2024 Houston Astros Mock Draft: Who chose the expert?

The 2024 MLB Draft is only 24 days away. The Astros select pick No. 28 and hope to add another top talent to the system. With the mock draft coming in hot, here’s a list of who the draft experts are calling on the Astros on July 14.

Baseball America:

Billy Amick, 3B, Tennessee

“Amick’s raw power should make him a target for many teams throughout the 20s. Will his strikeouts and defensive profile questions push him toward the bottom of this range?” Potentially, but the Astros clearly weren’t deterred by Brice Matthews’ opt-out questions a year ago and he’s looking great this spring in pro ball. Tennessee has a solid chance to finish with multiple first-rounders this year between Amick and Christian Moore.

Amick put together a huge junior season for the Volunteers hitting .311 with 23 HR, 64 RBI in 61 games, helping Tennessee advance to the College World Series. It’s also worth noting that he hit .413 last season at Clemson and in 11 games in the Cape Cod League (wooden bats), Amick hit .268 with a 1.021 OPS.

Athleticism :

Brody Brecht, RHP, Iowa

“Brecht is a less refined college pitcher than his peers, with athleticism and arm strength that suggest greater potential, very much the kind of player that Houston general manager Dana Brown valued in his career as a coach.”

As they mentioned, Brecht is a little crude but has some good things. He runs the fastball up to 101 MPH, in the low 90s, and pairs it with a plus slider that helps generate a ton of strikeouts. This year, he accumulated 128 strikeouts in 78.1 innings with a 3.33 ERA for Iowa.

ESPN:

Dakota Jordan, OF, Mississippi State

“The Astros are kicking some prep position players, but are believed to be leaning heavily toward college position players for the pick. General manager Dana Brown was seen scouting Jordan and DeBarge during conference tournaments with those two and Virginia SS Griff O’Ferrall as the leading candidates for that pick.

Jordan has some of the best raw power in the draft, connecting with 20 HRs and posting a .671 hitting percentage this season for the Bulldogs. MLB noted that he struggled breaking balls, which led to a high number of strikeouts, 84 in 63 games this season.

CBS Sports:

Ryan Sloan, RHP, York HS (IL)

“Sloan is one of the most exciting high school weapons in the draft class. He’s been in the 90s at times this spring, his changeup is as good as you’ll see in the prep ranks, the slider is good and he has a workhorse build (listed at 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds. ). The Astros have only selected a pitcher in the first round four times in the last 11 years and they’ve drafted all four (Mark Appel in 2013, Brady Aiken in 2014, Forrest Whitley in 2016, JB Bukauskas in 2017), but it t was a different front office regime. General manager Dana Brown had a weakness for athletic pitchers with big stuff when he ran the drafts for the Braves. Sloan is right up his alley.

The Sports Tribune:

Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Kansas State

“Following the sign stealing and trash can beatings, the Astros handled the draft penalties imposed on them in 2020 and 2021 quite well by taking advantage of the draft market. Culpepper could be left out here and even be a teenage pick as the only collegiate who has a good chance of sticking in the middle of the field while also possessing a solid offensive tool across the board.

He had a great year at Kansas State hitting .328 with 15 2Bs, 6 3Bs, 11 HRs and 17 stolen bases. He has a positive arm and MLB noted that he has well above average bat speed.

Launderer’s report:

Walker Janek, C, Sam Houston State

“Best available and organizational needs collide here for the Astros with a lack of overall depth at catcher and Janek representing good potential value late in the first round thanks to a stellar performance this spring. A good athlete behind the plate with a positive throwing arm, he hit .364/.476/.709 with 15 doubles, 17 homers, 58 RBIs and 13 steals in 58 games, albeit against second-tier Conference competition American. »

This would be another first round pick for Sam Houston State. Janek, who is a right-handed hitter, is considered to have a positive arm, above-average bat speed and solid power.

After going through the various drafts here, which player would YOU want the Astros to select?