Galena Park slugger Ochoa highlights Day 3 draft haul
The third and final day of the MLB draft Tuesday saw the Astros stick mostly to what they’d done the previous two days.
There was another handful of college pitchers taken, but also three high school players after only one was taken during the first two days.
One of those prep players is from Houston, with Galena Park outfielder Nehomar Ochoa Jr. taken in the 11th round with the 344th overall pick. Ochoa had a huge senior season, slashing .602/.685/1.277 to go with 11 home runs, 50 RBIs and 55 runs in 28 games.
“We are incredibly impressed with the physical abilities of Ochoa,” Astros scouting director Kris Gross said. “He runs. He’s got a big arm in the outfield. He came to our workout and showed huge power. He dominated in the spring. The total package jumps off the page. We’re excited to keep another local boy here in Houston.”
Otherwise, it was another day full of college players.
That included taking catchers in consecutive rounds: Texas’ Garret Guillemette (15th) and Tyler Junior College’s Will Bush (16th). Guillemette hit .298 with 11 homers and 60 RBIs, while Bush hit .357 with eight homers and 40 RBIs.
“We think (Guillemette) is a well-rounded catcher,” Gross said. “If he sticks behind the plate, he’s got an average arm. He showed some power at the dish and put up good numbers this year. We think he does a little bit of everything well, and he’s got a chance to be a regular behind the plate.
“(Bush) was at our workout and really impressed us with his raw power at the plate and arm strength.”
The Astros took four more college pitchers, with 17th-rounder Colby Langford from Murray State College in Tishomingo, Okla., being the sole lefthander.
“We like the way the fastball plays,” Gross said. “He’s got a really good slider that’s a potential out pitch.”
This draft was the Astros’ first under general manager Dana Brown, hired partly for his role with drafting success in Atlanta, Toronto and Washington.
“The overall philosophy, we stuck to a lot of things the Astros do, and he definitely brought some new things to the table,” Gross said. “The one thing Dana does bring is an infectious energy to the group. He keeps it loose. It was a really fun experience going through it.”
The Astros have until July 25 to sign their picks. Houston’s bonus pool this year is $6,747,900.
“We’re very happy with the haul we ended up with,” Gross said. “We think we’ve got a good class coming in. Hopefully, we’ll get them signed here in the next week or two and get them out playing.”