Jancel Villarroel

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Houston Astros #29 prospect in 2025
  BA Grade/Risk: 45/Extreme.
  
  Track Record: Villarroel signed out of Venezuela for $10,000 as an under-the-radar prospect in August of 2022. He debuted in the Dominican Summer League after signing then returned to the DSL to begin 2023 and hit .313/.435/.491 over 47 games. Villarroel came stateside in 2024, playing in 22 games in the Florida Complex League before being promoted to Low-A on June 18. Villarroel finished his season with 54 games for the Woodpeckers and hit .233/.339/.321.
  
  Scouting Report: Villarroel is an undersized catching prospect with a bat-first profile. He stands only 5-foot-8 with an average build and little remaining projection. While he’s not a tooled-up player he has a knack for finding the barrel with fringy bat-to-ball skills but a solid approach and ability to hit spin. His steeper bat path allows him to hit the ball in the air consistently, but also leads to some elevated swing and miss on hittable pitches in the zone. Villarroel’s power is surprising as he shows above-average raw juice and underlying power metrics for his age and size. Behind the plate, Villarroel is below-average with a fringe-average arm and solid blocking and receiving skills. The Astros gave Villarroel time at all four infield positions and a handful of games in the outfield in 2024.
  
  The Future: Villarroel looks like a bat-first utility player who will move off catcher and need to hit.
  
  Scouting Grades: Hit: 45 | Power: 50 | Run: 45 | Field: 40 | Arm: 45.