Inside the Astros

Houston Astros’ Rising Catching Prospect Draws Attention as Breakout Candidate

The Houston Astros could have another young catcher with a chance to break out in their farm system next season.

Dylan Sanders

May 26, 2023; Mesa, AZ, USA; Sam Houston Bearkats' Walker Janek (3) celebrates his 3-run home run against the GCU Lobos during their WAC Tournament game at Hohokam Stadium.
May 26, 2023; Mesa, AZ, USA; Sam Houston Bearkats' Walker Janek (3) celebrates his 3-run home run against the GCU Lobos during their WAC Tournament game at Hohokam Stadium. / Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK
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The Houston Astros took a college catcher in the first round of the 2024 draft and he looks to be a potential star. But he will need to have better results at the plate in 2025.

MLB propsect analysts Jim Callis, Jonathan Mayo and Sam Dykstra recently put together a list of pro they think could breakout for each team. For the Astros, it was catcher Walker Janek.

Janek went No. 28 overall last year and made his professional debut to lackluster results.

He posted just a .175/.214/.289 slash line over his first 25 professional games while hitting one home run. His strikeout rate jumped up and his walk rate lowered.

Though he struggled initially to hit pro pitching, there is little worry that he will be able to adjust to be an at least solid offensive contributor.

The former Sam Houston Bearkats slugger posted an impressive .364/.476/.709 slash line during his final year in college en route to winning the Buster Posey Award as the nation's top catcher.

Defensively, he is as exciting as it gets. He is solidly athletic and has a strong arm. The catcher received the 2024 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year honor as well.

He is not a hard prospect for Houston to get excited about, even with the middling debut in the minors.

Janek could create an interesting dynamic on the MLB roster if he comes up any time soon. The Astros have longterm guys at both catcher and designated hitter.

Yainer Diaz is the current backstop for Houston and has been one of the more consistent offensive presences over the last two seasons.

Diaz posted a .299/.325/.441 slash line with 16 home runs last year. Given that he isn't an elite defender behind the plate, he could end up getting moved to first base full time after Christian Walker's contract is up.

It's not that Diaz is an elite defender at first, he has -2 OAA there in 163 career innings, but he would be much easier to hide there.

Yordan Alvarez will be the designated hitter, at least until his contract runs out after 2028, so there isn't room for Diaz to move there.

It is a decision that won't have to be made for a while, but it could cause some issues in a few years if the time lines progress as planned.

As of right now, Janek isn't expected to make the move to the Majors until late 2026 or some time in 2027.

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Dylan Sanders
DYLAN SANDERS

Dylan Sanders graduated from Louisiana State University with a degree from the Manship School of Mass Communication in 2023. He was born in raised in Baton Rouge, LA but has also lived in Buffalo, NY. Though he is a recent graduate, he has been writing about sports since he was in high school, covering different sports from baseball to football. While in college, he wrote for the school paper The Reveille and for 247Sports. He was able cover championships in football, baseball and women's basketball during his time at LSU. He has also spent a few years covering the NFL draft and every day activities of the New Orleans Saints. He is a Senior Writer at Inside the Marlins and will also be found across Sports Illustrated's baseball sites as a contributing writer. You can follow him on Twitter or Instagram @dillysanders

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