Corey Julks #8

Born in Friendswood, a southern suburb of Houston, Julks graduated from Clear Brook HS, where he was the 2014 Team MVP and First Time All-District...Hit .443 with 15 stolen bases in his senior season...At the urging of his high school baseball coach at Clear Brook, Gene Flores, Julks also played football as a senior, which Flores believes catapulted him to a strong senior baseball season...Entered his senior year without a D1 scholarship and originally signed with Angelina Community College, which is in Lufkin, Texas...Again Flores stepped up for Julks, this time urging the coaching staff at the University of Houston to take another look at Julks...They followed up on the invite and went to Julk’s game the night of the invite, a game in which he homered in his first at-bat and hit a ball off the top of the wall in his second at-bat...Julks was offered a scholarship by UH after that game...Went undrafted out of Clear Brook and went on to star at the University of Houston for three seasons (2015-17)...Hit .324 (191x590) with a .905 OPS in his collegiate career...Finished his junior season with a .335 batting average (72x215), 12 doubles, six triples, nine homers, 45 RBI and a .998 OPS (.426 OBP/.572 SLG)...Was 15-for-20 in stolen base attempts...Named to the First Team All-American Conference Team and the American Championship All-Tournament Team...Drafted by Houston in the eighth round of the 2017 draft...Signed by Astros scout Noel Gonzales-Luna...Before his MLB debut, spent six full seasons in the minors (2017-22)...In 2021, while playing at Double-A, the Astros asked Julks to report to the Astros Florida complex to revamp his swing with the hopes of tapping into the power of his athletic build...He spent a month in Florida before returning to Double-A...He saw immediate results, homering 14 times in 49 games the second half of play, compared to just two homers in his 36 games prior to the change...Julks followed that up with a 31-homer 2022 season, which put him on the radar for his call-up in 2023...Upon debuting with the Astros, he became the 11th former Houston Cougar to play for the Astros in the franchise’s history...The others: OF John Paciorek (1963), IF Glenn Vaughan (1963), LHP Bill Henry (1969), RHP Doug Drabek (1993-96), RHP Anthony Young (1996), C Chris Tremie (2004), RHP Woody Williams (2007), OF Michael Bourn (2008-11), C Chris Snyder (2012) and RHP Austin Pruitt (2021).

2023

The 27-year-old Houston-area native made his Major League debut this season, batting .245 (73x298) with six home runs, 33 RBI, 14 doubles and 15 stolen bases in 93 games...Ranked seventh among AL rookies with 15 stolen bases...Was the first Astros rookie to steal 15+ bases in a single season since IF Jonathan Villar (18 stolen bases in 2013)...Went 3x9 with a double and RBI as a pinch hitter...Of his six homers, four came against pitchers who’ve been selected to an All-Star Game, homering off RHP Shohei Ohtani, RHP Kevin Gausman, RHP Alex Manoah and RHP Corbin Burnes...His appearance on the Opening Day roster was also the first appearance of his career on an MLB roster...Made the roster out of Spring Training after a strong camp in which he hit .275 (11x40) with three doubles, a triple, two homers and 12 RBI inn18 games...Collected his first career hit in his first career AB with a single on March 31 vs. CWS...Became the 12th player in Astros history to collect hit in first career AB and the first since C Garrett Stubbs (May 28, 2019 vs. CHC)...Logged his first career four-hit game on July 4 vs. COL, going 4x5 with a double and an RBI...Was optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land on Aug. 6...Was recalled on Aug. 19 and optioned back to Triple-A Sugar Land on Aug. 29...Hit .240 (25x104) with three homers, 11 RBI, 12 doubles and a .849 OPS in 27 games at Triple-A...Spent the 2023 postseason with the Major League team as a member of the club’s taxi squad.

2022

In 2022, he spent the entire year with Triple A Sugar Land, where he batted .270 (141x523) with 100 runs, 21 doubles, four triples, 31 home runs, 89 RBI and a .854 OPS...ranked T-3rd in the PCL in homers (31).

2021

Had a strong 2021 season at Double-A Corpus Christi, where he hit .287 (97x338) with 23 doubles, 14 homers, 36 RBI and an .840 OPS (.349 OBP/.491 SLG) in 85 games...stole 15 bases in 20 chances... started 25 games in center field and left field, while making 20 starts in right field and one at third base.

2020

Did not appear in a regular season game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the Minor League season.

2019

Was a 2019 Carolina League Midseason All-Star while playing for Class A Fayetteville...promoted to Corpus Christi in late August and finished his season with the Hooks...combined to hit .256 (99x387) with 25 doubles, four homers, 41 RBI and 10 stolen bases.

2018

Split his 2018 season between Class A Quad Cities and Advanced Class A Buies Creek, combing to hit .270 (124x459) with 30 doubles, 10 homers, 62 RBI and 30 stolen bases in 125 games.