The Astros’ 2025 draft class has already given the organization a little bit of everything: loud power, speed, patience, a starter conversion and a promising arm from a smaller college. And according to Sam Niedorf, the team’s first-year director of player development, the early returns have been strong across the board.
The headliner is first-rounder Xavier Neyens, the Astros’ No. 2 prospect, who will represent the club in Sunday’s All-Star Futures Game. In his first 283 plate appearances with Single-A Fayetteville, the shortstop out of Mount Vernon High School in Washington has hit .240/.452/.461 with 13 homers, 36 RBIs, 15 steals and 74 walks. He’s spent more time at third base than shortstop so far this season, but the bat has carried the profile.
“The power production, we're going to put that up against any player in the Minor Leagues,” Niedorf said. “We have huge confidence in this player's ability to continue the progress through the system and maintain the same level of output on the power production standpoint that we've seen all year.
I think to say he's exceeded expectations might be light. He's done more than that.”
Third-round pick Ethan Frey, the Astros’ No. 3 prospect, opened the year at High-A Asheville before a hamstring injury on June 3 sent him to the team’s Spring Training facility in West Palm Beach, Fla., for rehab. Before the injury, the LSU outfielder was slashing .254/.353/.400 with five homers, 31 RBIs, 30 walks and 13 steals in 218 plate appearances. The organization has pushed him in center field, and Niedorf said the defensive tools have stood out.
“We've been pretty aggressive in our position on playing [Frey] in center field and giving him every chance to play out there on a consistent basis, and he's done that,” Niedorf said. “The speed, the react, the arm strength have all been super impressive. At this point, excited to see him coming back in the next couple weeks as he rehabs from his hamstring, but all signs are pointed upwards with what we saw offensively prior to the injury.”
Nick Monistere, the Astros’ No. 30 prospect, has also been sidelined in West Palm Beach while recovering from a right oblique injury. The fourth-round pick from Southern Mississippi, who was the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year last year after hitting 21 homers, posted a .250/.392/.413 line with 16 walks, 27 strikeouts and 15 stolen bases in his first 104 plate appearances at Asheville before missing the last two months.
“Nick showed really strong strike-zone control, a really patient approach to the plate and draws his walks,” Niedorf said. “I think a plus from my end is he's a second baseman who can play some short, but just the impact that he had on the bases so far this year has been really, really impressive.
… He wreaks havoc on the opponent, going first to third and second to home and doing the little things on the bases to help his team. He’s a really good athlete, and we look forward to getting him healthy and healed and back to an affiliate.”
On the mound, fifth-rounder Nick Potter has made the jump from college reliever to pro starter, and the early results have been encouraging. The Wichita State right-hander, the Astros’ No. 27 prospect, has made 13 starts for Fayetteville and owns a 2.22 ERA and 1.16 WHIP with 25 walks and 48 strikeouts in 44 2/3 innings. Because he didn’t carry a heavy workload in college, Houston has been easing him along.
“Ultimately the development of a third pitch [a curveball], which he's been working on all year, will be key,” Niedorf said. “We’ve seen some really good flashes of that in-game.
The consistency part of that is not there yet, but he continues to work on that in the shadows. I think the calling card on Nick coming out of the Draft was the fastball, and that's lived up to every expectation we’ve had of him.”
The sixth-rounder, Gabel Pentecost, the Astros’ No. 28 prospect, has been limited by a right forearm injury. The Taylor (Indiana) University right-hander has thrown 17 innings in four games, including two starts, for Fayetteville and has a 4.24 ERA and 1.12 WHIP with 19 strikeouts. He hasn’t pitched since earning a win with 5 1/3 innings on April 24 and is now rehabbing in West Palm Beach.
“We think he has pitches that can miss bats on both left-handed and right-handed hitters, which is what excites us,” Niedorf said. “He has the ability to throw strikes with multiple different offerings and keep hitters off balance with his approach. He’s super advanced for his age, obviously more of a mid-major [college] product from the amateur rank, but someone who's mature and wise beyond his years and someone who probably isn't a household name but will be soon when he gets healthy and progresses through the system.”
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