Climbing Tal's Hill
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Astros top two untouchable prospects at the trade deadline

By Eric Huysman

HOUSTON, TX - APRIL 04: Manager A.J. Hinch #14 of the Houston Astros and general manager Jeff Luhnow talk during batting practice at Minute Maid Park on April 4, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX - APRIL 04: Manager A.J. Hinch #14 of the Houston Astros and general manager Jeff Luhnow talk during batting practice at Minute Maid Park on April 4, 2017 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /
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A look at Tucker and Whitley

HOUSTON, TX – JUNE 30: Norichika Aoki, not Tucker, (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
HOUSTON, TX – JUNE 30: Norichika Aoki, not Tucker, (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) /

Tucker

If Rosenthal is correct, Tucker is not going anywhere if possible. Tucker is the younger brother of Preston was drafted with the fifth overall pick in 2015 after Alex Bregman went second. Since he was drafted, people have likened his swing to Ted Williams. Tucker seems to be on a fast track to the big leagues, but the Astros will take their time with him.

You can watch him play during the All-Star break for the USA Futures team along with Fisher. Yordan Alvarez was the other Astros prospect to be named to the International Futures team. Tucker deserves to be on the squad after his .282/ .356/ .550/ .905 slash line between High-A and Double-A. After a slow start in Double-A, Tucker now has 16 homers, and 61 RBIs with 17 steals on the year.

As a power-speed guy, you can see why the Astros want to hold onto him. Don’t expect to see him this year. They want to hold off his service time clock as much as possible. In a few years, the Astros will have to decide which of the young players they will try to retain. Tucker is the second overall Astros prospect and 27th overall by MLB Pipeline.

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Whitley

As for Whitley, he was drafted 17th overall in the 2016 MLB Draft. He has drawn early comparisons to Josh Johnson. He is a tall pitcher (6’7”) who can throw in the upper 90s and with great secondary stuff with a curveball and slider. His changeup is pretty developed straight out of high school.

His stats are impressive at Quad Cities so far this year. He is 2-3 with a 2.91 ERA with 67 strikeouts in 46 1/3 innings. Once he moves up the ranks, he will accelerate to the top of the prospects list and could become a top of the rotation pitcher.

Next: Astros Countdown: Top five players to watch in July

To acquire a certain player, Luhnow might have to compromise. Nothing is guaranteed, but a trade will hurt. However, the Stros are trying to win the World Series while they have such a big lead. The pitching flaws were exposed in June with injuries, but the rotation will be healthy soon.

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

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