The Houston Astros’ 2026 draft class is already showing up in the organization’s prospect picture.
In ESPN insider Kiley McDaniel’s updated top 10 rankings for each club, three Astros draft picks cracked the list right away, with two of them landing in the top five. McDaniel’s list of Houston’s top prospects, with 2026 draft picks in bold, reads:
Kevin Alvarez, CF
Xavier Neyens, 3B
Logan Hughes, LF
Jack Radel, RHP
Beau Peterson, 3B
Ethan Frey, RF
Ethan Pecko, RHP
Bryce Mayer, RHP
Walker Janek, C
Albert Fermin, SS
Hughes comes in at No. 3 after Houston took him with the No. 17 overall pick. The outfielder put together a huge spring at Texas Tech, batting .362 with a 1.245 OPS, 18 home runs and 70 runs batted in while earning All-Big 12 First Team honors.
Radel is right behind him at No. 4.
Houston grabbed the right-hander at No. 28 overall, making him the club’s second first-round pick after the Astros received a Prospect Promotion Incentive selection following Hunter Brown’s third-place finish in the 2025 AL Cy Young Award voting. At Notre Dame, Radel was the Friday night starter and picked up All-ACC First Team honors after logging a 3.29 ERA with 116 strikeouts in 87.2 innings.
Peterson also made an immediate impression, checking in at No. 5.
Houston selected him in the fourth round at No. 133 overall with the compensation pick it received after Framber Valdez rejected the Astros’ qualifying offer and signed with Detroit in free agency last winter. The Mill Valley H.S. product in Shawnee, KS, hit .535 with 24 extra-base hits and a 1.536 OPS, and he was named Gatorade Kansas Baseball Player of the Year.
As Hughes, Radel, Peterson and the rest of the class move into pro ball, Houston’s task is clear: turn this wave of new talent into pieces that matter down the line.
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