Shay Whitcomb Could Be Astros’ Latest Unheralded Find | Triple-A Best Tools
Few organizations develop so many prospects from unheralded backgrounds as the Astros.
For many of those prospects, Triple-A Sugar Land is where they blossom fully.
In 2021, shortstop Jeremy Peña and outfielders Jake Meyers and Bryan De La Cruz took major steps forward at Sugar Land. In 2022, Yainer Diaz emerged as a potential everyday catcher.
This year, Shay Whitcomb is making his case to be next. The 25-year-old Sugar Land shortstop was voted Best Power Prospect and Most Exciting Player by Pacific Coast League managers in Best Tools surveys.
Whitcomb was the final pick of the five-round 2020 draft. The UC San Diego product signed for just $56,000, one of the lowest bonuses that year.
He has hit for steady power in the minor leagues, including a 35-bomb barrage last season at Double-A and Triple-A. But that outburst came paired with a 30% strikeout rate.
This year, Whitcomb has reined in his aggression while hanging on to his hard-hit rate. His strikeout rate shrunk to just under 20%, while his isolated slugging and OPS far outpaced his work at Triple-A last year.
In addition to shortstop, Whitcomb has started at least 10 games at third base, second base and left field. So while power is his carrying tool, his versatility will help him get his foot in the door.
