Astros Select Kenedy Corona

The Astros announced Tuesday that they’ve selected the contract of outfield prospect Kenedy Corona. Barring a late additional move, it seems he’s the lone addition to their 40-man roster prior to tonight’s deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 Draft. Their 40-man roster is up to 38 players. Ari Alexander of Houston’s KPRC-2 first reported that Corona would be added to the roster.

Corona, 23, came to Houston by way of the 2019 trade that sent outfielder Jake Marisnick from the Astros to the Mets. He spent the bulk of the 2023 season with Houston’s Double-A affiliate, batting .244/.324/.449 with 20 homers and 31 steals in a generally pitcher-friendly setting. He drew a walk in 9.8% of his plate appearances and fanned at a 25.9% clip that the organization would surely like to see him pare down in the future.

Baseball America ranks Corona 14th among Houston farmhands, touting his plus speed, above-average power and range in center field. However, while he’s adept at not chasing pitches off the plate, his contact skills are described as fringe-average, and his right-handed bat was fairly pedestrian against right-handed pitching in 2023 (.244/.336/.426). Against southpaws, however, he turned in a much more robust .278/.313/.579 batting line.