Astros Player of the Day: Rylan Bannon

Welcome to the Gallery Sports’ Houston Astros Spring Training player spotlight: Astros Player of the Day. We will look at a different Astros player each day throughout the spring.

Today’s Astros Player of the Day is 3B/2B Rylan Bannon.

Bannon is a 26-year-old infielder who played in college at Xavier for three years before being drafted in the eighth round of the 2017 MLB draft by the Los Angeles Dodgers. His third and final season in college is what earned him his draft spot, finishing that season with a .339 batting average to go along with 15 home runs and 50 RBI in 61 games.

He was part of the blockbuster trade that sent Manny Machado from the Orioles to the Dodgers in 2018, with Bannon being one of the five players that headed to Baltimore in the deal. He progressed through Baltimore’s farm system, playing in Double-A for the remainder of 2018 and most of 2019 before being promoted to Triple-A.

He would spend a few years there before making his MLB debut with the Orioles on May 12, 2022. He played in four games at the MLB level for Baltimore and would later get designated for assignment by the team and claimed off waivers by the Dodgers, returning to where he was drafted. That stint was short-lived, though, as the Dodgers required roster moves just a few days later, which sent Bannon back to the waiver wire, where the Atlanta Braves picked him up.

He regained success in the later parts of 2022 with the Braves Triple-A affiliate, playing in 21 games, during which he went 22-for-67 for a .328 batting average with 19 RBI. He did appear once for the Braves at the major league level, but as a late-game defensive substitution where he didn’t get a plate appearance.

This offseason, the Braves would ultimately designate him for assignment, and he would spend a short time with the Cubs before they let go of him and allowed the Astros to pick him up on Dec. 2, 2022. Bannon made his Astros debut in Sunday’s Spring Training game against the Nationals, entering the game defensively in the bottom of the sixth before going 0-for-2 at the plate with a groundout in the seventh and an infield flyout to end the game.

While Bannon’s primary position is third base, he has also been used at second base, both by the Braves and now to start the spring by the Astros. In any case, short of injuries or a fantastic show of potential this spring to change the depth charts that include the likes of Mauricio Dubón and David Hensley, Bannon remains a stash piece for the Astros should they be in desperate need of infield help during the season.