Houston Astros 2022 MLB Draft Report Card

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Best Pure Hitter: Picking in the first round for the first time since 2019, the Astros selected OF Drew Gilbert (1), who was the best hitter on a Tennessee team that was the most dominant club in college baseball. After hitting .362 with more walks (33) than strikeouts (32) as a college junior, Gilbert hit .313 with more walks (four) than strikeouts (two) in 10 games split between the Florida Complex League and Low-A Fayetteville. His bat-to-ball skills and batting eye should give him a chance to be an above-average hitter.

Best Power Hitter: The Astros got a second first-round talent with their second-round pick, OF Jacob Melton (2), who homered four times and tallied six doubles in his pro debut. Melton spent four games in the Florida Complex League, but all of his extra-base hits came at Low-A Fayetteville, where he slashed .324/.424/.578 with some of the best top-end exit velocities of Houston’s 2022 draft class.

Fastest Runner: Gilbert (1) is at least an above-average runner and has turned in some plus run times from home to first, with the speed to be a good defender in center field. He’s never been a particularly aggressive basestealer, though he has been an efficient one—both in college (84%) and during his pro debut (86%).

Best Defensive Player: Gilbert (1) received above-average reviews for his defensive ability in center field at Tennessee, and while he isn’t the fastest runner you’ll see at the position, he takes solid routes and also has a plus throwing arm that should be an asset in holding base runners.

Best Fastball: RHP Tyler Guilfoil (8) sits in the low 90s and has topped out at 95 mph, but he dominated college hitters with the pitch during the 2022 season with Kentucky (.146/.259/.250, 34% whiff rate) while throwing it 80% of the time. It’s a lower spin fastball, but has more than 18 inches of induced vertical break and a shallow vertical approach angle which helps it play up.

Best Secondary Pitch: RHP AJ Blubaugh (7) was the back-to-back Horizon League reliever of the year with Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2021 and 2022 and his biggest bat-misser was a low-80s changeup. The pitch features almost 10 mph of velocity separation from his fastball, while also having around 12 inches of separation in vertical movement, and generated whiffs more than 40% of the time in his 18.2-inning pro debut.

Best Pro Debut: Melton (2) was 72% better than the…