Astros Prospects: MLB Pipeline releases the new Top-30 list.

The rising and falling prospects of MLB Pipeline’s Houston Astros Top-30 prospects list.

This Spring, the Houston Astros will see some of their top prospects in action. Some of them are in major league camp with some former Stros top prospects. Some of the names to highlight these lists over the years have been Jarred Cosart, Jon Singleton, Carlos Correa, and Alex Bregman. Three of those names are still in the Astros organization, but Cosart didn’t live up to expectations in Houston.

Singleton could fit into the same mold, but the book on him is not closed on him yet. He is unlikely to make the opening day roster, and he was removed from the 40-man roster. Prospects are just prospects until they become big leaguers. However, to make this list is a great honor for any of these thirty guys.

There were some that moved up and some that moved down. Daz Cameron took a step back in 2016, but Ramon Laureano went forward. Jim Callis has come on Talking Stros, and we sang the praises of Laureano, and he moves up in the rankings. He played his way into that position, and I hope he improves more. Let’s take a look at the players who stayed the same, moved up, or moved down.

The rankings are from MLB Pipeline.

The new kids on the block.

Rankings from MLB Pipeline.

#29 Jorge Alcala

#30 Framber Valdez

The new kids on the block are the coolest ones.

You get to learn about some different players on the radar. Alcala is the first guy, who played in America for the first time since being signed in 2014. He is a hard thrower with a slider to complement his fastball. Via MLB Pipeline, he struck out 70 hitters in 56 innings last year between three levels, ending with Tri-City.

Valdez, like Alcala, is from the Dominican Republic. He’s a little older but throws left-handed. He is two years older as well, so could be fast-tracked to the MLB. Signed in 2015, MLB Pipeline says that he has a great sinker and curveball. He throws in the mid 90’s and could have the makings of a starter with four good pitches.

Unfortunately, two guys were removed from this list.

Those two players were Guadalupe Chavez and Reymin Guduan. Chavez was the player the Astros received from the Blue Jays for Scott Feldman. He didn’t have a bad season in 2016, but other players shot up past him.

Guduan on the other side is now on the 40-man roster. He will compete for a second lefty out of the bullpen, but he struggles with control. Guduan can throw in the upper 90’s touching 100 mph at times. He will most likely start at Triple-A but could be a power option in the bullpen soon if he harnesses his command.

The rankings are from MLB Pipeline.

The prospects who moved down.

Rankings from MLB Pipeline.

#5 Forrest Whitley

#9 Daz Cameron

#13 J.D. Davis

#16 Cionel Perez

#18 Jonathan Arauz

#19 Ronnie Dawson

#23 James Hoyt

#24 Riley Ferrell

#25 Colin Moran

#26 Brendan McCurry

#28 Stephen Wrenn

They are still on the list.

These prospects are moving on down. While some of these are because other prospects shot up the rankings, some of them struggled in 2016. These guys will look to do what Teoscar Hernandez did last year, bounce back from a rough season the year before. While Guduan and Chavez moved off the list, these guys remained.

It is no surprise that Moran moved down, he didn’t experience much success in 2016. He dropped from 7 to 25 on this list. Moran didn’t show the same potential last season at Triple-A or with the Stros. He had a .697 OPS in Fresno last year with 29 extra base hits. In 23 at-bats, he only had one extra-base hit, a double.

Like father like son?

Cameron, son of former MLB player Mike Cameron, had fallen upon some rough times last year. He was drafted 37th overall in the 2015 draft, behind Bregman and Tucker. Cameron batted .212 with two homers and 12 stolen bases in only 156 at-bats in 2016. He has the makeup to bounce back, but it could be a few years before he reaches Houston.

The 2016 first round pick dropped a little, 3 to 5, but he didn’t have the best debut. However, he did strike out 26 hitters in 18 2/3 inning between two levels of rookie ball. Ferrell was projected by many as a fast-tracked player for the Astros. In his first full season, he had an injury in his throwing shoulder that shut him down after only ten innings pitched. He still profiles as a closer but dropped from 16 to 24 on MLB Pipeline‘s list.

Other notable names dropping were Arauz (12 to 18), Hoyt (14 to 23), and McCurry (20 to 26).

The rankings are from MLB Pipeline.

Moved up in the MLB Pipeline rankings.

Rankings from MLB Pipeline.

#3 David Paulino

#4 Derek Fisher

#6 Franklin Perez

#7 Teoscar Hernandez

#8 Ramon Laureano

#11 Garrett Stubbs

#12 Gilberto Celestino

#14 Yordan Alvarez

#15 Freudis Nova

#17 Annibal Sierra

#20 Jandel Gustave

#22 Jake Rogers

#27 Jason Martin

These are the guys who upped their stock with their performances last year.

The two guys that you heard us talking about a lot on Talking Stros were also the ones who moved up the most. Laureano moved up from 28 to 7 on the list, leapfrogging Cameron, Dawson, and others. Laureano was drafted in the 16th round of the 2014 pick and profiles as a leadoff hitter with mid-level power and speed. He should get on base at a very nice clip and could join Tucker and Springer down the road.

Stubbs is my dark horse for playing time with the Astros this year, depending on the health of Brian McCann and Evan Gattis. There are not too many upper-level catching prospects in the Astros system so that he could be fast-tracked. Like Laureano, he demonstrates a great ability to get on base, but only ten home run power and some speed ability. With his size, could he be a big league catcher? We will see how he handles himself this Spring. He rose from 30th to 11th on MLB Pipeline‘s list, Callis has listened to us on Talking Stros.

Some other guys.

Perez didn’t make as big of a leap, but he could be the Joseph Musgrove on 2015 and 2016 for the Astros. The former infielder, the 19-year-old Perez has a high upside once he develops. He has four pitches with good movement on all his pitches. Perez could break out in 2017 and make his Astros debut in 2018 like Musgrove did. He moved up three spots from 9 to 6. Any trades the Stros make, he will most likely be involved.

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Alvarez was the player the Astros got in exchange for Josh Fields at the trade deadline last year. This was a crafty move by Jeff Luhnow to add another International free agent.

MLB Pipeline states that “Alvarez has one of the highest offensive ceilings in Houston’s system.”

This was a player that my co-host Brandon was really excited about. He moved up from 26 to 14.

Some other notable names on the rise were Celestino (13 to 12), Sierra (19 to 17), and Rogers (23-22).

The rankings are from MLB Pipeline.

Next: The Astros addressed their strikeout issues this offseason.

Thanks, Jim Callis for all his work with the prospect lists and for coming on Talking Stros several times already. Look forward to future appearances.

***Stats from Baseball-Reference and MLB Pipeline***