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Farmstros '09 in Review Part 7- Bobby Heck's Second Draft

The Astros signed 25 of their top 26 draft picks in the June draft. In total, 36 of the 51 draft picks signed. There weren't as many early picks for Houston as they had in the 2008 draft; however, several players impressed in their first professional experience.

Jiovanni Mier, SS, Greeneville (1st Round). Mier was ranked by Baseball America as the #2 prospect in the Appalacian League. He batted .276 with seven home runs, 32 RBI and 10 stolen bases in 51 games.

Tanner Bushue, RHP, GCL Astros (2nd Round). Bushue was impressive in five pro starts (2.42 ERA) before being shelved with some back issues.

Dallas Keuchel, LHP, Tri-City (7th Round). Keuchel's arrival at Tri-City was delayed by a strong College World Series appearance (with Arkanasas). Once Keuchel made it to the Valley Cats, he made 10 starts and posted a 2.70 ERA with nine walks and 44 strikeouts in 56 2/3 IP.


J.D. Martinez, OF/1B, Greeneville/Tri-City (20th Round). Martinez was equally effective with Greeneville and Tri-City. His totals for the summer were .348 with 24 doubles, 12 home runs and 56 RBI in 72 games. He was in Tri-City long enough to win the New York-Penn League batting title.

Spencer Hylander, LHP, GCL Astros (50th Round). Hylander was the last player the Astros picked in the draft. He posted a 3.23 ERA in 39 innings. He struck out 26 while walking only nine

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Sleeper

Keep an eye on Grant Hogue. 35th rounder likely to be in Lexington next year. Good CF speed and makes contact well. Had injuries in college that hurt his draft status.

by G-StrosFan on Oct 2, 2009 12:32 PM CDT reply actions  

Why is it we have so much OF/pitching depth at the low levels and so little IF?

I hope they draft some guys who project as power-hitting third base types in 2010.

by OremLK on Oct 2, 2009 12:50 PM CDT reply actions  

How low can you go?

If you look at Greeneville (Mier, Meyer & Altuve) the best players were IF
If you look at GCL, they had a 17 year old SS/2b Enrique Hernandez who hit .295 and an 18 year old SS (Luis Bryan) who hit .340 through 31 games before being injured. Of these 5, Altuve is the oldest, he turned 19 in May. I expect Mier, Meyer, & Altuve to be the starting IF in Lex next year.

by G-StrosFan on Oct 2, 2009 1:43 PM CDT up reply actions  

Interesting

I’ll keep an eye on them.

by OremLK on Oct 2, 2009 1:58 PM CDT up reply actions  

Yeah it appears last year and the year before our OF & P draftees excelled

and most of our infield positions fell flat but this years draft appears to be full of good infielders with a few pitchers mixed in. Berkman and Oswalt likely won’t get another pennant as Stros but look out in 4 years. We could be very dangerous IF players develop like they could. Very big if though.

by Astrosws20 on Oct 2, 2009 3:37 PM CDT up reply actions  

The weird thing about Altuve is he’s only 5’5". If he can go far with that height (and maybe he has just a little bit more growth left) more power to him; it’d be pretty weird seeing a hitter that small in an Astros uniform though.

by OremLK on Oct 3, 2009 4:04 AM CDT up reply actions  

yeah he is small

But has a solid build and some descent power. Very quick. He also is a great deal of fun to watch. He plays hard every play.

by G-StrosFan on Oct 3, 2009 6:05 AM CDT up reply actions  

When we talked about his height previously, I brought up shortstop Freddy Patek, a Seguin TX native, who was listed at 5’5" but was probably 5’4". I recall Patek (played in the 70’s and 80’s) quite well because it always seemed like he was doing something to hurt the Astros as a Pirate. Patek was a 4 time all star and also was a starting shortstop in 4 AL championship series. A quote from Patek:

when asked by a reporter what it felt like to be the smallest player in the major leagues, Patek replied- “it’s better than being the smallest player in the minor leagues.”

I guy like Altuve should have an advantage over the pitcher, if he has any kind of plate discipline, because the strike zone is small.

by clack on Oct 3, 2009 10:18 AM CDT up reply actions  

Hylander?

We seriously drafted a guy named “Hylander”? I don’t care if he sucks, I’m on board.

by Mr. Imperial on Oct 2, 2009 1:37 PM CDT reply actions  

I give up

What’s so special about the name Hylander?

Astros fan for life

by Joe in Birmingham on Oct 2, 2009 4:58 PM CDT reply actions  

...

There can be only one.

by IronM21 on Oct 3, 2009 1:25 AM CDT up reply actions  

It’s a reference to a movie and TV series called Highlander. It’s about a bunch of immortal people who run around stealing each other’s power by cutting of their heads with swords. It’s developed a bit of a cult following.

by AstroAndy on Oct 3, 2009 8:37 AM CDT up reply actions  

Highlander I know about - TV Series and Movies

but it seemed too far a stretch – I guess it wasn’t.

P.S. – Highlander and Forever Night were back-to-back on late Sunday nights here for a few years. I looked forward to Sunday nights.

Astros fan for life

by Joe in Birmingham on Oct 3, 2009 10:38 PM CDT up reply actions  

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