Ranking the 5 Worst Astros First-Round Draft Picks by bWAR

First round picks are not always successful and the Astros are no exception to that rule.

Aug 6, 2013; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Astros starting pitcher Jordan Lyles (18) pitches during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Minute Maid Park. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

If a team drafts a contributor in the first round, they get a lot of praise for finding their guy. That's been the case for the Houston Astros throughout their history, taking Craig Biggio in the first round and building a championship roster with Carlos Correa, George Springer and Alex Bregman in the first.

But just like every other team, they've had their misses as well. No team has hit 100 percent on first-rounders. The prime examples of this came in the two drafts right after Correa. In 2013, they took Mark Appel with the first overall pick and Brady Aiken at the same pick the next season. They were downright disasters and didn't even play for the Astros. Aiken didn't even sign that year.

The two starters won't be on this list since they didn't play in the majors for Houston. However, they did have other first-rounders who cracked the majors but weren't successful after their debuts. The list kicks off with a player who only suited up for two seasons with the team.

1. RHP Ryan Bowen, -3.0 bWAR

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Bowen was drafted 13th overall in the 1986 draft and he looked promising in his first few seasons of pro ball. As a 19-year-old in Single-A, Bowen started 26 games with a 4.04 ERA and 12 wins in 160.1 innings. While he was throwing an impressive amount of innings right away, a problem started to creep up with his 4.4 walks per nine.

He was hurt in 1988, but over the next two seasons, he was throwing around 140 innings and posting similar ERAs to his first year, but over four in both seasons. He started 18 games at Triple-A with a 4.38 ERA before being called up to make his debut.

The right-hander was never able to find his footing in the majors while wearing an Astros uniform. As a rookie, he pitched in 14 games and threw 71.1 innings, walking 4.5 batters per nine and posting a 1.521 WHIP and -0.7 bWAR. His FIP, 3.85, suggested he might have been getting unlucky, but that was dispelled fairly quickly.

Bowen blew up in 1992, starting nine games and pitching in 11. In 33.3 innings, he allowed 41 earned runs, a 10.96 ERA. The then-24-year-old couldn't find his command, allowing eight home runs (2.1 HR/9) and walking 30 batters, coming out to an 8.0 BB/9 compared to a 5.9 K/9. His WHIP ballooned to 2.317.

He was picked by the Florida Marlins in the expansion draft before the 1993 season and found some success there in one season, but his time as an Astros is something he likely wanted to forget.

2. RHP Jordan Lyles, -2.7 bWAR

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Lyles is the youngest player on the list, having been selected in the first round of the 2008 draft and pitching as recently as 2024. He's managed to put together a 14-year career, throwing out of the bullpen and becoming an innings eater in 2021, throwing 177 or more innings from 2021-24. However, his career got off to a rocky start in Houston.

The right-hander arrived in the majors at an inopportune time. Houston was in the middle of tanking and moving to the American League and as a 20-year-old, Lyles was on the Astros teams that lost 100 games in three straight seasons.

However, even as a young pitcher who had a chance to prove himself as someone who could be on the next good Astros teams, Lyles didn't take advantage.

As a rookie, he started 15 games and pitched in five more out of the bullpen. In 94 innings, he posted a 5.36 ERA and struck out just 67 batters.

Ultimately, that would just be the pitcher Lyles was during his time in Houston. He would go on to throw 141 innings over the next two years, but his ERA was over five in both seasons and he was striking out just 6.1 batters per nine and allowed 1.2 homers per nine.

3. RHP Brian Williams, -1.8 bWAR

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Williams was selected 31st overall in the 1990 draft out of the University of South Carolina. He moved quickly through the minor leagues, making his debut the very next season with two starts in September. In 12 innings, Williams allowed five runs and struck out four.

He continued the promising start to his career the next season, starting 16 games to the tune of a 3.92 ERA in 96.1 innings. He struck out 54 batters and finished seventh in Rookie of the Year voting that season. It looked like Houston might have a budding rotation piece in the 23-year-old.

Unfortunately, Williams' career took a turn for the worse as he posted -2.6 bWAR over the course of the next two seasons. He became a reliever in 1993, pitching in 42 games and only starting five. The right-hander threw 82 innings and had an ERA of 4.83. He struck out more batters than he had before, posting a 6.1 K/9, but he also struggled with control and walked 4.2 batters per nine. He recorded three saves.

His final season in Houston would be 1994, where it completely unraveled for the 25-year-old. Williams started 13 games and pitched in 20 total, throwing 78.1 innings. His strikeouts went down and his walks went up, causing his WHIP to reach a career high 1.953. That, coupled with a 5.74 ERA, left him with a -1.9 bWAR.

Williams was traded to San Diego in the offseason, ending his tenure with the Astros at 130 games.

4. RHP Bo McLaughlin, -0.9 bWAR

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McLaughlin, the oldest player on the list, was drafted 14th overall in 1975 out of Lipscomb University. The right-hander made his major league debut in 1976 with a very promising campaign. He pitched in 17 games, 11 starts, and was solid as a rookie.

The 22-year-old threw 79 innings, walking just 1.9 batters per nine and posting a 1.114 WHIP. His ERA of 2.85 and 113 ERA+ allowed him to be above replacement level with 0.8 bWAR. That brilliant rookie season would be the end of his success in an Astros uniform.

McLaughlin was moved to the bullpen after his rookie season and took a step back in his new role. In 1977, he pitched in 40 games of relief and started six games, posting a 4.25 ERA and saving five games. While his strikeout went up to 6.3 K/9, so did his walks and he nearly doubled his walk rate from his rookie season.

He only pitched in 12 games the next season, allowing a 5.01 ERA in 23.1 innings. He walked more batters (16) than he struck out (10). The following season in 1979, he would post a 5.51 ERA in 16.1 innings before being traded to Atlanta.

In his final two and a half seasons with Houston, McLaughlin posted -1.7 bWAR. His solid rookie season kept him from being higher on this list.

5. C Robbie Wine, -0.6 bWAR

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The catcher was the highest selection of the group at eighth overall out of Oklahoma State in 1983. Wine showed some promise at the plate in the minor leagues, particularly with his power. At Single-A in 1984 he hit 13 home runs with a .757 OPS and the next year at Double-A, Wine hit 21 home runs.

He would go on to make his debut as a 23-year-old in 1986, but his career would be short-lived. In nine games as a rookie, he went 3-for-12 with a double. The next season, 1987, would be his last in the majors. In 14 games, the backstop hit .103 with a .271 OPS and -26 OPS+. Of his three hits, one of them was a double.

Wine was traded to the Texas Rangers before the 1988 season, but never appeared in the major leagues again.

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