Nothing has changed in the 2014 MLB mock draft. The Houston Astros selecting Carlos Rodon number one overall is a no brainer.

http://www.mymlbdraft.com/MLB-Mock-Draft

The Astros will become the first MLB franchise to pick number one overall three times in a row. It will probably be opening day 2015 when all three of those guys are on the big league roster: Carlos Correa, Mark Appel and Carlos Rodon. I can't wait for June 5 when we are on the clock. But plenty of time until then. I'm excited to see what the Astros can accomplish in free agency starting in a few weeks.

General manager Jeff Luhnow did a great job working in the scouting department for the St. Louis Cardinals from 2003 to 2011. He's a big reason why the Cardinals are loaded with talent and continue to be so successful year after year.

What's scary is Luhnow is picking first overall in every round of the upcoming draft yet again. That's like giving a world-famous chef every ingredient to cook with. We open the 2014 season at home against the Yankees on Tuesday, April 1

Jeff Luhnow mentioned last night on his radio show that the Astros plan to be very active in free agency. A lot more than they were last winter. He talked about them willing to spend a lot of money and how they had the second-highest bid for Cuban first baseman Jose Abreu. He congratulated the White Sox for winning the bid but said the Astros will not hesitate to go after free agents who can help this team win games regardless of the cost.

The plan is to increase the payroll to around $100 million by 2016. Right now their payroll is only $21 million and the lowest in baseball. He also said George Springer has a great chance to win the starting job in center field out of spring training in March. He compared George Springer to a young Jacoby Ellsbury from the Boston Red Sox, but is hopeful that Springer will be more consistent and healthy throughout his career unlike Jacoby Ellsbury.

Jeff Luhnow also said the Astros plan to talk to Nolan Ryan about a job with the organization at some point in the future. His son Reid Ryan is currently the President of business operations for the Astros. They respect Nolan's privacy and know he wants to just relax with his family and get away from baseball after he stepped down as the Rangers CEO last week.

They also want to offer hometown hero Andy Pettitte a personal service contract, like they have in place with Roger Clemens, who will be back at spring training working with the young pitchers. I'm not sure when they will get that done but hopefully they'll get a deal done so that Pettitte can exclusively work with the Astros and no other team.

Things are definitely on the ups for the Houston Astros. We just have to be patient another few years before we'll contend, IMO.

I'm hoping there is something exciting to talk about with the Astros in the next week or two. They will be very active in free agency and I expect them to have a good hot stove league. A good article on MLB.com talking about how the Astros may have the best farm system in all of baseball right now. I think it's definitely in the top three and likely will be number one after the 2014 MLB Draft in June. I'm ready for them to draft Carlos Rodon number one overall.



By Jim Callis / MLB.com

Pipeline Perspectives: Astros look like best system
Successive No. 1 Draft picks, trades for solid prospects give Houston promising future

The Astros haven't given their fans much cause for joy lately. They've posted the worst record in the Major Leagues and set a new franchise mark for losses in each of the past three seasons. Houston, 51-111 this year, is the first team to finish at the bottom of the big leagues for three straight years since the 1962-65 Mets, who set the standard for futility.

Those Mets underwent an amazin' transformation, however, winning the World Series in 1969. I won't go on record as predicting the Astros will capture a championship in the next four years, but I will say this: Their future is undeniably bright because they have baseball's best farm system, with potential standouts all over the diamond.

It wasn't always like this. Entering both the 2009 and 2010 seasons, Baseball America rated Houston's system as the worst in the game, which proved to be a harbinger of doom at the Major League level. But since then, the Astros have drafted much better and engineered several trades, pumping some much-needed young talent into the organization.

Houston has had five first-round selections in the past four Drafts, and all of them have the look of franchise cornerstones. In 2010, it chose second baseman-turned-center fielder Delino DeShields Jr., who might be the best leadoff prospect in the Minors, and right-hander Mike Foltynewicz, who regularly touched 100 mph in his starts during the second half of this season. The Astros grabbed center fielder George Springer in 2011, and this season he nearly became the first 40-40 player in the modern history of the Minor Leagues.

The Astros' consolation prize for having the worst record in 2011 and 2012 was the No. 1 overall pick in each of the past two Drafts. Last year, Houston used the top choice on shortstop Carlos Correa, who has drawn some comparisons to Alex Rodriguez (or Manny Machado, if you prefer to be more conservative). This June, the Astros opted for college right-hander Mark Appel, who combines polish and stuff and should headline their big league rotation before too long.

Other important building blocks plucked from recent drafts include right-handers Lance McCullers Jr. (supplemental first round in 2012) and Vincent Velasquez (second in 2010), shortstop Nolan Fontana (second in 2012) and third baseman Rio Ruiz (fourth in 2012).

The Astros also have been active on the trade front. Their most important deal was made in July 2011, when they sent Hunter Pence to the Phillies and got three blue-chip prospects in return: right-hander Jarred Cosart (who graduated to Minute Maid Park this year), first baseman Jonathan Singleton and outfielder Domingo Santana. Other trades have landed left-hander Josh Hader, right-handers Kyle Smith and Asher Wojciechowski and outfielder Danry Vasquez -- not to mention since-graduated big leaguers Chris Carter, Matt Dominguez, Robbie Grossman, Brett Oberholtzer, Brad Peacock and Jonathan Villar.

Though winning isn't the priority in the Minor Leagues, it can indicate depth of talent. The Astros' U.S. based-affiliates led the Minors with a .570 winning percentage this year and six of them qualified for playoffs, a feat no organization had accomplished since the Pirates in 2003.

I heard that the Astros were talking to free agents Roy Halladay and Marlon Byrd. Interesting names. I wasn't expecting to see them go after some aging players this winter. Both of them are 36 years old and between the two, Marlon Byrd is the one playing well and putting up career numbers late in his career.

We're going to have the best young starting rotation in all of baseball once Mark Appel and Carlos Rodon are called up (our likely top pick in June). Both Jarred Cosart (1.95 ERA in 10 starts) and Brett Oberholtzer (2.76 ERA in 10 starts) shined as rookies in 2013 once they were called up, and we have plenty of young arms on the way up, which includes flamethrower Mike Foltynewicz. That kid could become our future closer though. He has an A-plus fastball with great velocity that constantly hits the triple digits.

I guess one veteran starting pitcher wouldn't hurt to bridge the gap in 2014. We need bullpen help more than anything right now. I expect the Astros will sign two or three free agent relievers, along with a veteran starting pitcher and power hitter. Marlon Byrd did hit .291 with 24 home runs and 88 RBIs this year. He was even better in the playoffs. The guy can produce despite his old age no doubt. He may be a good choice if he's willing to sign for a one or two-year deal.

I'd rather see the Astros sign switch-hitter Kendrys Morales but he could be too pricey at $15-to-$17 million per year over the five or six years he'll likely command. His agent, Scott Boras, is looking for a really ridiculous deal. Quite frankly, I'm not sure if he's worth that kind of money just to DH. He would definitely be a huge upgrade for this team but the last thing we need is to make a bad long-term signing this winter.

There are other free agent bats that can produce similar power numbers, if not better, (compare Byrd to Morales in 2013) and for far less the price.

This post was edited by Madmartigan on Nov 9 2013 02:58pm

Astros set to meet with projected No. 1 pick Carlos Rodon

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/11/13/astros-set-to-meet-with-projected-no-1-pick-carlos-rodon/

Carlos Rodon has been the projected No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 draft for a long time now and the Astros hold the top selection for the third straight season, so Houston is sending some representatives to meet with the North Carolina State left-hander. Certainly a lot can change between now and June, but there’s no doubt that Rodon will enter the college season as the consensus top-ranked player in the country.

Not much going on with the hot stove league yet. The Astros had some trade talks with the Mets involving Ike Davis but the Astros are unwilling to part with any of their talented young prospects. The Astros are talking to free agents Chris Young and LaTroy Hawkins at the moment.

Brian McTaggart @brianmctaggart
Free agent outfielder Chris Young says he would like to play for hometown Astros, but wouldn't say if he's contacted them.
7:20 PM - 14 Nov 2013

Brian McTaggart @brianmctaggart
Free agent pitcher LaTroy Hawkins says Astros haven't called him, but he does have irons in the fire
7:31 PM - 14 Nov 2013

We have to do better than that. LOL. It sucks we missed out on Marlon Byrd. Chris Young, at least to me, would be another Carlos Pena or Rick Ankiel type of signing - two horrible signings we made last year - because he's just not a good hitter anymore. He hit .200 in 335 at-bats this past season.

By comparison, Chris Young makes Mark Reynolds look a lot more enticing. At least from a DH perspective. I guess if we signed Chris Young he would play right field for us? I think Robbie Grossman will be in left field and George Springer will be in center field on opening day. I'd rather just go with L.J. Hoes in right field since he's at least fast and good with the glove.

I mean jeez. I don't want any old bums on this team. I would have made an exception for Marlon Byrd though.
The Astros may be better off accelerating the process of some of their elite talent in the minor leagues.

Domingo Santana, 21 years old (6'5, 230) has a bright future ahead

I'm so glad the Astros added Domingo Santana to their 40-man roster earlier today. We couldn't afford to lose him in the Rule 5 Draft.

He hit .252 with 23 doubles, 25 home runs, 64 RBI and 12 stolen bases in 112 games with Corpus Christi in 2013. Santana played the entire season as the second-youngest player in the Texas League and finished third in the circuit in home runs and slugging percentage (.498), tied for third in extra-base hits (50) and fourth in OPS (.842).

Santana was originally acquired by Houston as one of four players the Astros received from Philadelphia in exchange for outfielder Hunter Pence on July 29, 2011.

That kid is still making great strides. I think he'll be called up to the big leagues at some point in 2015 which should be around the time Carlos Correa is called up at shortstop. Santana has to show he can hit for a better batting average at Triple-A, but he looks pretty solid everywhere else and has a canon arm in the outfield. His playing style is compared to Vladimir Guerrero who was also a similar size and from the Dominican Republic. Hopefully Domingo Santana can become our right fielder of the future.

We already have Robbie Grossman in left field and George Springer in center field which should be our starters on opening day 2014. For now we'll have to go with the speedy L.J. Hoes in right field but he offers no power or run-producing potential which is the only down side. We may lose J.D. Martinez in the rule five draft.

The Astros currently have 37 players on their 40-man roster. So they can add up to three players when the Rule 5 Draft takes place on December 12.

This post was edited by Madmartigan on Nov 21 2013 07:13pm

Ah, the memories. That was the first year of the new downtown ballpark. Tal's Hill ate people alive early on. LOL
It was named Enron Field before the company went bankrupt. And then Astros Field and finally Minute Maid Park.

5/26/00: After missing Jeff Bagwell's fly on Tal's Hill, Andruw Jones makes a catch in almost the exact spot on the very next pitch



I remember watching that game. What an incredible turn of events for Andruw Jones.
People still say that Tal's Hill is tacky and unnecessary all of these years later but I disagree.

yea there should be more quarter pipes in the OF

The only thing keeping me upbeat about the Astros is the talented young team we're going to have in the near future. I'm excited that Robbie Grossman will be our left fielder and George Springer will be starting in center field on opening day. We have the makings of a pretty good outfield. While L.J. Hoes should be in right field in 2014, I have high expectations that in the next year or two Domingo Santana will be ready to make his mark in the big leagues.

Good lefties are hard to find and we may soon have two of the better ones in all of baseball. Young ones too. I speak of Carlos Rodon (our likely top pick in June) and Brett Oberholtzer (2.76 ERA as a rookie in 2013). Those guys paired up with Jarred Cosart (1.95 ERA as a rookie in 2013) and Mark Appel will give us one of the best young starting rotations in all of baseball.

We're also stacked at shortstop. Jonathan Villar has some real promise but Carlos Correa is our future at that position.
Let the Rangers and Angels have big payrolls for now. I think we're doing it the right way by improving with young talent.

Yeah, it sucks to have to be patient and not making that big splash in free agency this winter. People always want that quick fix, especially fans of big-market teams like the Mets, Angels, Cubs, Yankees, etc... etc... We are sort of doing it the same way the Athletics and Mariners are but it may pay off as soon as 2015.

From 2015 to 2030, I could see the Astros being very competitive like they were from 1991 to 2008. Jeff Luhnow, the Astros GM, set the Cardinals up for many years of success. He obviously knows what he's doing. We're very close to having a team worth watching again. Two more years and I think the Astros will no longer be the laughing stock of Major League Baseball.

In fact, I wouldn't be shocked if the Astros flirted with a .500 record in 2014. More likely to be 70-92 but for sure we can avoid 100 losses for a 4th straight season. I don't want to become the first MLB team to pick first overall in the draft four years in a row. LOL
But even then I wouldn't necessarily complain. Being able to draft elite prospects isn't hurting us.