The Astros didn’t get their first MLB debut from their 2024 Draft class. That honor went to a non-drafted signee, and Lucas Spence has already shown why Houston keeps pushing him.
Spence, the Astros’ No. 12 prospect, reached the majors on July 17 after spending parts of his second full pro season between Triple-A Sugar Land and Double-A Corpus Christi. His first run in Houston was brief and uneven: 14 games, five hits, one double, 15 strikeouts and three walks before he was sent back to Sugar Land on Aug. 3.
But the story has shifted in Triple-A.
In Sunday’s 5-0 win over Oklahoma City at Bricktown Ballpark, Spence kept his on-base streak rolling to 12 games. He went 2-for-5 with his second Triple-A triple and an RBI single, adding to a stretch that has been impossible to ignore. He homered twice Friday, has gone deep three times in his last seven games, and has earned at least one walk in five of his 10 starts this month.
Over his last 12 games, Spence has hit .308/.426/.795 with five home runs, two doubles, a triple, 11 RBIs and 10 runs scored. He’s also drawn eight walks against eight strikeouts during that span.
That matters because the strikeouts have been the lingering question. Entering Sunday, Spence carried a 27.9 percent strikeout rate at Triple-A, and the Astros want him to stay stubborn in the zone instead of chasing ways to force results.
“Sometimes he just wants to hit his way out of that slump with extra balls with the machine or tee work or flips,” Astros director of player development Sam Niedorf said. “But we talk about the term 'being obsessed with the game' a lot, and Lucas truly is.
He's the first one in the clubhouse, the last to leave, but he is not going to head home for the day if he has not accomplished his development task for that day, regardless if that takes him until midnight that night after a game. He's not afraid of the work, and I think something that makes him really special.”
Niedorf called the 23-year-old a player who already carries himself like a pro. Spence’s tools have been graded at 60 in both arm and speed, and he’s still projected as a big league center fielder because of his instincts, routes and range.
“He's one of our best defenders, really throughout the system, big leagues down into the Minor Leagues,” Niedorf said. “A lot of it comes down to the preparation, the care he places on defense.
He's not a one-sided player who's solely offensive-oriented. He's a complete player and really takes pride in being the best center fielder that he can be.”
Houston also believes Spence’s progress reflects the way the organization works with its players. Niedorf said Spence met the coaches halfway whenever a new part of his game was introduced, eager to be pushed and unwilling to cut corners.
“A big philosophy for us in player development is once you enter the system, regardless of round, regardless of signing bonus, regardless of age, regardless of where you came from, you're coming in an environment where our job is to make you the best version of yourself,” Niedorf said.
Spence is one of three non-drafted free agents on the Astros’ Top 30 prospects list. The others are infielder Max Holy, No. 29, and No. 27 right-hander Jagger Beck. Holy was also signed in 2024 by Astros Lower Midwest scouting supervisor Freddy Perez.
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