Walker Janek will be making his return to the Coastal Bend as one of the Astros’ top prospects.
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — One of the Coastal Bend’s top professional baseball players is making his return to the area as former Gregory-Portland Wildcat Walker Janek will start the season with the Corpus Christi Hooks.
The Astros made the announcement Wednesday afternoon, eight days before the Hooks’ season and home opener on April 2nd.
Janek was a standout at Houston’s spring training, with the catcher hitting .455 in seven games to go along with a homerun and four stolen bases.
After graduating from Gregory-Portland in 2021, Janek went on to win the Buster Posey Award for the nation’s top collegiate catcher. He was then selected by the Astros in the first round of the 2024 draft. Janek will start the season as Houston’s #5 overall prospect.
Janek will be the first Coastal Bend product to play for the Hooks since Carroll grad Brooks Kieschnick in 2005, the team’s inaugural season.
It’s official: former Gregory-Portland Wildcat Walker Janek will start the season with the Corpus Christi Hooks.
Janek is the Astros’ fifth-ranked prospect as he makes his return to the Coastal Bend.@CCHooks @Kiii3sports #3SportsBlitz pic.twitter.com/6fUGFnXecK
— Chris Thomasson – KIII Sports (@ChrisThomasson7) March 25, 2026