What makes Ichiro a Hall of Famer, from those who knew him best
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Alden Gonzalez
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Alden Gonzalez
ESPN Staff Writer
- ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the L.A. Rams for ESPN from 2016 to 2018 and the L.A. Angels for MLB.com from 2012 to 2016.
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Jesse Rogers
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Jesse Rogers
ESPN Staff Writer
- Jesse joined ESPN Chicago in September 2009 and covers MLB for ESPN.com.
Ichiro Suzuki will become a Hall of Famer — and possibly the second unanimous selection ever — when the Baseball Writers’ Association reveals its ballots Tuesday night. Ichiro’s stat line over more than two decades of excellence, first in Japan and then in MLB, makes his induction a slam dunk, but the legend of Ichiro is about much more than his 3,089 major league hits and .311 career average during 19 seasons with the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees and Miami Marlins.
As the iconic outfielder gets his Cooperstown call, we asked former teammates, opponents and other MLB greats to describe what it was like playing with, pitching to and simply witnessing Ichiro during his legendary career.
First impressions of Ichiro
When Ichiro came to the majors, there was plenty of skepticism about how a Japanese hitter would fare in MLB since nobody had made the jump. Starting with his Mariners teammates, he found ways to turn heads from the beginning.
John OIerud, teammate with Mariners, 2001 to 2003: “I heard Bobby [Valentine] talking about this one guy that was really good and that he could play here in the big leagues. Ichiro was the first Japanese position player to come so nobody knew if they could have success here at Major League Baseball. And so I remember the first time I met him in the clubhouse with Seattle, he knew who I was and I didn’t immediately know who he was. And talking to Tom Robson, who’s the hitting coach, he said Ichiro is bigger than Elvis in Japan, just to give me a frame of reference. And still as big as he was in Japan, there was still a question of whether position players could compete over here.”
Mike Cameron, teammate with Mariners, 2001 to 2004: “My favorite story was his first year in spring training. Our manager was Lou Piniella. Ichiro was hitting foul balls over the third-base dugout and over the third baseman and he would get a lot of his base hits between first and second, short and third and over the shortstop’s head. And one day Lou got pissed off. He was standing on the top step and Ichiro was coming back to the dugout. I think he had grounded out or something like that. And Lou always rattled out anything he wanted to say, and was talking so loud — I’m sure Ichiro heard it — he’s asking our bench coach, ‘Can this guy f—ing pull the ball one time?’ And sure enough, the next at-bat, he got up there, he hit a homer to right.
“He came around the bases with no animation or anything, same dry face that he always has with his shades on, then he takes his helmet off, takes his gloves off, puts his bat in his bat rack, his personal bat rack that was on the bench, and he sat down and he said, ‘How was that?’
“And everybody just died laughing.”
Brett Boone, teammate with Mariners, 2001 to 2005: “We had no idea how to take him at first. I now had a teammate with his first name on his back. No one had ever seen that before. He had his own program and BP and things and everybody knew his credentials in Japan, but had no idea how it was going to translate. And he kind of went through spring training like a pro. Guys were asking him to do this and do that. And he kind of looked at you like, ‘No, I know what I’m doing.’ And he had an OK spring, still everybody’s waiting to see what he was going to do and came out of the chute, bang. And that was that first season — it was pretty awesome. He gave me rice balls every day. He was great and really fit into that dynamic. I mean, it was a strange year for all of us because the Japanese press was here and it was almost like having a postseason press conference every day.”
Chef Jeremy Bryant began a 20-plus-year stint with the Mariners in 1999, when what’s now called T-Mobile Park opened. He was told a year in advance that Ichiro would be joining the team, a staff member referred to him as “The Michael Jordan of Japan,” and so Bryant spent a summer learning Japanese cooking. When Ichiro arrived, Bryant was ready — his fridge stocked with gourmet Japanese food, his mind prepped for how to make it to the superstar’s liking. Then, Ichiro walked into the room with a question Bryant was not expecting.
“Do you have cheeseburger?”
Bryant: “I didn’t have a cheeseburger. I didn’t even think he would want that. I was suggesting all these things and I’m like, ‘How ’bout wings?’ He goes, ‘Oh yeah, wings! Very good.’ I had started marinating them Mexican style. I put some lime juice, garlic, and before I went too far, I put a bunch of teriyaki sauce on them, and so I joked with him like, ‘These are my signature Mexi-yaki wings.’ He went out, had his Opening Day, everything went good. And the next day he was like ‘Wings, again, please.’ I left the stadium to buy some more wings, came back, made them again, and then Day 3, again. I swear to God, man — 10 years, he had those wings. Every game that we played at night, Ichiro had those wings. … Same time — 5:05 every day because he was the first one out of batting practice. He ate them in the same exact chair. He never sat in a different place in our little dining lounge. And he used the same plate. I even cooked them in the same pan. … And then on getaway days, whenever the team was flying out, he didn’t want wings on those days. He wanted two corn dogs. Just two, and they had to be the basic, regular — I would get them at Costco, the frozen ones. I had all this gourmet stuff ready for this guy, and he loved two corn dogs on getaway days.”
Even as he quickly turned his teammates — and team staffers — into believers, Ichiro had to prove himself to the rest of the league. Of course, batting .350 on his way to American League MVP and Rookie of the Year honors in 2001 helped matters immensely.
Tim Salmon, opponent with Angels, 2001 to 2006: “I remember seeing him for the first time and how slight of build he was. He wasn’t a big guy. My thought was, ‘OK, this will be interesting to see how this plays out.’ He’s a right fielder. Most right fielders are big guys, power guys.
“He was such a slight build but had all this amazing talent, and he could be whatever he wanted to be. And his arm, I mean, he was just phenomenal. He had a cannon in the outfield and just the gracefulness that he went about things, whether he was charging the ball and his footwork and being able to get off that perfect throw every time or running the bases. He just glided and he just did everything with a gracefulness. That was really rare to see.”
Joe Maddon, longtime opposing manager with Rays and Cubs (and bench coach for Angels in 2001): “I really believe that he could look at the field and decide where he wanted to hit the ball and then he would hit it in a manner that would fall in front of outfielders. Although he had pop in his bat, he knew how to just hit it over infielders — almost like his bat was a fungo — and as if the pitcher was just tossing it up in the air and he would hit it somewhere, it was just really maddening to defend it.”
Mike Sweeney played with and against Ichiro for many years in the American League. They also shared an All-Star locker room several times. Sweeney remembers the first time he met Ichiro — while Sweeney was playing first base for the Royals in 2001.
Sweeney: “He leads off the game with a line drive to left-center field for a base hit and he gets over to first base and all I could think about was when I was in Japan playing against the Japanese all-stars, anytime that an American would get a base hit up on the jumbotron would be this big huge graphic, almost kind of like a 1950s/1960s graphic from Batman and Robin. Like ‘Pow!’ or ‘Boom!’ And it would say, ‘Nice batting.’ And so over the loudspeaker, you’d hear the PA announcer say, ‘Nice batting.’ And you’d see these big graphics up on the jumbotron.
“So being a kid from Southern California that doesn’t speak any Japanese, I don’t know what to say to Ichiro. I don’t even know if he knows English. He had just gotten here in spring training. So I look over at him and I pat him on the back and say, ‘Ichiro, nice batting.’ And I don’t know what kind of response I’m going to get. And he looks at me — never met him before — and he goes, ‘Mike Sweeney, nice ass.’ I just started dying laughing. I’m like, oh my gosh, his English was perfect. No accent. And I’m going, oh my gosh, this guy, he’s going to be great.”
With a major league career spanning nearly two decades, Ichiro ended it playing with the same players who were watching him in awe from afar when he broke in with the Mariners.
Chris Rusin, Rockies pitcher who gave up Ichiro’s 3,000th hit: “I watched him growing up. I went to a couple of Tigers games and they just happened to be playing Seattle. Never thought I’d be playing against him or pitching against him, let alone giving up the 3,000th hit.”
Christian Yelich, teammate with Marlins, 2015 to 2017: “I grew up watching Ichiro as a kid. In middle school, high school and stuff like that. So when we first signed him, I was like, ‘Oh s—, I’m going to be playing with Ichiro. That’s crazy.’ And you don’t have very many moments like that. At least, I didn’t in the big leagues where you’re playing catch with a guy in the outfield and you’re kind of like, ‘Oh s—, I’m playing catch with Ichiro right now.’ That’s a weird feeling. And he was so normal too, though. He was a great teammate and a good friend and it was an awesome experience playing with him and getting to watch him achieve a bunch of milestones because it was later in his career, so it felt like every game he was passing or tying somebody.”
A front-row seat to the Ichiro show
Randy Winn played 115 games batting one spot behind Ichiro in the 2004 season, when he set an MLB single-season record with 262 hits. Winn referred to his spot in the order as a “pleasure” because he benefited from how much energy Ichiro absorbed from opposing pitchers, either during long at-bats or consistently applying pressure on the bases.
Winn: “He had three 50-hit months. I’m fortunate enough to have one in my career, and it felt like I fell out of bed every day with two hits in my pocket. It was amazing. I’m serious. You went to the park every day like, ‘Oh, I already got two hits? Wow, this game is easy.’ He did it three times in one year! I can’t even fathom. That to me is so mind-blowing, I can’t even put it into words.”
When Winn arrived in Seattle in 2003, he worried about a potential language barrier while sharing the outfield with Ichiro. Winn quickly learned it was a nonissue — Ichiro spoke far more fluent English than he realized. Winn was intent on giving Ichiro his space, but he often sought opportunities to pick the brains of great players. One spring, he saw an opening with Ichiro. The two stayed back while most of the other veterans traveled for a Cactus League game, and Winn approached Ichiro in the weight room to ask him about his mindset leading off games.
“Randy,” Ichiro replied, “I want five.”
“What?” Winn responded.
“Five,” Ichiro said in perfect English. “Every day, I want five hits.”
“That’s the expectation,” Winn said. “‘I put myself in a position where I expect to get five hits. I expect to execute and get five hits.’ And then I was like, ‘Heh, OK, now I understand why you get 262 hits.'”
Unforgettable moments
Long after the initial frenzy of his arrival in 2001, Ichiro captivated the sport again as a 42-year-old in pursuit of his 3,000th hit in the majors (in addition to the 1,278 he collected in Japan). He reached the milestone while playing for the Marlins in 2016 — hitting a stand-up triple at Coors Field in Colorado.
Rusin: “The atmosphere, it was crazy. You could kind of feel the crowd was expecting something because for a Miami/Colorado game to have quite a few fans there, and it got pretty loud when he gets up to the box. You kind of could feel it a little bit.
“I think I went 2-and-0 on him and then I left a cutter over the middle of the plate. He kind of pulled off of it, hit off the end of the bat, and it traveled further than I thought it was going to go, and the outfielder kept going and going and going. I was like, ‘Please don’t go out. Just not a home run. I’ll take anything but a home run.’ And it went off the wall and he ended up getting a triple, and I think I ended up getting out of the inning. But yeah, anytime you faced a hitter like that in a big situation where he has something on the line or whatever, you don’t want to be a part of it, but as long as it’s not too bad, it’s OK. It’s not too bad to be a part of it.
“Then after the game, I’m sitting at my locker and I got all the media around me wanting to talk about giving up that hit and I explained everything and then at the end I said, ‘The only thing that I asked for is you go back and ask him for an autographed bat. By the time he leaves, just send it over.’ And by the time I left the stadium, he had already sent the bat over and signed it. Great guy.”
Yelich: “After he got it, we were in the outfield together playing catch the next half inning, warming up for the bottom of whatever against the Rockies at Coors Field. And I remember playing catch with him and me thinking, ‘Don’t you dare throw this ball over Ichiro’s head and have him go running to the wall to go get this ball or something.’ With all these cameras and people watching him right now, all over the world, you just don’t want to airmail it in the outfield and send him running. That’s what I remember thinking.”
It wasn’t just milestones but Ichiro’s ability to make any moment extraordinary. There’s perhaps no better example than his unreal April 2001 throw from right field to get A’s outfielder Terrence Long at third base.
Long: “When he threw me out at third, early in the year we were in Seattle, same scenario, ball hit to right field, but it was a little bit more towards the gap, and I went first to third, no problem. So this time I’m thinking, ‘OK, I went first to third one time before,’ but this one was right at him. And I watched the replay. I was already three or four steps across second before he got it. So I’m thinking, there’s no way he’s throwing me out, and I’m running, and then you can look at the third baseman’s eyes and you can see him looking at this ball. And I’m saying to myself, I’m like, ‘OK, this ball is about to pass me.’ So I was like, two things are going to happen. Either way it goes, you’re going to be on ESPN forever. So the smart thing to do is just slide, just to make it look close. The worst thing I could have done was just go in, stand it up, and it would’ve been even more embarrassing. So I was like, ‘I’m just going to slide.’ But as soon as I got ready to slide, you see this ball come right past me. I was like, ‘Oh my God, there’s no way he just made that throw.'”
Even routine plays became the stuff of legend when Ichiro stepped onto the field.
Salmon: “We were playing in Seattle one year, and the grass always has a dew on it, a dampness to it. Anyway, he hit a line drive at me. This is along the lines of how hard he hit the ball. They just rocketed off his bat. And it was just going to be a nice easy one-hopper. And I came up to get it, and it hit the ground and it skipped so hard. I didn’t get my glove down in time, and it hit me in the nuts. And literally, I did everything I could to keep from rolling over or whatever. I mean, I picked up the ball and I threw it in and I was like, ‘Oh my God.’ And I was walking around the outfield and I swear it was burning so bad down there. I figured I must be bleeding. And I kept trying to glance down looking at it like, ‘Am I bleeding?’
“I’m 200 feet away. That ball, it hit the ground and it just had so much on it. It looked like a normal line drive, one-hop routine, and it skipped on me — but he hits the ball so hard that you really got to be on your toes. And I remember hearing infielders talk about that. He’d hit a hard one- or two-hopper that would just get through, past the infielder, because the ball came off that different.”
Joe Girardi, manager with Yankees, 2012 to 2014: “My favorite Ichiro story is actually when he played with the Mariners against us. I remember him taking Mariano Rivera deep [a walk-off] in a game, throwing the cutter inside and it getting hit. He had the ability to pull his hands inside and hit the ball out of the ballpark. And when you would watch him take BP, he hit ball after ball after ball out. But he knew his game was getting on base and stealing bases. So he never tried to be something that he wasn’t. The ground that he covered was incredible and people just didn’t run on him, or he probably would’ve had a lot more assists. And it’s a guy that had over 500 stolen bases. So I don’t know if he could really ask a player to do much more.”
Legendary skills and work ethic
None of his achievements would have been possible without a combination of baseball skills and work ethic that set Ichiro apart from his contemporaries.
Cameron: “He was a locker mate of mine and he was my right fielder for the three years that we played together. What jumps out is just his consistency. His consistency and his work ethic. He calls it a word in Japanese: it’s called Kaizen, and in Japanese that means never-ending [or continuous improvement]. So he was never satisfied. And I don’t think he really worked off the numbers other than the fact that he loved the idea of getting base hits. The guy was driven about getting base hits and obviously that’s evident in that he came over here and played all those years and got 3,000-something hits and has the all-time hit record in a season. So he was driven by that, although he had the capability of hitting the homer, which I don’t think everyone really knew that.
“The guy used to go in even on off-days and work out. It was every day for him. That’s all he knew. I always used to ask him, ‘What drives you to do this kind of stuff?’ He’s like, first of all, his name means ‘the one.’ So he’s destined to be this one person. And he was also very particular about everything that he did, from his bats to having his own special bat case with a humidifier there. He was a competitor.”
Mark Teixeira, teammate with Yankees, 2012 to 2014: “I got to see Ichiro at his best. There were only a handful of players in baseball that I thought were more impactful to the game. I just thought he was one of the top five players in all of baseball when I played against him.
“What impressed me the most is that he worked harder, took his job more seriously than anybody I’ve ever played with. And this is a guy who was a Hall of Famer, a legend in Japan. He could have just kind of ridden off into the sunset. He wasn’t even playing every day, but yet, he took his craft more seriously than anybody.”
Girardi: “I think his durability was absolutely incredible. Coming over here at 27 years old and playing really every day until he was 41. It was amazing. I’m looking at his stats when he was 41 years old. He appeared in 153 games and he worked really hard. There’s really three facets of the game and he was really good at all of them. Offensively, just his bat-to-ball skills were absolutely incredible and [he] had the ability to hit a home run — in a sense — when the team needed it.”
Beyond all of his other gifts, it was that unparalleled ability to put the bat on the ball that stands out most to those who watched Ichiro — or attempted to get him out.
Mark Buehrle, opponent with White Sox, 2001 to 2015 (Ichiro hit .409 in 66 career at-bats against him): “He was so good with making contact and just putting the ball where he wanted to. I remember a game — I think he had all the hits during that game — he got on first base after his third hit, and I had run over to cover. It was like a base hit through the right side of the infield. And I went over to cover and he was standing on first base and I just threw my arms up. ‘Are you sh–ing me?’ And he just did his whole, ‘My bad,’ shrugging his shoulders. But he was just so good at putting the ball where he wanted to. I swear he would put it where guys were not at.
“I think the only time that I ever moved any position guys on the infield was against him. There was a game, he got two hits between third and shortstop. And I remember the third at-bat. I looked over at [third baseman Joe] Crede and I’m like, ‘Scoot over, he hits the ball right there every time, scoot over.’ So I pointed [him to] move over towards the shortstop and what’s Ichiro do? He hits it right down the freaking line, right where Crede would’ve been at. And I’m like, ‘Yep, I’m never moving anybody ever again.'”
Those who have witnessed his batting practice over the years swear there is another element to Ichiro’s game that defies his modest 119 career home runs.
Long: “He just hits, hits, hits — but what impressed me the most about that guy was batting practice. His first couple of rounds, he is just working on his line drives and then his last round of BP, he hits balls further than anybody I’ve ever seen. And still to this day, people don’t believe it. I’ve watched him take BP a lot. He hits balls farther than any of the big guys you can name in that era in batting practice.”
Olerud: “You watch him take batting practice and I would put him against any home run hitter in Major League Baseball because he just hit one home run ball after the other and way, way out. It was impressive how far he could hit the ball home run-wise and then get in the game and he’d go to slapping the ball the other way and running hard out of the box. It was just so different. And so for me, it was always, ‘Hey, you practice like you play in the game.’ And I never really asked Ichiro what his thinking was in batting practice, but he kind of blew that theory out of the water.”
Bob Melvin’s first managing job was in 2003 with the Mariners. Ichiro was a megastar in the United States by that point, and yet Melvin called him the easiest player he ever coached. He was so committed, so regimented, that Melvin often joked that his only job was to inform Ichiro what time the game started. But when Melvin first came on board, he was given a different task — to schedule days off for Ichiro as often as he could. Ichiro never wanted to take them, but he often needed them. So Melvin identified an early date on the calendar that, in his mind, made sense — Saturday, May 3, in the middle of a weekend series against the White Sox.
Melvin informed Ichiro earlier that week he would not be in the starting lineup for that game and reminded him the day prior. He told him not to take batting practice and to make it a point to arrive at the ballpark later than he normally would. If he needed him, Melvin said, it wouldn’t be until the eighth or ninth inning anyway. Then Melvin walked into the dugout half an hour before the first pitch and saw Ichiro sitting on the bench in full uniform — batting gloves on, bat to his side, one of his knees twitching uncontrollably.
“I’m ready,” Ichiro declared.
Melvin: “Just then, this kid walked by with an Ichiro jersey on. And he looked at me and he just kind of nodded his head to the kid. And it just dawned on me that people come to watch him play, and he’s very aware of it. And he’s an entertainer, as well. And he wants to put on a show. And here we are in Chicago, the only time that year playing the White Sox, he’s not in there, and it was almost his way of telling me, ‘That’s one of the reasons I don’t want days off.’ I just looked at him and I said, ‘I get it.'”
One-of-a-kind personality
Two things were clear about Ichiro’s off-field persona: He was really into fashion, and his comedic timing was impeccable.
Those two traits collided one afternoon in the mid-2000s. Kangaroo court was being held, and one of the Mariners’ players proposed fining Ichiro $500 for wearing another one of his eccentric, fashion-forward, Italian-inspired outfits that seemed more appropriate for a European runway than a major league clubhouse.
Raul Ibanez, teammate with Mariners, 2004 to 2008, and Yankees, 2012: “So Ichiro stands up very calmly and starts speaking very eloquent Japanese in a calm, very distinguished cadence. And then the translator goes, ‘Ichiro-san wants to know how much we’re going to fine you for making him watch all the s— that you guys wear every day.’ It was sometime in September, I think everyone on the 40-man roster was there, and the whole room erupted.”
When Ichiro returned to Seattle as a 44-year-old in 2018, it was Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto who orchestrated the deal with longtime agent John Boggs in early March, in the middle of spring training. But Dipoto had never met Ichiro.
A news conference was scheduled at the Mariners’ facility in Peoria, Arizona. Dipoto and Boggs agreed that the front office people could wear polos and khakis and Ichiro would probably conduct his news conference in his baseball uniform. So, a casual affair. Then that morning, a row of black SUVs pulled into the parking lot. Ichiro hopped out of one of them.
Dipoto: “I’d be conservative in saying I think he’s wearing about a $20,000 suit, his hair perfectly groomed and jet black, and he’s got on what I would qualify as the nicest pair of sunglasses I’ve ever seen. He walks in and spreads his arms out and says, ‘Jerry!’ I looked at him, and my first instinct, I like give him a little backhand slap in the chest. I said, ‘I thought we were going casual.’ And he looked at me and laughed. He said, ‘This is casual for me, my friend!'”
Ichiro’s ability to surprise with his style and wit was evident from the beginning — whether it was with an umpire …
Boone: “One of my favorite moments was: He’s running out for Opening Day and the second-base umpire [Kerwin Danley] was kind of following him out to right field and everybody thought [Ichiro] didn’t speak English. And I believe the line he dropped on him because Danley came right over to me and he said, ‘I can’t believe what Ichiro just said to me.’ I said, ‘What?’ He said he was running by Ichiro and he kind of gave him the, ‘Hey, good luck to you’ this and that kind of thing. And Ichiro kind of looked at him, he said, ‘What’s happening, home slice?’ and kept running to right field. That stuck with me. That was funny. That’s how he was.”
… or when he charmed the game’s greatest players at his first All-Star Game in 2001.
Sweeney: “[AL manager] Joe Torre gives this beautiful speech, you know, ‘You guys are the best in the world in this locker room. Take a look around. You’re in an elite class. There’s only 70 people in the world that are going to play in this game tonight, and you’re one of them.’ And you look around, you see Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera, and you’re looking around the room going, ‘Oh my gosh, this is great.’ So at the very end, we’re all kind of in this feeling of you’re in a cathedral, but yet you’re in a baseball locker room at the same time, and you’re going, where do we go from here? And Joe Torre says, ‘Anybody have anything to add?’ And we’re kind of like, how can you top Joe Torre? And we look around and Ichiro stands up, raises his hand — where’s he going with this? And he goes, ‘Let’s go kick their motherf—ing ass.’ And the place just erupted, the whole locker room.
“It was something I’ll never forget. So then every year in the All-Star games to follow, it just was like, OK, whoever the manager is, you can say whatever you want, but No. 51 always gets the last word. And it was just an unspoken thing — you look over and you see Jeter, the greatest players of our time. And when the manager would get done, it was like, OK, that was good, but wait until you hear what Ichiro has to say. He gets the last word.”
It wasn’t always easy
Sweeney’s first year playing with Ichiro was in 2009, just after Ichiro had led Japan to a World Baseball Classic title. It came with a lot of stress — amid reports of issues between Ichiro and some of his Seattle teammates and a bleeding ulcer.
Sweeney: “I had heard about Ichiro being alienated by his teammates. Some of them were jealous of him, some of them weren’t incorporating him into the team as they should. And I was in shock. I’m like, this guy’s the greatest hitter of all time. How can you not embrace this incredible player? So we go into spring training, Ichiro is in the corner locker right next to Griffey Jr. Then I’m next to Junior and I’m sitting around the locker room looking and saying, man, we have four future Hall of Famers in this locker room. It’s Ichiro, Griffey Jr., Adrian Beltre and Felix Hernandez. And I’m going, man, how can we not win here? We have to find a way to unify this locker room.
“So during spring training, we did little things to bring our team together. We’d meet up for dinners and do fun things in the locker room together. And about halfway through spring training, the WBC started. So Ichiro was obviously on Team Japan and they win and Ichiro shows back up with five days to go before Opening Day in Minnesota. And he goes to our team doctor and says, ‘Look, I don’t feel good at all.’ So they find out he has a bleeding ulcer and he’s deathly ill. They’re treating him in the hospital. But Ichiro was bound and determined to be ready for Opening Day. But the stress of putting his country on his back, he literally put the country of Japan on his back by representing them in the WBC. He willed the Japanese team to win the WBC championship in 2009, and then he tries to get back to a team that just six months before had turned their back on him and kind of ostracized him and put him on an island. They didn’t embrace him.
“And he has all this internal stress going on, which leads to a bleeding ulcer. And Ichiro met with the doc and said, ‘I’m playing for Opening Day.’ And the doctor actually called the owner and said, ‘Ichiro’s adamant that he wants to play for Opening Day, which is in like four days, and I’m in no position as a team physician to allow that to happen.’ Ichiro asked him what’s the worst thing that could happen. And the doc says, ‘If this bleeding ulcer, which is actively bleeding, if it ruptures, you could die.’ And Ichiro looked him square in the eyes and said, ‘I’ll take my chances.’ And the owner of the team had to step in.
“So as we went into Minnesota, Ken Griffey Jr, myself, Adrian Beltre, Felix Hernandez, we got the team together and we said, ‘Hey, look, in the past, this is a teammate that you all have pushed to the side, but here’s what he was willing to do for you. He’s willing to die for you to play in tonight’s game.’ So it was very emotional. This is a time to honor him. This is a time to open up our arms to him and really bring him into the team. So that night in Minnesota, our clubhouse manager, Teddy Walsh, we asked for Ichiro’s jersey, and we hung it in the dugout, in the Metrodome. And Ichiro told me that when he watched the game that night from a hospital bed back in Seattle, he knew that there was something different. He had teammates for the first time since his rookie year, he felt that loved him.
“So the team ended up just falling just short of the playoffs. On the last day of the season, we carry Griffey off on our shoulders thinking he was going to retire and sail off into the sunset. Carlos Silva [a Mariners pitcher, who reportedly had his issues with Ichiro] was so moved by his love for Ichiro, he thinks what the hell, I’m going to put Ichiro on [my] shoulders and carry him off.
“There’s this beautiful image of us carrying Griffey Jr. off the field as a hero’s exodus, and then Carlos Silva throwing Ichiro up on his shoulders, carrying him off just because he loves his teammate. And Ichiro told me that that was the most fun he had in the major leagues since his rookie year. He said the way his teammates loved him, the way his teammates celebrated him brought him great joy again in baseball for the first time since his rookie year.”
The 2025 MLB All-Star Home Run Derby is fast approaching — and the field is set.
Braves hometown hero Ronald Acuna Jr. became the first player to commit to the event, which will be held at Truist Park in Atlanta on July 14 (8 p.m. ET on ESPN). He was followed by MLB home run leader Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals, Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins, Oneil Cruz of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays, Brent Rooker of the Athletics and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the New York Yankees.
On Friday, however, Acuna was replaced by teammate Matt Olson.
With all the entrants announced, let’s break down their chances at taking home this year’s Derby prize.
Full All-Star Game coverage: How to watch, schedule, rosters, more
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 434 feet
Why he could win: Olson is a late replacement for Acuna as the home team’s representative at this year’s Derby. Apart from being the Braves’ first baseman, however, Olson also was born in Atlanta and grew up a Braves fan, giving him some extra motivation. The left-handed slugger led the majors in home runs in 2023 — his 54 round-trippers that season also set a franchise record — and he remains among the best in the game when it comes to exit velo and hard-hit rate.
Why he might not: The home-field advantage can also be a detriment if a player gets too hyped up in the first round. See Julio Rodriguez in Seattle in 2023, when he had a monster first round, with 41 home runs, but then tired out in the second round.
2025 home runs: 36 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: It’s the season of Cal! The Mariners’ catcher is having one of the greatest slugging first halves in MLB history, as he’s been crushing mistakes all season . His easy raw power might be tailor-made for the Derby — he ranks in the 87th percentile in average exit velocity and delivers the ball, on average, at the optimal home run launch angle of 23 degrees. His calm demeanor might also be perfect for the contest as he won’t get too amped up.
Why he might not: He’s a catcher — and one who has carried a heavy workload, playing in all but one game this season. This contest is as much about stamina as anything, and whether Raleigh can carry his power through three rounds would be a concern. No catcher has ever won the Derby, with only Ivan Rodriguez back in 2005 even reaching the finals.
2025 home runs: 24 | Longest: 451 feet
Why he could win: He’s big, he’s strong, he’s young, he’s awesome, he might or might not be able to leap tall buildings in a single bound. This is the perfect opportunity for Wood to show his talent on the national stage, and he wouldn’t be the first young player to star in the Derby. He ranks in the 97th percentile in average exit velocity and 99th percentile in hard-hit rate, so he can still muscle the ball out in BP even if he slightly mishits it. His long arms might be viewed as a detriment, but remember the similarly tall Aaron Judge won in 2017.
Why he might not: His natural swing isn’t a pure uppercut — he has a pretty low average launch angle of just 6.2 degrees — so we’ll see how that plays in a rapid-fire session. In real games, his power is primarily to the opposite field, but in a Home Run Derby you can get more cheapies pulling the ball down the line.
2025 home runs: 20 | Longest: 479 feet
Why he could win: Buxton’s raw power remains as impressive as nearly any hitter in the game. He crushed a 479-foot home run earlier this season and has four others of at least 425 feet. Indeed, his “no doubter” percentage — home runs that would be out of all 30 parks based on distance — is 75%, the highest in the majors among players with more than a dozen home runs. His bat speed ranks in the 89th percentile. In other words, two tools that could translate to a BP lightning show.
Why he might not: Buxton is 31 and the Home Run Derby feels a little more like a younger man’s competition. Teoscar Hernandez did win last year at age 31, but before that, the last winner older than 29 was David Ortiz in 2010, and that was under much different rules than are used now.
2025 home runs: 16 | Longest: 463 feet
Why he could win: If you drew up a short list of players everyone wants to see in the Home Run Derby, Cruz would be near the top. He has the hardest-hit ball of the 2025 season, and the hardest ever tracked by Statcast, a 432-foot missile of a home run with an exit velocity of 122.9 mph. He also crushed a 463-foot home run in Anaheim that soared way beyond the trees in center field. With his elite bat speed — 100th percentile — Cruz has the ability to awe the crowd with a potentially all-time performance.
Why he might not: Like all first-time contestants, can he stay within himself and not get too caught up in the moment? He has a long swing, which will result in some huge blasts, but might not be the most efficient for a contest like this one, where the more swings a hitter can get in before the clock expires, the better.
2025 home runs: 23 | Longest: 425 feet
Why he could win: Although Caminero was one of the most hyped prospects entering 2024, everyone kind of forgot about him heading into this season since he didn’t immediately rip apart the majors as a rookie. In his first full season, however, he has showed off his big-time raw power — giving him a chance to become just the third player to reach 40 home runs in his age-21 season. He has perhaps the quickest bat in the majors, ranking in the 100th percentile in bat speed, and his top exit velocity ranks in the top 15. That could translate to a barrage of home runs.
Why he might not: In game action, Caminero does hit the ball on the ground quite often — in fact, he’s on pace to break Jim Rice’s record for double plays grounded into in a season. If he gets out of rhythm, that could lead to a lot of low line drives during the Derby instead of fly balls that clear the fences.
2025 home runs: 19 | Longest: 440 feet
Why he could win: The Athletics slugger has been one of the top power hitters in the majors for three seasons now and is on his way to a third straight 30-homer season. Rooker has plus bat speed and raw power, but his biggest strength is an optimal average launch angle (19 degrees in 2024, 15 degrees this season) that translates to home runs in game action. That natural swing could be picture perfect for the Home Run Derby. He also wasn’t shy about saying he wanted to participate — and maybe that bodes well for his chances.
Why he might not: Rooker might not have quite the same raw power as some of the other competitors, as he has just one home run longer than 425 feet in 2025. But that’s a little nitpicky, as 11 of his home runs have still gone 400-plus feet. He competed in the college home run derby in Omaha while at Mississippi State in 2016 and finished fourth.
2025 home runs: 17 | Longest: 442 feet
Why he could win: Chisholm might not be the most obvious name to participate, given his career high of 24 home runs, but he has belted 17 already in 2025 in his first 61 games after missing some time with an injury. He ranks among the MLB leaders in a couple of home run-related categories, ranking in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage and 98th percentile in barrel rate. His raw power might not match that of the other participants, but he’s a dead-pull hitter who has increased his launch angle this season, which might translate well to the Derby, even if he won’t be the guy hitting the longest home runs.
Why he might not: Most of the guys who have won this have been big, powerful sluggers. Chisholm is listed at 5-foot-11, 184 pounds, and you have to go back to Miguel Tejada in 2004 to find the last player under 6 foot to win.
The 2025 MLB draft is underway on ESPN, with the Washington Nationals starting things off by taking prep shortstop Eli Willits with the No. 1 overall pick.
The Los Angeles Angels followed up by picking college pitcher Tyler Bremner and the Seattle Mariners nabbed another in Kade Anderson at third. The Colorado Rockies took prep shortstop Ethan Holliday, who had been in the mix to go first overall, with the fourth pick, and the St. Louis Cardinals rounded out the top five by selecting college pitcher Liam Doyle.
Who will be the biggest steals — and stretches — of Day 1?
Follow along for pick-by-pick coverage, with ESPN MLB experts David Schoenfield and Dan Mullen breaking down everything you need to know about who your favorite team took in the first round as the picks come off the board.
Final mock draft | Draft rankings: Top 250 | Big question for all 30 teams
1. Washington Nationals: Eli Willits, SS, Fort Cobb-Broxton HS (Okla.)
Draft ranking: No. 3
Who is Willits? The son of former Angels outfielder Reggie Willits, Eli is one of a deep group of high school shortstops in this draft. He reclassified to the 2025 class, so is one of the younger players in the draft, not turning 18 until December, a big plus in analytic draft models. He’s a clear shortstop with a good hit tool and contact ability, with his future power outcome the biggest question mark as he turns pro.
Why the Nationals took him here: There was a lot of intrigue about which direction the Nationals would go in a draft without a slam-dunk No. 1 pick — and Washington surprised everyone with this pick. Willits was one of the top players in this draft, but he was behind Ethan Holliday and Kade Anderson as options to go No. 1 overall. He’s one of the youngest prospects in this draft — and that’s a very good thing for his potential, considering Carlos Correa and Francisco Lindor were also both 17-year-old shortstops on draft night.
There’s also a chance that taking Willits here could come with some bonus-money savings that sets Washington up for some splashy picks in the coming rounds. — Mullen
MLB player comp: Kevin McGonigle, with more speed and defense
2. Los Angeles Angels: Tyler Bremner, RHP, UC Santa Barbara
Draft ranking: No. 18
Who is Bremner? Bremner entered the season alongside Jamie Arnold as the top collegiate pitcher after a strong sophomore season and a summer pitching for USA Baseball’s collegiate national team, but he scuffled early on with inconsistent stuff and results. He finished stronger, including a string of double-digit-strikeout games, and he threw strikes, walking just 19 batters in 77⅓ innings with 111 strikeouts. He sits 94-96, touching 98, but his plus changeup might be his best offering while his slider was hit hard and backed up compared to 2024.
Why the Angels took him here: Two picks into this draft and teams are already sending a clear message, as Bremner is the second straight curveball: The talent at the top doesn’t match that of recent drafts, so Washington and L.A. are likely saving money with their picks with underslot deals. Bremner does fit the Angels’ model of drafting college prospects who can move quickly, but ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel had Bremner ranked just 18th on his most recent draft board. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Michael Wacha with more upside
Draft ranking: No. 1
Who is Anderson? Winner of the Most Outstanding Player award at the College World Series in leading LSU to the title after allowing one run in 17 innings, including a 1-0 shutout in the finals, Anderson topped Division I with 180 strikeouts, finishing 12-1 with a 3.18 ERA. Anderson had Tommy John surgery in high school, missing his senior season, but he’s a polished lefty with a five-pitch repertoire if you include both his fastballs. His fastball carries well in the zone, and he commands it well, so it plays up over its 92-94 mph velocity (hitting 97).
0:55
The traits that helped make Kade Anderson a Mariner
Kiley McDaniel explains the traits that helped make Kade Anderson the third overall pick by the Mariners.
Why the Mariners took him here: Seattle really couldn’t have asked for a better situation than this. After seeing two surprise picks ahead of their No. 3 selection, the Mariners landed the breakout star of this year’s College World Series and one of the surest players in this draft. Though Anderson lacks the true ace upside of recent college picks Paul Skenes and Chase Burns, the left-hander is a polished starter who should move quickly through the minors and could be part of an already-strong Seattle rotation sooner rather than later. — Mullen
MLB player comp: Max Fried
4. Colorado Rockies: Ethan Holliday, 3B, Stillwater HS (Okla.)
Draft ranking: No. 2
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The traits that helped make Ethan Holliday a member of the Rockies
Kiley McDaniel explains the traits that helped make Ethan Holliday the fourth overall pick by the Rockies.
Who is Holliday? Yes, he’s Matt’s son and brother of Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday, the first pick in the 2022 draft. Like his brother, Ethan is a left-handed hitter, although he’s much bigger (6-foot-4 compared to 6-foot) and built more like their dad, thus projects to have similar 30-homer power. He lacks the range to stay at shortstop but should be an above-average defender at third base. There are some concerns about his performance last summer on the showcase circuit and weak competition this spring in high school, but scouts love the swing and power ceiling.
Why the Rockies took him here: There was plenty of talk about Holliday being a possibility for the No. 1 pick, so the Rockies have to be happy about getting the player who might have the best chance of developing into a true major league star. His best-case scenario is reaching the majors as a power-hitting, good-fielding third baseman who turns into the Rockies’ first franchise player since they traded away a power-hitting, good-fielding third baseman in Nolan Arenado. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Left-handed-hitting version of Matt Chapman or Eugenio Suarez
Draft ranking: No. 6
Who is Doyle? One of the three highly rated lefty collegiate pitchers, Doyle went 10-4 with a 3.20 ERA for the Vols, striking out 164 in 95⅔ innings, finishing second in Division I in strikeouts and first in K’s per nine. After sitting in the low 90s as a sophomore, Doyle sat in the mid-90s, peaking at 100 mph and often just blowing his heater by college hitters. He throws strikes, isn’t afraid to pitch inside and backs up the fastball with a splitter and slider, pitches he’ll probably have to deploy more often as a pro.
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The traits that helped make Liam Doyle a member of the Cardinals
Kiley McDaniel explains the traits that helped make Liam Doyle the fifth overall pick by the Cardinals.
Why the Cardinals took him here: Doyle’s fastball could play in the majors right now, and the Cardinals have long been in need of some hard-throwing additions to their system. The question here is if the rest of Doyle’s arsenal and delivery can be strong enough to keep him in the rotation. Best case, St. Louis just added a strong part of its rotation for years to come — but a potential closer or top setup option isn’t a bad fallback plan either. — Mullen
MLB player comp: Spencer Strider, if he was left-handed but had real questions about his command/stamina/delivery
6. Pittsburgh Pirates: Seth Hernandez, RHP, Corona HS (Calif.)
Draft ranking: No. 4
Who is Hernandez? No high school right-hander has ever gone first overall, but Hernandez put himself in that discussion as the clear top prep arm in the draft. With a projectable 6-4 frame, he followed up a strong summer in 2024 with a dominant high school season, touching triple digits but also showcasing a plus-plus changeup and an above-average 12-to-6 curveball with a high spin rate. He was athletic enough to play the field when he didn’t pitch, which might help him overcome the risky history of first-round high school pitchers.
Why the Pirates took him here: The Pirates have Paul Skenes in the majors and Bubba Chandler, perhaps the top pitching prospect in the minors, in Triple-A, and now they’ve added Hernandez, who might have the most upside of any pitcher in the draft, with a fastball up to 100 mph and plus-plus changeup. He’s a good athlete (he was a second-round prospect as a hitter), which is another plus. The only negative is the scary history of first-round pitching prospects, but Hernandez might be the best prep right-handed prospect in a decade. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Zac Gallen with more stuff or Devin Williams as a starter
7. Miami Marlins: Aiva Arquette, SS, Oregon State
Draft ranking: No. 9
Who is Arquette? The latest in the Oregon State pipeline that has produced first-round picks Nick Madrigal, Trevor Larnach, Adley Rutschman, Cooper Hjerpe and Travis Bazzana since 2018, Arquette is a Honolulu native who transferred from Washington and hit .354 with 19 home runs for the Beavers. Viewed as the best college position player, Arquette is 6-foot-5, leading many scouts to think he’ll eventually move to third base even though he’s agile enough for now to get a shot at shortstop.
Why the Marlins took him here: It’s no secret that the Marlins are in need of some offensive thump throughout their system. In Arquette, they get one of the top hitters in college baseball and a prospect who should be able to supply some power while climbing quickly to the majors. It’s hard to picture the 6-5, 220-pound Oregon State star sticking at shortstop for the long term, but he should have a home somewhere in Miami’s infield. — Mullen
MLB player comp: Somewhere on the Willy Adames to Isaac Paredes spectrum
8. Toronto Blue Jays: JoJo Parker, SS, Purvis HS (Miss.)
Draft ranking: No. 7
Who is Parker? Viewed as one of the most polished prep hitters in the draft, Parker was the Gatorade Mississippi Player of the Year (his twin brother, Jacob, is also a top prospect) and follows Konnor Griffin, taken ninth last year by the Pirates, as a Mississippi high schooler to go high in the draft. A left-handed batter, Parker has great hand-eye coordination and rarely swings and misses at anything in the zone. He has 20-homer potential, although he’ll be tested to stick at shortstop long term.
Why the Blue Jays took him here: One of the many prep shortstops in a deep group, Parker’s carrying tools are an outstanding bat to go with outstanding makeup. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him end up as the best hitter from this draft. With Bo Bichette potentially leaving as a free agent, the Blue Jays could use a shortstop of the future, and Parker’s bat could allow him to move quickly through the minors. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Less athletic Gunnar Henderson or Rafael Devers with less mass/power?
9. Cincinnati Reds: Steele Hall, SS, Hewitt-Trussville HS (Ala.)
Draft ranking: No. 13
Who is Hall? A plus-plus runner with grade 70 or 80 speed, Hall is the first Alabama prep shortstop drafted in the first round since Condredge Holloway went fourth overall in 1971 (Holloway didn’t sign and became the first Black QB in the SEC at Tennessee). Hall reclassified to the Class of 2025 and doesn’t turn 18 until later in July. He should be a lock to stay at shortstop with his range and arm and already shows average power and ability to lift the ball.
Why the Reds took him here: Great baseball name. Like Eli Willits, Hall reclassified into this draft class and is one of the youngest players who will be selected this year. Draft models love that, but that’s not the only reason to be high on Steele. He’s a strong athlete and runner who should stick at shortstop long term. The big question, though, is if his free-swinging style will work at the next level. — Mullen
MLB player comp: Trea Turner with a dash of Jett Williams and a dusting of Anthony Volpe
10. Chicago White Sox: Billy Carlson, SS, Corona HS (Calif.)
Draft ranking: No. 8
Who is Carlson? Seth Hernandez’s high school teammate, Carlson is how you draw up a prep shortstop: above-average-to-plus bat speed and raw power, an 80-grade arm (up to 97 mph as a pitcher), range in the field and game performance. He’s still growing into his power and will have to overcome some concerns about his hit tool, but the defense should give him a high floor and there’s five-tool potential here.
Why the White Sox took him here: As expected, we’re now getting the run of prep shortstops. Carlson’s calling card is his defense, featuring a Masyn Wynn-type cannon. He also has the range to stick at shortstop and impressive raw power. If the hit tool comes around, the upside is huge, and he fits in nicely in a White Sox system that is finally showing some long-term potential solutions on offense — obviously a huge need at the big league level. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Bobby Witt Jr., but one tier lower in tools, and with questions if the ultimate offensive upside matches those tools (Jeremy Pena feels a bit closer)
11. Athletics: Jamie Arnold, LHP, Florida State
Draft ranking: No. 5
Who is Arnold? Arnold ranked third in Division I in strikeouts as a sophomore in 2024, behind only top-five picks Chase Burns and Hagen Smith, but pitched fewer innings in 2025 and saw his strikeout rate and strikeout-to-walk rate drop a bit. Still, he’s viewed as a high-probability pick, with a fastball that sits in the 93 mph range from a low, easy delivery that he can pump up to 97, with a sweeping slider and feel for a plus changeup.
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The traits that helped make Jamie Arnold a member of the Athletics
Kiley McDaniel explains the traits that helped Jamie Arnold get drafted by the Athletics.
Why the Athletics took him here: Entering the season, Arnold was in the conversation to be the No. 1 pick, so getting him here has to make the A’s happy. The Florida State left-hander is probably the second-safest pitcher in this draft, behind Kade Anderson, because of his polish and secondary stuff. Arnold’s fastball is a class below some other recent top pitching prospects though, and that could limit him to be more of a mid-rotation starter than a future ace. — Mullen
MLB player comp: A bit of Chris Sale and a bit of Nick Lodolo, if Arnold’s command progresses
12. Texas Rangers: Gavin Fien, 3B, Great Oak HS (Calif.)
Draft ranking: No. 12
Who is Fien? Fien was one of the top prep hitters on the summer showcase circuit in 2024, but the 6-3 right-handed hitter struggled at times this spring during his regular high school season, not producing the same hard contact as consistently even though he was facing weaker competition. At his best, he has shown plus raw power with excellent bat speed and in-zone contact rates. He profiles well at third base with a strong arm.
Why the Rangers took him here: The Rangers have struggled to score runs the past two seasons following their World Series title in 2023, so it’s probably not a surprise they would draft a hitter with one of the best hit/power combos in the draft. Fien should be able to stick at third base with a strong arm, but his bat is what will get him to the majors. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Austin Riley with a bit of Josh Jung mixed in
Draft ranking: No. 20
Who is Kilen? After transferring from Louisville for his junior season, Kilen was one of the best players in the SEC, hitting .357 with 15 home runs. After walking just seven times as a sophomore, he toned down his aggressiveness with the Vols and showed better swing decisions, drawing 30 walks against just 27 strikeouts. He projects as contact over power although showed some high-end exit velocity results on occasion. He played both infield positions for the Vols, although his fringy arm probably pushes him to second base in the pros.
Why the Giants took him here: Not to be confused with Gavin Fien, taken one pick earlier, Gavin Kilen is one of the safest bats in this draft — and the Giants take him a year after they selected James Tibbs III, one of the safest bats in the 2024 draft, at No. 13. Kilen’s power took a big step forward at Tennessee this year after he transferred from Louisville, making him arguably the most productive hitter in one of the SEC’s best lineups. Despite that production this season, Kilen’s power is more likely to show up as average than plus in the majors, but his hit tool figures to play at any level. — Mullen
MLB player comp: In the Brice Turang area as maybe a shortstop, but probably second base with a solid lefty stick (but not huge tools)
14. Tampa Bay Rays: Daniel Pierce, SS, Mill Creek HS (Ga.)
Draft ranking: No. 19
Who is Pierce? Yet another prep infielder who looks like a lock to stick at shortstop, Pierce played for his dad’s high school team in Georgia, with plus speed and a plus arm his strongest attributes. Scouts love his makeup, and he has produced against quality pitching on the showcase circuit and could add power to his right-handed swing as he gets stronger.
Why the Rays took him here: The Rays love drafting athletic middle infielders — think of Carson Williams in the first round in 2021 and Theo Gillen in 2024 — even if that player has to eventually move to the outfield (as was the case with Gillen). Pierce is a good bet to stay at shortstop and, as a coach’s son, brings all those intangibles you would expect. He’ll need to get stronger and add more power, but the Rays don’t historically rush their prospects, so Pierce will have time to develop. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Jeremy Pena, if it all clicks
15. Boston Red Sox: Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Oklahoma
Draft ranking: No. 10
Who is Witherspoon? The hard-throwing right-hander began his college career at a Florida junior college before playing two years for the Sooners, going 10-4 with a 2.65 ERA and 124 strikeouts in 95 innings this spring. He tops out at 99 mph and improved his walk rate from 4.5 per innings as a sophomore to 2.2. He throws both a slider and cutter and flashes a changeup and curveball as well. His twin brother, Malachi, also pitched for the Sooners and is also a prospect, although he projects as a fastball/slider reliever, whereas Kyson has the pitches and delivery to start.
Why the Red Sox took him here: While the Red Sox have been pumping out hitting prospects in recent years, pitching coming through the farm system hasn’t exactly been a strength of theirs. Witherspoon has a chance to change that if everything clicks. He has power stuff and strong athleticism with the potential to be a legit swing-and-miss starter at the big league level. He isn’t quite as safe a bet as the trio of college left-handers who went above him tonight, but some scouts believe the right-handed Witherspoon is on the verge of a breakout as the Red Sox land him here. — Mullen
MLB player comp: Delivery and arsenal are shades of Dylan Cease, but command isn’t there yet
16. Minnesota Twins: Marek Houston, SS, Wake Forest
Draft ranking: No. 22
Who is Houston? Wake Forest continues to pump out the first-rounders, with Houston following last year’s first-round trio of Chase Burns, Nick Kurtz and Seaver King, who all went in the top 10. In 2023, it was Rhett Lowder and Brock Wilken. A gifted defender, Houston might be the best defensive shortstop in the draft. While he hit .354 with 15 home runs for the Demon Deacons, 11 of those home runs came at home in Wake Forest’s hitter-friendly park. If there is some power here, Houston can develop into a starter; otherwise, he projects as a high-floor utility player.
Why the Twins took him here: A surefire shortstop, Houston might be the best collegiate defender in this draft and is right up there with Billy Carlson as the best overall defensive shortstop. That puts Houston in line as a potential long-term replacement for Carlos Correa, who is signed through 2028 (with some potential vesting options after that). The Twins do have Brooks Lee, their first-round pick from 2022, in the majors, but the jury remains out on both his bat and his glove. Houston will have to develop some power, but his glove alone should get him to the majors as at least a utility guy. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Masyn Winn, if the offense continues to improve
17. Chicago Cubs: Ethan Conrad, RF, Wake Forest
Draft ranking: No. 30
Who is Conrad? Yet another Wake Forest transfer, Conrad played two seasons for Marist before landing at Wake, lighting up the scoreboard early on, when he hit .372 with seven home runs in 21 games before shoulder surgery ended his season early. A 6-4 lefty swinger, Conrad has the tools for both above-average hit and above-average power, although there is some concern about his aggressive approach. Although his numbers came before Wake’s tougher ACC schedule, he did perform well in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2024.
Why the Cubs took him here: If not for the shoulder injury he suffered in early April, there’s a chance Conrad would not have been here for Chicago to take. He was one of the best performers in the ACC after coming over from Marist with a compact swing and gap-to-gap approach that should translate well to the pros. Conrad probably won’t be a star, but he has a chance to be a player who both hits for a solid average and supplies some power for the Cubs. — Mullen
18. Arizona Diamondbacks: Kayson Cunningham, SS, Johnson HS (Texas)
Draft ranking: No. 25
Who is Cunningham? Viewed as perhaps the best pure hitter in the draft, Cunningham has elite barrel control and bat speed with his left-handed swing and rarely swings and misses. Listed at 5-10, he’s shorter than that, and there are some doubts about his ability to remain at shortstop, even though he’s a plus runner. The swing is flat at times and will need to add some loft to reach some power. He’s also 19 on draft day, a red flag under some draft models.
Why the Diamondbacks took him here: No team loves short players as much as the Diamondbacks, who drafted the 5-10 Corbin Carroll in the first round in 2019 and 5-9 Slade Caldwell in the first round last summer. Carroll is a big star and Caldwell is having one of the best seasons of any of the 2024 first-rounders. Cunningham is another sub 6-footer (5-10, to be exact) with an impressive hit tool and the Diamondbacks will hope they got another steal in the middle of the first round. — Schoenfield
MLB player comp: Lefty-hitting Matt McLain, if the power comes
Draft ranking: No. 11
Who is Irish? A three-year performer for the Tigers, Irish hit .350 with 39 home runs in his Auburn career, including .364 with 19 home runs this spring, when his OPS ranked second highest in conference play. He entered the season with concerns about his defense at catcher, and he ended up playing 45 games in the outfield compared to just 12 behind the plate, although he could still project as a backup catcher who plays all over the field.
Why the Orioles took him here: Where will he play as a pro? Good question. But there’s one thing that is certain about Irish: He hit as well, or better, than just about anyone in college baseball this season. He put up huge numbers in the nation’s toughest conference this year and produced against many of the SEC pitchers you’ll see taken in the first few rounds of this draft. Until just about everything went sideways in Baltimore this year, the O’s had a reputation for crushing their early position-player picks — and Irish is exactly the kind of hitter who they have thrived at developing. — Mullen
MLB player comp: Seiya Suzuki in terms of tools/outcomes, but a notch bigger — and he might also be a passable defensive catcher
20. Milwaukee Brewers: Andrew Fischer, 1B/3B, Tennessee
Draft ranking: No. 24
Who is Fischer? Fischer’s vagabond college career saw him go from Duke to Mississippi to Tennessee, where he was one of the sluggers in Division I this spring, hitting .341/.497/.760 with 25 home runs. He cut his strikeout rate down to 14% while ranking fourth in walks behind three small-school players. He delivers plus left-handed power to all fields with good loft. He played first base for the Vols for all but a few games, so his bat will have to be his carrying tool.
MLB player comp: Max Muncy (the Dodgers 3B/1B one)
Upcoming picks
21. Houston Astros
22. Atlanta Braves
23. Kansas City Royals
24. Detroit Tigers
25. San Diego Padres
26. Philadelphia Phillies
27. Cleveland Guardians
Prospect Promotion Incentive picks
28. Kansas City Royals
Compensation picks
29. Arizona Diamondbacks
30. Baltimore Orioles
31. Baltimore Orioles
32. Milwaukee Brewers
Competitive balance round A
33. Boston Red Sox (Acquired from the Brewers in the trade for Quinn Priester.)
34. Detroit Tigers
35. Seattle Mariners
36. Minnesota Twins
37. Baltimore Orioles (Acquired from the Rays in trade for Bryan Baker.)
38. New York Mets
39. New York Yankees
40. Los Angeles Dodgers
41. Los Angeles Dodgers (Acquired from the Reds in the trade for Gavin Lux.)
42. Tampa Bay Rays (Acquired from the Athletics in the trade for Jeffrey Springs and Jacob Lopez.)
43. Miami Marlins
Second round
44. Chicago White Sox
45. Colorado Rockies
46. Miami Marlins
47. Los Angeles Angels
48. Athletics
49. Washington Nationals
50. Pittsburgh Pirates
51. Cincinnati Reds
52. Texas Rangers
53. Tampa Bay Rays
54. Minnesota Twins
55. St. Louis Cardinals
56. Chicago Cubs
57. Seattle Mariners
58. Baltimore Orioles
59. Milwaukee Brewers
60. Atlanta Braves
61. Kansas City Royals
62. Detroit Tigers
63. Philadelphia Phillies
64. Cleveland Guardians
65. Los Angeles Dodgers
Competitive balance round B
66. Cleveland Guardians
67. Tampa Bay Rays (Compensation for unsigned 2024 No. 66 overall pick Tyler Bell.)
68. Milwaukee Brewers (Compensation for unsigned 2024 No. 67 overall pick Chris Levonas.)
69. Baltimore Orioles
70. Cleveland Guardians (Acquired from the D-backs in the trade for Josh Naylor.)
71. Kansas City Royals
72. St. Louis Cardinals
73. Pittsburgh Pirates
74. Colorado Rockies
Compensation picks
75. Boston Red Sox (Compensation for Nick Pivetta. The Padres forfeited their second-round pick for signing Pivetta.)
Third round
77. Colorado Rockies
78. Miami Marlins
79. Los Angeles Angels
80. Washington Nationals
81. Toronto Blue Jays
82. Pittsburgh Pirates
83. Cincinnati Reds
84. Texas Rangers
85. San Francisco Giants
86. Tampa Bay Rays
87. Boston Red Sox
88. Minnesota Twins
89. St. Louis Cardinals
90. Chicago Cubs
91. Seattle Mariners
92. Arizona Diamondbacks
93. Baltimore Orioles
94. Milwaukee Brewers
95. Houston Astros
96. Atlanta Braves
97. Kansas City Royals
98. Detroit Tigers
99. San Diego Padres
100. Philadelphia Phillies
101. Cleveland Guardians
102. New York Mets
103. New York Yankees
104. Los Angeles Dodgers
Compensation picks
105. Los Angeles Angels
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