Brandon Bielak

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #23 prospect in 2021
  TRACK RECORD: Bielak is one of several pitchers the Astros drafted after the 10th round who have emerged as legitimate prospects. He quickly climbed the minors and made his big league debut as a starter in 2020, but he got blown up as his command vanished and moved to the bullpen down the stretch.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Bielak's fastball ranges from 91-96 mph. He mixes in four other pitches, the best of which is an 85-88 mph changeup that flashes above-average with sink and fade. Bielak has a deeper, more horizontal break than most other pitchers on his 88-91 mph cutter. It's an average pitch, as is his curveball, and he throws a fringe-average slider as well. Bielak was a solid strike-thrower throughout his minor league career, but he lost feel for the zone in the majors, which led to hitters teeing off on his fastball.
  
  THE FUTURE: Bielak has enough stuff to pitch in the back of a rotation, but will need to locate better to stick in that role. He could get another crack in 2021.
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #15 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: After a dominating sophomore season as a reliever at Notre Dame, Bielak's junior year was one struggle after another as a starter. The Astros were still intrigued and saw him post a 2.23 ERA that was best in the system in 2018. In 2019, he made it to Triple-A, but struggled with the livelier ball and pitched to a 8-4, 4.41 record.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Bielak does everything he can to avoid being predictable. There's no plus pitch, but hitters never really know what they are going to get as Bielak throws six pitches (he added a screwball in 2019). Bielak's 91-94 mph fastball is average, as is his mid-80s changeup, curve and cutter. His slider is below-average and he added the screwball to give hitters something else to worry about. His command is above-average, but his control is fringe-average because he has to nibble around the edges of the zone.
  
  THE FUTURE: Bielak is a back-of-the-rotation starter. Being regularly around the zone, he suffered adjusting to the Triple-A ball, as being in the zone often led to long home runs. The Astros will not be likely to count on Bielak in 2020, but he can fill in as needed. Mastering Triple-A in the meantime is a solid goal for Bielak.
• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #20 prospect in 2019
  Track Record: After two successful seasons at Notre Dame, Bielak more than doubled his ERA as a junior, posting a 5.55 ERA. He slid to the 11th round because of that, but quickly proved as a pro that he's better than those numbers suggest. His 2.23 ERA was the best in Houston's system in 2018.
  
  Scouting Report: It's hard for hitters to get comfortable against Bielak because he throws four pitches for strikes and has the confidence to use them in almost any count. His delivery is simple, efficient and repeatable. He challenges hitters down in the zone with a heavy, 91-94 mph fastball. Bielak works comfortably to both sides of the plate. His fastball, curveball, slider and changeup are all potentially average.
  
  The Future: Bielak has a career 1.91 ERA, but his approach is one that eats up less-experienced hitters The challenge will get tougher as he heads to Double-A Corpus Christi for an extended look.

Draft Prospects

• Ranked #392 prospect in 2017 draft
  While scouts were excited to Peter Solomon pitch at Notre Dame after a strong summer in the Cape Cod League, it was Bielak who the Irish relied on as a starter. Unfortunately for Bielak and Notre Dame, his junior year was easily the worst of his college career as he posted a 5.55 ERA. Bielak is generally around the zone with his 88-93 mph fastball and he sinks it and his changeup has some deception. But he doesn't have a swing-and-miss offering and his breaking ball needs to be better. Many scouts think he could be more effective in a relief role as a pro.

Minor League Top Prospects

• 
  Ranked Carolina League #14 prospect in 2018
  Buies Creek shuttled through 16 different starters this season. Bielak was the most effective of them, baffling hitters and impressing scouts with a combination of solid stuff, a hard-charging, aggressive approach and above-average control. The Astros were able to get Bielak in the 11th round in 2017 because he had a horrible junior year at Notre Dame (5.55 ERA), but this year he posted the same 2.10 ERA for Buies Creek he had as a sophomore for the Fighting Irish and earned a promotion to Double-A in June. Bielak attacks hitters with an above-average fastball and slider. His fastball sits 91-94 mph while he manipulates his low 80s slider, making it bigger or tighter depending on the count. He also throws an average changeup. There are pitchers with better pure stuff than Bielak, but his combination of a well-rounded arsenal, a repeatable delivery and strong control made him one of the safest prospects among league pitchers.

• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Bielak is one of several pitchers the Astros drafted after the 10th round who have emerged as legitimate prospects. He quickly climbed the minors and made his big league debut as a starter in 2020, but he got blown up as his command vanished and moved to the bullpen down the stretch.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Bielak's fastball ranges from 91-96 mph. He mixes in four other pitches, the best of which is an 85-88 mph changeup that flashes above-average with sink and fade. Bielak has a deeper, more horizontal break than most other pitchers on his 88-91 mph cutter. It's an average pitch, as is his curveball, and he throws a fringe-average slider as well. Bielak was a solid strike-thrower throughout his minor league career, but he lost feel for the zone in the majors, which led to hitters teeing off on his fastball.
  
  THE FUTURE: Bielak has enough stuff to pitch in the back of a rotation, but will need to locate better to stick in that role. He could get another crack in 2021.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: Bielak is one of several pitchers the Astros drafted after the 10th round who have emerged as legitimate prospects. He quickly climbed the minors and made his big league debut as a starter in 2020, but he got blown up as his command vanished and moved to the bullpen down the stretch.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Bielak's fastball ranges from 91-96 mph. He mixes in four other pitches, the best of which is an 85-88 mph changeup that flashes above-average with sink and fade. Bielak has a deeper, more horizontal break than most other pitchers on his 88-91 mph cutter. It's an average pitch, as is his curveball, and he throws a fringe-average slider as well. Bielak was a solid strike-thrower throughout his minor league career, but he lost feel for the zone in the majors, which led to hitters teeing off on his fastball.
  
  THE FUTURE: Bielak has enough stuff to pitch in the back of a rotation, but will need to locate better to stick in that role. He could get another crack in 2021.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: After a dominating sophomore season as a reliever at Notre Dame, Bielak’s junior year was one struggle after another as a starter. The Astros were still intrigued and saw him post a 2.23 ERA BA GRADE 50 Risk: High BA GRADE 55 Risk: Extreme BA GRADE 45 Risk: Medium that was best in the system in 2018. In 2019, he made it to Triple-A, but struggled with the livelier ball and pitched to a 8-4, 4.41 record.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Bielak does everything he can to avoid being predictable. There’s no plus pitch, but hitters never really know what they are going to get as Bielak throws six pitches (he added a screwball in 2019). Bielak’s 91-94 mph fastball is average, as is his mid-80s changeup, curve and cutter. His slider is below-average and he added the screwball to give hitters something else to worry about. His command is above-average, but his control is fringe-average because he has to nibble around the edges of the zone.
  
  THE FUTURE: Bielak is a back-of-the-rotation starter. Being regularly around the zone, he suffered adjusting to the Triple-A ball, as being in the zone often led to long home runs. The Astros will not be likely to count on Bielak in 2020, but he can fill in as needed. Mastering Triple-A in the meantime is a solid goal for Bielak.
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: After a dominating sophomore season as a reliever at Notre Dame, Bielak's junior year was one struggle after another as a starter. The Astros were still intrigued and saw him post a 2.23 ERA that was best in the system in 2018. In 2019, he made it to Triple-A, but struggled with the livelier ball and pitched to a 8-4, 4.41 record.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Bielak does everything he can to avoid being predictable. There's no plus pitch, but hitters never really know what they are going to get as Bielak throws six pitches (he added a screwball in 2019). Bielak's 91-94 mph fastball is average, as is his mid-80s changeup, curve and cutter. His slider is below-average and he added the screwball to give hitters something else to worry about. His command is above-average, but his control is fringe-average because he has to nibble around the edges of the zone.
  
  THE FUTURE: Bielak is a back-of-the-rotation starter. Being regularly around the zone, he suffered adjusting to the Triple-A ball, as being in the zone often led to long home runs. The Astros will not be likely to count on Bielak in 2020, but he can fill in as needed. Mastering Triple-A in the meantime is a solid goal for Bielak.