Houston Astros: First round selection is the first baseman of the future

With their first selection of the 2018 MLB draft, the Houston Astros selected Seth Beer out of Clemson University. Let’s dive into his potential impact on this organization.

June has gotten off to a fast and furious start. The Houston Astros split a series with the Boston Red Sox. Last night, the first couple of rounds of the MLB draft took place.

In previous years, the Astros had picks early and often. However, after years of rebuilding (i.e., tanking) the team is selecting in the back half of the draft. The days of competitive balance picks are finally over for Houston.

So, the Houston Astros first pick was 28th overall. In my preview of June, I postulated that the team would select a college bat. Likely, an outfielder or corner infielder. That’s exactly what the Astros did when they selected Seth Beer out of Clemson.

So, what did Beer do to earn a first-round selection? Rake. He absolutely raked at the plate. Following his freshman year in 2016, Beer was being talked about as a potential first overall pick. He slashed .369/.535/.700 with 18 homers, 62 walks, and just 27 strikeouts in 203 at-bats.

Absolutely incredible. However, he was unable to sustain those insane numbers as sophomore slashing only .298/.476/.606 with 16 homers, 64 walks, and 35 strikeouts in 218 at-bats. Still really good offensive numbers.

In 2018, he settled in between those two stat lines. He slashed .316/.471/.656 slash, a career-best 20 homers, 52 walks and 31 strikeouts in 209 at-bats.

If you do that math, he has OUTSTANDING plate discipline and a great eye for the baseball.

In his career at Clemson, Beer drew 180 walks and struck out 98 times in 188 games.
— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) June 5, 2018

So, how will he help out the Houston Astros?

Beer has pretty much played exclusively in the outfielder for the Tigers. In fact, mostly in right field with some left field. However, the Astros appear to already be extremely stacked in the outfield. Both in the majors and the minors.

While Beer appears pretty athletic, it doesn’t always translate to the diamond. Beer grades out fairly below average as a defender in the outfield. His sharpest critics predict he’ll wind up as a DH only kind of guy. But, you don’t draft a DH in the first round.

So, he likely will have to switch positions to be the best big leaguer he can be. The Houston Astros likely see his future impact coming at first base. Which, may also appear stacked already.

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Currently, the Houston Astros trot out 33-year-old Yuli Gurriel as their everyday first baseman. Gurriel still has two years on his deal after this year. So, by the time this contract is up, he’ll be approached his 36-year-old season (He turns 34 June 9th).

The team also has three guys that are potentially right on the cusp of major league time. JD Davis is on his second cup of coffee with the major league club this season. Tyler White and AJ Reed are also getting some serious reps in AAA as well.

However, none of those guys have shown to be the answer after Gurriel at first. White has had his spotlight shine brightly for a little bit but, then it quickly faded. Reed has never been able to translate his bat to the bigs. Davis has had a couple strokes of greatness but, nothing consistent.

That’s where Beer comes into play. He looks, to me, to be the Houston Astros future at first base. A lack of athleticism can be partially hidden at first base and the Astros have shown a propensity to develop players into first basemen. They successfully converted Gurriel from third to first.

Even if one of the guys listed above pans out, the Astros have always shown a willingness to get bats into the lineup. Marwin Gonzalez was turned into a super utility player due to his bat. Now, I’m not saying Beer will be Gonzalez but, it shows the Astros flexibility and creativity.

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So, worst case scenario Beer turns into just a DH with the versatility to play first and outfield in a pinch. Best case scenario, the Houston Astros have their first baseman of the future. With his big bat and plate discipline, he could move quickly through the minors. So, remember the name Seth Beer. You’ll be hearing in Minute Maid Park before you know it.

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