Astros select Texas pitcher Blair Henley in seventh round of 2019 MLB Draft

For the second time in the last four years, Texas Longhorns pitcher Blair Henley heard his name called in the MLB Draft, this time in the seventh round by the Houston Astros.

As a high school senior, Henley heard his name called in Round 22 by the New York Yankees, but decided to head to the Forty Acres to play for coach David Pierce. Once he arrived, he immediately made his way into the starting lineup, making 17 appearances and 10 starts.

Throughout his junior season, Henly stepped in as Texas’s Saturday starter, finishing the season 6-4 in 13 starts with a 3.54 ERA. The right hander from Fort Worth had his ups and downs as a junior, but managed to strike out 62 batters on the year, including a career-high eight against both the Stanford Cardinal and Oklahoma State Cowboys.

He was also the only Longhorn pitcher to turn in a complete game this season, doing so against the Kansas Jayhawks. The eight-inning, one-run, seven-strikeout pitcher’s duel would have been good enough to win any of his other starts, but the Texas bats couldn’t do anything against Kansas and lost 1-0.

The same things that caught scouts’ eyes in 2016 are the same reasons Henley heard his name called and will take his talents to the next level. A high-80s/low-90s fastball and great command of his curve will serve him well as he makes an attempt to climb the ranks and continue his baseball career.

BON’s Evan Kirschner further detailed Henley’s outlook as an MLB prospect:

“Despite three productive years at Texas, pro scouts are lukewarm on Henley because his stuff hasn’t really gotten better since he started his career as a Longhorn. In high school, he had a monster senior year at Fort Worth’s Arlington Heights High, including back-to-back-to-back no-hitters at one point. After going in the 2016 draft as a 22nd-round pick to the Yankees, Henley was a well-rounded right-hander out of high school with an 88-92 mph fastball. And three years later, he’s a well-rounded right-hander with an 88-92 mph fastball. He’s a solid strike-thrower with a fringe fastball and changeup, but an excellent curve ball will get him some positive reviews. He’s a mid 300’s rank due to his inability to improve over his time at Texas, but a team will take a chance on his results and untapped potential.”

Henley has until July 15 to decide whether he’ll return to Texas or sign with Houston.