Unheralded Astros pitching prospect surges into strikeout lead in Arizona Fall League

When people talk about the Houston Astros' farm system, it is often centered around a few key names like Jacob Melton, Brice Matthews, and Walker Janek, while lamenting the fact that the organization currently ranks as one of the worst minor league crops in all of baseball.

When you look at basically any top 30 prospects list out there right now, righthander Alex Santos' name does not pop up even in such a "weak" system, and most don't even know he is in Houston's system.

This is, frankly, understandable. Santos was picked 72nd overall in the 2020 draft out of high school and has struggled with command, pitch development, and injuries in the three full seasons he has played since then. After getting promoted to Double-A for 2024, Santos made six appearances (five starts) and posted a 7.83 ERA before hitting the injured list for good in early June.

However, Houston clearly saw enough in Santos to give him a chance to re-establish himself on their prospect depth chart in the Arizona Fall League this year. It is safe to say that he is making the most of the opportunity.

Alex Santos is making a name for himself as an Astros prospect worth following down in the AFL

While taking a small sample size of innings from the AFL with a grain of salt is important, especially since no pitcher is throwing starter innings down there, Santos consistently getting this sort of feedback from hitters is encouraging. Both Santos' riding fastball and breaking ball seem to have the high level of competition in Arizona completely bamboozled, with a lot of hitters getting frozen in the box.

Santos has had to make a lot of adjustments as a professional pitcher. The Astros have changed his pitch usage and the shape of his breaking ball, and getting pro hitters out is an entirely different animal than being a man amongst boys in high school. For some guys, it just takes a long time to figure things out.

Sure, it would be great if every top Astros pick hit the ground immediately like Alex Bregman did back in 2015. Hell, Houston fans would be thrilled to have seen a pitching prospect even remotely as heralded as Forrest Whitley during the many years since his breakout.

While there is no guarantee Santos will reach the status as either of those guys, his performance in the AFL is a reminder that player development isn't always linear, and players can always find a way to be a pleasant surprise.

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