The Astros will have the No. 1 overall pick for the second straight year when the 2013 First-Year Player Draft is held next June.

Once again, Stanford pitcher Mark Appel is on Houston's radar.

The Astros considered drafting Appel earlier this year, but they passed and he slipped to eighth. The Pirates were unable to sign him and he returned to Stanford, where he'll pitch as a senior next spring.

Appel is among four of five players the team is considering at No. 1, though that list that could change.

"I don't have a clear No. 1 in my mind right now and I'd say nobody does," scouting director Mark Elias said. "I would say Mark Appel is absolutely back in the mix given what he did last year, the consideration he garnered last year and the serious consideration he had a the top of the Draft. He's back in there, so that strengthens the pool.

"The rest of the pool is pretty diverse. You've got other college players and some high school position players. I don't think there's a high school pitcher yet that has made the case to put himself in that group, sort of like Lucas Giolito did last year right off the bat. So that's probably the one piece that's missing. Historically, that's the one position that doesn't get taken 1-1, so that's not surprising."