It was a whole lot easier to write about the draft when I had a job in the summer that allowed me to cheat them out of labor so I could put together a post on each draftee. Times have changed, but here's a link dump for each player the Astros drafted. (The links for 1st Round pick Forrest Whitley and 2nd Round pick Ronnie Dawson can be found here).
3rd Round: Jake Rogers - Catcher from Tulane, hit .261/.384/.403 this season. Stole 13 bases in 14 attempts. Threw out 16 of 27 baserunners. Grew up as a Rangers fan, but "I'm a big Astros fan now. It'd be fun to beat up on them a bit."
4th Round: Brett Adcock - Lefty junior pitcher from the University of Michigan. 256 career strikeouts are 5th in Michigan history and his career 3.09 ERA is 7th-lowest in school history. Went 7-5 with a 3.22 ERA this season. Threw 78.1IP, 52H/28ER, 100K:62BB with a .190 BAA.
5th Round: Abraham Toro-Hernandez. "The Bull" - a nickname I made up. Switch-hitter, drafted as a 3B, but played infield at Seminole State Community College and catcher in high school. Grew up just outside of Montreal and speaks English, Spanish and French. Hit .439 with 20 homers, 86 RBI and can throw 92mph. His college coach thinks he could catch in the Majors.
6th Round: Stephen Wrenn, junior center fielder out of the University of Georgia. Son of All-ACC 1B and 2nd Round pick by the Indians, Steve Wrenn. Broke three bones in his face in pre-season after a flyball grazed his glove and popped him the coconut. Career .292 average with the Bulldogs, starting all three years. Hit .324 as a sophomore with eight homers, 28 RBI and 28 stolen bases as a sophomore. Stole 56 bases as a Bulldog.
7th Round: Tyler Buffett, junior righty reliever out of Oklahoma State. Threw 67.1IP, 59H/25ER, 66K:29BB, .236 BAA with no homers allowed. Two-time Big 12 Pitcher of the Week.
8th Round: Nick Hernandez, junior righty reliever grew up in Missouri City (Dulles HS), drafted out of the University of Houston. Called getting drafted by the Astros a "dream come true." Threw 51.1IP, 27H/8ER (1.40 ERA!), 67K:11BB this season with a .154 BAA. Signed for less than slot.
9th Round: Ryan Hartman, a senior lefty pitcher out of Tennessee Wesleyan College. Threw 98IP, 62H/7ER, 129K:12BB (!), a 0.64 ERA and a .176 BAA. Led Division 1 baseball in earned runs and ERA. Signed with the Astros.
10th Round: Dustin Hunt. Senior righty starter out of Northeastern University. Threw 86IP, 68H/26ER, 93K:27BB this season. 54 of those 68 hits were singles. Said getting drafted by the Astros was "the best feeling I've ever had." Signed with the Astros.
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
