Shay Whitcomb

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #23 prospect in 2024
  BA Grade: 40/High
  
  Track Record: Whitcomb rode momentum of a loud pre-draft summer in the Cape Cod League into his draft spring before the season was shut down due to the pandemic. The Astros selected Whitcomb in the fifth round and signed him for a below-slot $56,000. He debuted in Low-A Fayetteville in 2021 and hit .293/.363/.530 across Low-A and High-A. He broke camp with Double-A Corpus Christi in 2022 but struggled, hitting .219/.283/.399 over 118 games. Whitcomb returned to Double-A to begin 2023 and showed improved power and defensive skills. He hit .273/.340/.545 over 46 games with Corpus Christi before earning a promotion to Triple-A Sugar Land. Whitcomb finished with 35 home runs, tied for the minor league lead. Whitcomb was left unprotected for the Rule 5 draft and went unselected.
  
  Scouting Report: After stumbling in 2022, Whitcomb refined several parts of his game heading into 2023. His well below-average contact improved to fringe-average as he showed more consistent control of the barrel. Whitcomb’s approach is hyper-aggressive and leads to swing-and-miss driven by poor swing decisions. The contact Whitcomb does make comes with plenty of impact thanks to excellent exit velocity and launch angle numbers. Whitcomb is a fringe-average runner with solid baserunning instincts. After poor defense in the infield in 2022, Whitcomb made the jump to fringe-average at multiple spots in the infield. His once below-average arm has added strength as well.
  
  The Future: Whitcomb is a difficult profile as a power-first utility infielder. If he can calm his approach, Whitcomb has the impact to push for second-division regular status.
  
  Scouting Grades Hit: 30 | Power: 55 | Run: 45 | Field: 45 | Arm: 50
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #26 prospect in 2022
  Track Record: Whitcomb signed for $56,000 after Houston took him with its final pick during the five-round draft in 2020. He flew under the radar at Division II UC San Diego, but popped onto the Astros’ radar with a strong showing in the Cape Cod League after his sophomore year. Whitcomb affirmed the Astros’ faith in him with a strong debut season in 2021 that ended at High-A Asheville. He and Yankees top prospect Anthony Volpe were the only two minor league players that finished 2021 with at least 20 homers, 25 doubles and 30 stolen bases.
  
  Scouting Report: Whitcomb has above-average raw power and some of the organization’s highest exit velocities. He gets pull-happy and is strikeout-prone, creating worry that his swing-and-miss issues will be exploited by advanced pitching. Offense will be Whitcomb’s ticket to advancement. He is a fringe-average runner and a below-average defender at shortstop. With limited range, bad footwork and a below-average throwing arm, some scouts think he is destined for second base while others contend he may slug his way onto a corner.
  
  The Future: Whitcomb quieted some doubts with his excellent 2021, but will face stiffer competition in 2022, when he could reach Double-A.
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #21 prospect in 2021
  TRACK RECORD: Whitcomb played at Division II at UC San Diego and elevated his stock with a strong summer after his sophomore year in the Cape Cod League, where he hit .303/.371/.606 with eight home runs in 34 games. He was the 160th and final pick of the five-round draft in 2020, signing for $56,000 before reporting to instructional league.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Whitcomb's Cape performance increased scouts' confidence in his ability to hit better pitching. He has the ability to turn around good velocity and drive the ball for above-average raw power. There could be more power to unlock as he works to hit from a sturdier base on his back side and get into a better hitting position, an adjustment he seemed to be working through during instructs. What Whitcomb does at the plate drives his value. He's an average runner who doesn't have the footwork or range for shortstop, with his arm probably pushing him to second base, though he could see time at third.
  
  THE FUTURE: Whitcomb fits the mold of players with hitterish tendencies the Astros have targeted in recent years. He should start 2021 at one of the team's Class A affiliates.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #156 prospect in 2020 draft
  Whitcomb made waves in the Cape Cod League last summer when he hit .303 with eight home runs in 34 games while posting sizzling exit velocities. He continued mashing this spring at UC San Diego to solidify his rising stock before the season shut down. Whitcomb is the rare Division II prospect who scouts are confident will hit. He has a good swing, turns around velocity, consistently finds the barrel and has above-average raw power he gets to in games. Evaluators see him as at least an average hitter and possibly more. Whitcomb is a fringy defender with a below-average arm at shortstop, leading scouts to project him as an offensively-driven second baseman in pro ball. Whitcomb’s bat, solidified by his performance on the Cape, has him in top five rounds consideration. He has a chance to be the first Division II player drafted this year.

• December, 2021 Scouting Report
  Track Record: Whitcomb signed for $56,000 after Houston took him with its final pick during the five-round draft in 2020. He flew under the radar at Division II UC San Diego, but popped onto the Astros’ radar with a strong showing in the Cape Cod League after his sophomore year. Whitcomb affirmed the Astros’ faith in him with a strong debut season in 2021 that ended at High-A Asheville. He and Yankees top prospect Anthony Volpe were the only two minor league players that finished 2021 with at least 20 homers, 25 doubles and 30 stolen bases.
  
  Scouting Report: Whitcomb has above-average raw power and some of the organization’s highest exit velocities. He gets pull-happy and is strikeout-prone, creating worry that his swing-and-miss issues will be exploited by advanced pitching. Offense will be Whitcomb’s ticket to advancement. He is a fringe-average runner and a below-average defender at shortstop. With limited range, bad footwork and a below-average throwing arm, some scouts think he is destined for second base while others contend he may slug his way onto a corner.
  
  The Future: Whitcomb quieted some doubts with his excellent 2021, but will face stiffer competition in 2022, when he could reach Double-A.
• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Whitcomb played at Division II at UC San Diego and elevated his stock with a strong summer after his sophomore year in the Cape Cod League, where he hit .303/.371/.606 with eight home runs in 34 games. He was the 160th and final pick of the five-round draft in 2020, signing for $56,000 before reporting to instructional league.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Whitcomb's Cape performance increased scouts' confidence in his ability to hit better pitching. He has the ability to turn around good velocity and drive the ball for above-average raw power. There could be more power to unlock as he works to hit from a sturdier base on his back side and get into a better hitting position, an adjustment he seemed to be working through during instructs. What Whitcomb does at the plate drives his value. He's an average runner who doesn't have the footwork or range for shortstop, with his arm probably pushing him to second base, though he could see time at third.
  
  THE FUTURE: Whitcomb fits the mold of players with hitterish tendencies the Astros have targeted in recent years. He should start 2021 at one of the team's Class A affiliates.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Whitcomb played at Division II at UC San Diego and elevated his stock with a strong summer after his sophomore year in the Cape Cod League, where he hit .303/.371/.606 with eight home runs in 34 games. He was the 160th and final pick of the five-round draft in 2020, signing for $56,000 before reporting to instructional league.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Whitcomb's Cape performance increased scouts' confidence in his ability to hit better pitching. He has the ability to turn around good velocity and drive the ball for above-average raw power. There could be more power to unlock as he works to hit from a sturdier base on his back side and get into a better hitting position, an adjustment he seemed to be working through during instructs. What Whitcomb does at the plate drives his value. He's an average runner who doesn't have the footwork or range for shortstop, with his arm probably pushing him to second base, though he could see time at third.
  
  THE FUTURE: Whitcomb fits the mold of players with hitterish tendencies the Astros have targeted in recent years. He should start 2021 at one of the team's Class A affiliates.