Preston Tucker

Tucker put together a solid season at Triple-A Fresno, but he was completely blocked with the Astros. While he hit for impressive power (.215 ISO) and showed significant improvement in terms of patience (11.4 percent walk rate) and contact ability (17.9 percent strikeout rate) with Fresno, Tucker did not receive a September promotion despite already being on the 40-man roster. The Astros didn't need him with the likes of Cameron Maybin, Derek Fisher, Jake Marisnick and Tony Kemp occupying reserve outfield roles down the stretch. Tucker had an extremely high infield-flyball percentage last season (26.2 percent) and he flopped in his 2016 audition, but the 27-year-old probably deserves another platoon opportunity in the big leagues. He's been an above-average hitter as measured by wRC+ at every other level. Tucker will get a look with the Braves this spring after he was traded to Atlanta in December, but it's easy to see him falling into a fourth-outfielder role once Ronald Acuna gets the call.

Coming off a 2015 season that teased power, Tucker started 2016 with a bang, knocking extra-base hits in each of his first five games before regression lowered the boom and sunk his stat line. He hit just .140/.206/.248 in 131 plate appearances the rest of the way, and though Tucker hit well in the PCL during an early-summer vacation to the bush leagues, his bat disappeared again upon his recall to the majors and a subsequent demotion sealed his fate without so much as a September callup. Tucker, who is expected to be ready for the start of spring training following shoulder surgery, will hit the reset button and get back to work for 2017, and though his upside is that of a power bat in need of a platoon partner, his solid performance in the minors suggests that he can still bring some value to both the Astros and to fantasy teams, though opportunities could be hard to come by in a Houston organization that is stacked with hitting prospects.

Tucker made his big league debut last May after a blistering start with Triple-A Fresno, where he hit .320 with 10 home runs and 32 RBI over his first 25 games. Called up for the injured George Springer, the 25-year-old hit .306/.377/.516 during his first month while settling in as the Astros' regular left fielder. His bat cooled during the summer months, however, and his struggles against left-handers (.200 BAA) forced an eventual platoon role with Colby Rasmus and Jake Marisnick, among others. Tucker may have 20-homer potential with regular at-bats, but Houston is rich with quality outfielders behind franchise cornerstones George Springer and Carlos Gomez. Rasmus and Marisnick are capable of playing all three outfield positions and Marisnick's excellent defense gives him an edge over Tucker. As a result, he's likely to open 2016 as the club's fifth outfielder.

Tucker has raked at every stop in the minors since the Astros made him their seventh-round draft pick in 2012. In 138 games between Double-A Corpus Christi and Triple-A Oklahoma City last season, the 24-year-old hit .282/.352/.481 with 24 home runs, 94 RBI and five steals in 536 at-bats. His power bat and ability to play the corner outfield positions along with the occasional start at first base gives him added versatility on defense, and when you combine that with his rapid advancement in the Astros' system thus far, we could be looking at a dark horse candidate for Houston's Opening Day roster. The safer bet, however, is that he opens 2015 where he left off last season; with the RedHawks in Oklahoma City.