 with 16 doubles, eight home runs, 20 stolen bases and an .898 OPS in Single-A.
The numbers look even better since July 2. Over 36 games, Luciano is hitting .339 with 11 doubles, seven home runs, 16 stolen bases and a 1.075 OPS. He has also shown tremendous improvement with his plate discipline, drawing 35 walks compared to just 28 strikeouts during that stretch.
The underlying numbers show improvement as well. His contact rate has climbed in each of the last three seasons, going from 73.6% in 2024 to 76.2% in 2025 and 77.9% in 2026. At the same time, his swinging-strike rate has dropped from 10.9% in 2024 to 9.8% in 2025 and 8.6% this season. After a couple of difficult seasons, Luciano has firmly put himself back on the prospect radar. Still just 21 years old, his combination of improved contact, plate discipline, power and speed makes him an intriguing name to keep an eye on moving forward.
Continuing to Impress
Jack Moss – 1B – Asheville
Moss was originally drafted by the Reds but was released earlier this season. The Astros quickly picked him up and assigned him to Asheville, where he has been a great addition to the lineup. During his college career at Texas A&M, Moss showed strong bat-to-ball skills and an ability to hit for average, and that has carried over to Asheville. In 56 games this season, Moss is hitting .362 with 13 doubles, four home runs and 29 walks compared to 36 strikeouts.
He has been even better in August, hitting .380 while drawing eight walks against just eight strikeouts. While Moss may not provide a ton of power, his ability to consistently make contact, control the strike zone and get on base has made him a productive hitter in the Astros system.
Under-the-Radar Performer
Juan Fraide – RHP – Fayetteville
It’s hard to call Fraide an underrated performer at this point, but his season has been too impressive not to include him. The Astros signed Fraide out of Mexico in January 2025, and he is already looking like a steal. The right-hander opened the season in rookie ball, where he dominated before quickly earning a promotion to Single-A Fayetteville. If anything, the numbers have been even better since moving up.
The 20-year-old has made 12 outings for Fayetteville, posting a 2.65 ERA with 60 strikeouts over 54.1 innings. He has been especially dominant of late, tossing 11.2 scoreless innings with 12 strikeouts over his last two outings. Fraide has flashed a plus fastball that has touched 97 MPH while also showing an intriguing breaking ball. Between his stuff, age and success since reaching full-season ball, Fraide has quickly established himself as one of the more interesting young arms in the Astros system.
One Transaction This Week
Petey Soto – INF – Fayetteville
Soto, selected by the Astros in the 18th round of the 2026 draft, was assigned to Fayetteville and made his professional debut this week alongside a number of other recent draftees. The 21-year-old made a strong first impression, going 2-for-3 with two RBI and two walks in his debut. Soto is a strong defender at shortstop and also put up some intriguing offensive numbers during his college career at Utah Tech.
It’s obviously just one game, but Soto’s combination of defensive ability and offensive production in college makes him an interesting late-round pick to follow as he gets his professional career underway.
Quick Hits
- The Woodpeckers (Single-A) continue to lead the Astros system in stolen bases with 284, though Asheville is closing in.
- The Woodpeckers are 29-20 in the second half, leading the Carolina League North by 3.5 games.
- Anthony Huezo leads the system in total bases (183), though Schiavone is right behind him.
- The Astros have three prospects with 40+ stolen bases this season (Huezo, Encarnacion, Mendez).
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