The Houston Astros have finally come to terms with their first round pick of the 2017 MLB draft, J.B. Bukauskas. Astros fans must have been sweating bullets as the team doesn’t have the best history with first round picks that are pitchers.
TheHouston Astroswere able to get the job done though,signing Bukauskas to just over slot valueat $3.6 million dollars according to Jim Callis at MLBPipeline.com. Where Bukauskas will rank on the Astros top 30 prospect list is yet to be seen, though I’d imagine he would slot into the top 10.
Bukauskas is definitely needed in the Astros farm system as they are desperate for arms that are closer to major league ready. With the suspension ofDavid Paulino, the injury toJandel Gustave, and the impending trade deadline that will potentially sendFrancis Martes, Forrest Whitley or Franklin Perez out of the system, it’s good that the team is infusing a college pitcher into the mix.
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Especially considering that of their12 pitching prospects in the top 30 listaccording to mlb.com, only five have pitched above double-A ball. And of those five one is suspended and the other is out for the year as mentioned above in regards to David Paulino and Jandel Gustave.
Scouting director and assistant general manager Mike Elias seems to be quite enamored with the young lad and his exploits. Here’s a little more about what he had to say in regards to the talent the Astros farm system is receiving this summer perAstros.com:
"A fastball that gets up to 98 [mph] and sits in the 94-95 range for most of the game. He’s got an above-average slider. It’s a plus slider that we view as almost a Major League-ready weapon. He’s got a changeup that our scouts like quite a bit. He’s used it some in college, but it’s something he’s going to use more often, especially against left-handed hitters. He’s got it .We see three pitches. We see a body of work, a track record and a durability that points to a future starting pitcher in the big leagues — which is the goal."
The old adage is that you can never have enough pitching in baseball. With the frequency of injuries, questions about durability, and pitchers ability to control the strike zone when dealing with more patient hitters who display better pitch recognition than previous competition, pitching is always more of a crap shoot than offensive players.
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The Houston Astros certainly could use more help in the pitching department when it comes to their farm system as Francis Martes, David Paulino, Jandel Gustave, and Brady Rodgers have already seen brief promotions. Bukauskas was a solid choice for the team to restock the farm system’s pitching arsenal. And we’re looking forward to seeing him in an Astros uniform sooner rather than later.
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