Lucas Spence becomes first 2024 Astros signee to reach Triple-A

Lucas Spence climbed to Triple-A so fast that the Astros’ 2024 signing class already has its first benchmark. The left-handed outfielder was promoted to the Sugar Land Space Cowboys after hitting .356 with power in June at Double-A, and his rise from undrafted signee to Triple-A regular has come in barely more than a year.

Spence signed with Houston in 2024 for $150,000 after his path ran through Black Hawk (Ill.) Community College and Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. He had a breakout college stop at SIU Edwardsville in 2024, winning the Ohio Valley Conference batting title with a .385 average, then turned that contact skill into pro production once the Astros got him into their system. He is now listed by MiLB as a 23-year-old active player for Sugar Land, wearing No. 29, batting left-handed, throwing left-handed and measured at 6-foot-0 and 195 pounds.

The move is backed by more than a hot stretch in June. In his first full professional season in 2025, Spence reached Double-A Corpus Christi and hit .244/.368/.403 across three levels, with 10 home runs, 55 RBIs and 27 stolen bases in 116 games. He posted a .775 OPS in 30 games with the Hooks, numbers that show why the organization kept moving him up even before this latest promotion. He gave Houston a player who could reach base, run and hold his own against better pitching.

That profile matches the one MLB.com built around him: a hitter who rarely chases pitches and can fit near the top of a lineup because of his on-base ability and speed. For an Astros system that has pushed several players forward from the 2024 signing class, including six position players sent to Fayetteville on Aug. 6, 2024, Spence’s jump to Triple-A stands out as the earliest and clearest success story. He is no longer just a name from a bargain signing class. He is now in Sugar Land with a track record that suggests Houston has moved him exactly as fast as his bat has allowed.