Houston Astros Land Top Pitching Prospect on Arizona Fall League Roster

The Houston Astros will send eight of their top prospects to the annual postseason league out in the desert.

Apr 21, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a Houston Astros hat and glove in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the fifth inning at Truist Park. / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Houston Astros had eight minor-league prospects selected to the initial rosters for the Arizona Fall League, the annual showcase for some of the top prospects in the game.

The Astros prospects selected were right-handed pitcher Jose Fleury, third baseman Austin Deming, outfielder Quincy Hamilton, right-handed pitcher Joey Mancini, catcher Collin Price, right-handed pitcher Alex Santos, right-handed pitcher Nick Swanson and right-handed pitcher Alejandro Torres.

Fleury is the only Top 30 prospect, ranked No. 10 by MLB Pipeline.

The right-hander’s make-up is part of the reason for his selection, as MLB Pipeline noted his “…fading low-80s changeup helps the rest of his repertoire play up.”

Fleury, an international signee from the Dominican Republic, just wrapped up his third season of professional baseball, finishing at Double-A Corpus Christi. He spent the last three months of the season on the 7-day injured list.

In 19 games (11 starts) he went 1-4 with a 3.66 ERA, with 77 strikeouts and 26 walks in 71.1 innings. Opposing hitters batted just .208 against him.

Mancini is another pitcher to watch, as his 2.12 ERA ranked sixth among minor league pitchers with at least 100 innings and opponents batted just .191 against him, good for 11th in the minors.

The Astros selected Mancini in the 15th round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Boston College. The 23-year-old started the year at High-A Asheville and finished it at Corpus Christi, as he went 8-5 in 27 games (nine starts), with 107 strikeouts and 44 walks in 106.1 innings.

Houston will play with the Surprise Saguaros in Surprise, Ariz., the spring training home of both the Kansas City Royals and the Texas Rangers. The Astros prospects will play alongside prospects from the Rangers, Royals, Cleveland Guardians and Baltimore Orioles.

The other five teams in the AFL play in Glendale, Mesa, Peoria, Salt River and Scottsdale.

AFL action starts on Oct. 7 and since it was founded in 1992 more than 3,000 players have participated and moved on to the Majors at some point.

During the season, there are several special events, including a tripleheader at Goodyear Ballpark on Oct. 19, a game at Grand Canyon University on Oct. 25 and a doubleheader at American Family Fields of Phoenix on Oct. 26.

The Fall Stars game is set for Nov. 9 at Sloan Park, with the annual home run derby set for Nov. 8.

When the season concludes on Nov. 14, there will be a play-in semifinal game between the second- and third-place finishers in the standings on Nov. 15 at Scottsdale Stadium. The championship game is held the next day at Salt River Fields.