Astros select intriguing college catcher with first round pick in 2024 MLB Draft

Eric Cole

May 26, 2023; Mesa, AZ, USA; Sam Houston Bearkats' Walker Janek (3) celebrates his 3-run home run against the GCU Lobos during their WAC Tournament game at Hohokam Stadium. / Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY

The Houston Astros found themselves picking near the bottom of the first round once again thanks to finishing last season in the ALCS. Long gone were the top players in the draft, and most of the buzz surrounding Houston was that they were looking at college athletes, especially those who could play in the field.

The Astros had a few options available on both sides of the ball, and while college hurler Brody Brecht was available and would have been a welcome boost to Houston's farm system that doesn't have much in the way of arms, they did not go in that direction. Instead, amid a wave of boos from the very Rangers-friendly draft crowd, Houston picked college catcher Walker Janek out of Sam Houston State.

Astros News: MLB Draft's best catcher joins Houston's system

While not the sexiest pick on paper, Janek is a great value at the bottom of the first round. He was selected as a catcher and he might be the best defensive catcher in the draft, Janek is very athletic for a catcher and has the ability to play multiple positions. Combine that with a bat that just put up a 1.185 OPS in 58 games with 17 homers, and you have a guy that is just an all-around gamer.

Houston knows that their playoff window could close unless they acquire talent that can help them in the near-term. Yainer Diaz still has a bright future as the Astros' catcher, but he has struggled in 2024 at times, and even if he turns things around, the modern game of baseball rewards teams that have two quality catchers.

The only question now is if the Astros can still find a way to add some pitching talent in the rest of the draft, but picking Janek shouldn't mess up their small bonus pool too much.

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Eric Cole

I started my career writing about baseball covering the Atlanta Braves for SB Nation's Talking Chop back in 2015 which has since been renamed Battery Power. After years of writing for those fine folks, I made the decision to take over as Site Expert at House That Hank Built before becoming a full-time MLB Staff Writer for FanSided in 2023. Along the way, I have been a guest on multiple ESPN radio affiliates as well as 680 The Fan and 92.9 The Game to discuss Braves baseball and especially Braves prospects and was a long-time host on the Battery Power podcast. These days, I continue to write about the Braves as well as covering the Astros, Padres, and Angels with particular expertise with minor league coverage, the MLB Draft, and bashing Anthony Rendon when possible. When I am not writing about or talking about baseball (which is seldom), I am an avid baseball card collector (Maddux and Soroka being my primary personal collections) and I also collect shark teeth. All other sports are mostly dead to me as my Bills have broken my heart too many times.