Former Astros top prospect has finally broken out in San Francisco

A former Houston Astros top prospect, Drew Gilbert, has finally broken through at the major league level after a frustrating few years defined by injuries and underperformance. Sadly for Astros fans, Gilbert is doing so in a San Francisco Giants uniform, but you have to be happy for the 24-year-old, who is the latest example that MLB development is rarely linear.

Gilbert was selected by Houston with the No. 28 overall pick in the 2022 MLB draft out of Tennessee, and he was seen by some as a long-term solution in center field for the Astros.

Gilbert homered in his first at-bat as a member of the Astros organization (in the Florida Complex League), only further fueling the excitement around his potential. But a dislocated right elbow later that same month (August 22) spoiled his early momentum, and it was unfortunately a harbinger of more durability issues to come for Gilbert.

Gilbert wasn’t an Astro for long. He was traded to the Mets in August 2023 in the Justin Verlander deal. After a promising 2023 with Double-A Binghamton Rumble Ponies (.289/ .381/ .487 with 18 home runs in 116 games), Gilbert was bumped up to Triple-A to begin 2024, but the injury bug struck again (hamstring), limiting Gilbert to just 62 games, in which he struggled with a .205 batting average.

Gilbert began the current 2025 season on the injured list with similar hamstring problems, but his breakout was just around the corner.

Drew Gilbert has transformed into a star since putting on a San Francisco Giants uniform

When Gilbert was traded to the Giants this past July, he probably viewed the ordeal as another dreaded detour in his so-far disappointing career. Well, that detour ended up being an enormous blessing for Gilbert.

Gilbert raked out of the gate for the Giants org, going 7-for-14 in five games for Triple-A Sacramento River Cats, earning himself a promotion to the bigs. Since then, Gilbert has stayed hot against major league pitching, with an .815 OPS in 20 games (50 at-bats) to go along with three home runs and 10 RBI.

Gilbert put all of MLB on notice this week with a torrid series against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field, going 5-for-8 with two homers, including a 4-for-4 performance on Monday.

Welcome to the show, Drew Gilbert!

While Astros fans might feel bitter about Gilbert "arriving" way past his expected due date, it’s tough to validate “what if?” qualms about a player the organization traded 13 months after drafting him. Some players need more time than others to break through, and it’s awesome that Gilbert is experiencing his moment right now.