The staff at FSS PLUS — Joe Doyle, Oliver Boctor, Jason A. Churchill — takes another run at a mock. But we’re not attempting to predict anything here, we’re playing Scouting Director and making picks as if we represented each club.
The picks of the Yankees, Padres, and Mets had their first-round picks 10 spots each because they exceeded the second competitive balance surcharge by more than $40 million.
Follow along by pulling up Doyle’s most recent draft board HERE.
1. CLEVELAND GUARDIANS
BOCTOR: JJ Wetherholt, SS — West Virginia
The trio of Charlie Condon, Travis Bazzana, and Wetherholt are close, but if I’m Cleveland I’m going for the best athlete and defender of the three.
2. CINCINNATI REDS
CHURCHILL: Charlie Condon, OF — Georgia
An elite power bat with a chance at an above-average hit tool in that ballpark? Where do I sign?
3. COLORADO ROCKIES
DOYLE: Travis Bazzana, 2B — Oregon State
The most complete player in the draft sees his already above-average raw power bolstered by elevation at Coors Field. Colorado does right by working to build out the middle of the diamond.
4. OAKLAND ATHLETICS
DOYLE: Chase Burns, RHP — Wake Forest
Operating while trying to ignore the elephant in the room of relocation, Oakland needs a lot of pieces, arguably none more pressing than a stopper in the rotation. Burns could develop into a No. 1 starter and should net quite the haul when the team moves him in 2030.
5. CHICAGO WHITE SOX
CHURCHILL: Konnor Griffin, SS/OF — Jackson Prep (Miss.)
Griffin offers up-the-middle upside and a chance at five tools for a club with time to wait for him to develop into an all-star.
6. KANSAS CITY ROYALS
DOYLE: Jac Caglianone, 1B — Florida
I’m taking my best player on the board with this pick regardless of position or fit. Caglianone is capable of things very few his size tare. I’m sorry to break Vinnie Pasquantino’s mother’s heart. His clock is ticking in this scenario.
7. ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
BOCTOR: Cam Smith, 3B — Florida State
Plus power with a strong feel to hit, a good approach, and defensive tools at third base is hard to pass up in this Draft.
8. LOS ANGELES ANGELS
CHURCHILL: Hagen Smith, LHP — Arkansas
The best player on the board also fills an organizational need, though the Angels’ greatest need can’t be drafted: Better leadership at the top.
9. PITTSBURGH PIRATES
BOCTOR: Bryce Rainer, SS — Harvard-Westlake High School (Calif.)
The Pirates lack position players with big tools and athleticism, and Rainer checks all of those boxes, led by power potential, and comes with a backup plan on the mound.
10. WASHINGTON NATIONALS
BOCTOR: Trey Yesavage, RHP — East Carolina
The Nationals’ window is starting to creep open with James Wood’s arrival and Dylan Crews imminent. Yesavage is a high-profile arm that could be ready as early as next season.
11. DETROIT TIGERS
CHURCHILL: Cam Caminiti, LHP — Saguaro High School (Ariz.)
Caminiti gets knocked some for lacking the physical projection of other prep arms in the class but he’s already living in the mid-90s with deception, and there’s plenty of athleticism on which to build a frontline starter.
12. BOSTON RED SOX
DOYLE: Braden Montgomery, OF — Texas A&M
Again, I’m taking the highest-ranked player on my board. Give me a 70-grade throwing arm in right field at Fenway with the raw power to go yabo to either gap. Montgomery may always be a guy who punches out north of 25% of the time, but the other tools will elevate his game into a 3.5 fWAR player.
13. SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS
DOYLE: Vance Honeycutt, OF — North Carolina
I’m calling an audible here and going against my board for this pick. Oracle Park is a bear to defend. Honeycutt may always be a guy who strikes out 30 percent of the time and may only be a .235 hitter, but elite defense and 25-homer upside have me feeling good about this selection. Is it risky? Damn right. Did this tactic fail with Hunter Bishop? It sure did. But I’m not walking away from game-changing glovework.
14. CHICAGO CUBS
BOCTOR: Seaver King, 2B/OF — Wake Forest
King is a dynamic pack of tools that can fit wherever the organization needs, and the bat speed and raw juice are dynamic. His approach is his Achilles heel, but if he can be more patient there’s a chance at a star here.
15. SEATTLE MARINERS
CHURCHILL: James Tibbs II, OF — Florida State
If word on Nick Kurtz’s shoulder is good, he’s not getting here anyway, and without that knowledge, Tibbs is the easy pick at 15 with Smith and King off the board.
16. MIAMI MARLINS
BOCTOR: Malcolm Moore, C — Stanford
Calling Miami’s situation at catcher the last couple of years an experiment would be generous since that’d imply they’ve gotten players of any intrigue to suit up at the position. Their farm is light, too, and Moore could be the captain who can help spearhead the Marlins’ next chance at relevancy.
17. MILWAUKEE BREWERS
DOYLE: Nick Kurtz, 1B — Wake Forest
Yeah, no shot I’m letting arguably the best hitter in college baseball over the last three seasons get past pick 17. I think there’s a real universe where he’s still on the board and available here, and if that’s the case the snowball hits its brick wall in Milwaukee. Kurtz and Brock Wilken in Brewville would be fun.
18. TAMPA BAY RAYS
CHURCHILL: Tyson Lewis, SS — Millard West High School (Neb.)
Lewis is a good athlete with good hands for defense and in the batter’s box, and as one scout recently put it “there are a lot of real outcomes you can dream on here, and many of them fit the first (round) grading.”
19. NEW YORK METS
CHURCHILL: Dakota Jordan, OF — Mississippi State
Whether I can get a small discount here is uncertain, but I’d like to add high-end athletes to my system where my staff has a decent track record developing physical tools into on-field skills and Jordan has some pretty loud tools with which to work.
20. TORONTO BLUE JAYS
DOYLE: Ryan Waldschmidt, OF — Kentucky
It’s fair to be critical of drafting a right-handed hitting left fielder in the top 20 picks, but Waldschmidt blistered the SEC for two years and is one of the biggest model darlings in this class. His skillset should translate well to the pro game as the level of competition he’s seen night in and night out is as good as you can get in the amateur ranks. I’d be plenty comfortable making him the selection here fully understanding you’re probably not getting more than a 3-win player with a steady floor.
21. MINNESOTA TWINS
BOCTOR: Carson Benge, OF — Oklahoma State
The Twins have a type, and Benge fits it. A strong athlete with impressive natural tools, there are plenty of similarities with current right fielder Max Kepler if Benge can better manage the swing.
22. BALTIMORE ORIOLES
CHURCHILL: Kash Mayfield, LHP — Elk City High School (Okla.)
While I’d project Christian Moore, Malcolm Moore, or Brody Brecht here, I have a chance at frontline upside in Mayfield at pick 22 and I’m not passing up that opportunity.
23. LOS ANGELES DODGERS
BOCTOR: Theo Gillen, 2B/OF — Westlake High School (Texas)
Gillen’s the best prep hitter on the board and offers a steady mix of polish and athleticism.
24. ATLANTA BRAVES
DOYLE: Christian Moore, 2B — Tennessee
This is about as far as I would ever expect Moore to fall. Sure, there are some questions about his eventual home on the diamond and he’ll need some hand-holding along the way, but if you can extract the impact from his bat and stick it into the Braves lineup down the line it stands to reason Dan Uggla may be reincarnate.
25. SAN DIEGO PADRES
BOCTOR: Kellon Lindsey, SS — Hardee High School (Fla.)
The Padres grab another toolsy prep in the first round. Lindsey has a lot of development ahead of him, but the Padres track record suggests they’re a good fit for him.
26. NEW YORK YANKEES
CHURCHILL: Brody Brecht, RHP — Iowa
This is an elite arm with an outside shot to start and a floor in the bullpen dominating, a role he could reach within a year. The Yankees have done well polishing mechanics and helping even veterans find the zone more consistently, and if they can do that for Brecht this is a steal.
27. PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES
DOYLE: Braylon Doughty, RHP — Chaparral High School (Calif.)
I’ll happily secure the top right-handed high school pitcher on my board at pick 27. I think it’s a legitimate shot at three above-average pitches with the strikes to go along with it.
28. HOUSTON ASTROS
DOYLE: Wyatt Sanford, SS — Independence (Texas)
Why is Sanford still on the board at 28? That is dumb. You are all dumb. A stellar pick for the Astros. My No. 21 overall player in the class and a legitimate shortstop prospect.
29. ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS
BOCTOR: Jurrangelo Cijntje, BHP — Mississippi State
Cijntje likely is a right-handed pitcher at the big-league level, boasting considerable arm talent and athleticism. The first of three high picks for Arizona, I’ll take more probability with Cijntje before taking more shots in a few minutes.
30. TEXAS RANGERS
CHURCHILL: Slade Caldwell, CF — Valley View High School (Ark.)
Talk about ridiculous, Caldwell is a Top-20 player in this class. He projects to make a lot of contact, spraying line drives from gap to gap, and his speed and defense combo are unmatched in the prep ranks. He’s just 5-foot-6 and 180 pounds, but the bat speed is legitimate up to average power, and he profiles well as a table setter in the mold of a Lenny Dykstra.
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