Houston Astros Select Joe Perez in the 2017 MLB Draft
"The Houston Astros select Joe Perez with the 53rd pick in Round 2 of the 2017 MLB Draft…"
The Houston Astros starting to select players with versatility this draft and that includes Perez who is a righty and can also play third base if needed.
It remains to be seen how he’ll be used with the club as he goes through his motion in the farm but I think there’s a lot to like about this pick. However, there are unknowns since he’s right out of high school. He’s actually leaning toward attending the U (University of Miami) so who knows how long before if and when we’ll see him.
The 6’3,” 205-pound phenom comes out of Archbishop McCarthy High in Southwest Ranches, Fla. a community that’s about a 25-minute drive east of Fort Lauderdale. He’s well-known for his incredible bat and for the intense heat that he can throw from the mound.
Perez, as a third-baseman and cleanup hitter smacked nine home runs, 1.145 slugging percentage and 37 ribbies through 76 at-bats.
He’s already racking up the hardware at an early age, being the named the All-Broward 6A-2A Baseball Player of the Year.
As far as his pitching capabilities, David Furones of the Sun-Sentinel says that his fastball can get up to the triple-digits coupled with an insane curveball and slider. Perez finished the season at McCarthy High with a 4-0 record, a 1.88 ERA, 40 strikeouts through 18.7 pitched for the Mavericks.
However, he won’t be available any time soon. Baseball America reports that Perez will have Tommy John’s surgery after experiencing elbow discomfort, he also had shoulder inflammation earlier in the season before returning back to the mound and putting up respectable numbers.
Take a look at BA’s videos of Perez in action here.
Next: Astros Select J.B. Bukauskas in the first round
The point of it all is that prospects are relatively unknown and with all of the research that goes into picking them in the draft, there’s still a healthy dose of hope that they work out.
What could be on the mind of Jeff Luhnow and the rest of his staff with this pick?
We definitely won’t be seeing this guy for awhile but the potential that this guy has is off the charts and that’s why he’s worthy of a second-round pick.
Go Astros.