
Updated 2025 MLB draft rankings: Top 150 prospects — and a mini-mock draft
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Kiley McDanielMay 14, 2025, 07:00 AM ET
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- Kiley McDaniel covers MLB prospects, the MLB Draft and more, including trades and free agency.
- Has worked for three MLB teams.
Co-author of Author of ‘Future Value’
With high school seasons ending across the country and college conference tournaments about a week away from beginning, it’s time for a full update on how the 2025 MLB draft is shaping up with a mini-mock draft and a fresh ranking of the top 150 prospects.
I mentioned a month ago in my last rankings update that this is viewed as a weaker draft than the 2024 class and that’s still the case. Last year’s final draft rankings had five players better than a 50 FV and 10 total players at a 50 FV or above. This year, as you can see below, has eight players as a 50 FV or better and no one above that tier. I’ll go into a little more detail about what this means below, but let’s get into the buzz about how the draft will play out with a mock draft.
Jump to: Mini-mock draft | Top 150 prospects
Mini-mock draft: Projecting the first 11 picks
1. Washington Nationals — Ethan Holliday, 3B, Stillwater HS (Oklahoma)
This one is still wide open. Holliday is perceived as the most likely outcome right now from my industry conversations. (Here’s a look at Holliday from when I saw him this spring.) But Eli Willits has some industry buzz here and Seth Hernandez seems to be a real option while Jamie Arnold and Liam Doyle are seen as the two most likely college options should Washington go that route.
These players are all pretty closely packed on my rankings below so the Nats getting into the draft room to hash out which they think is best — along with weighing the asking prices of each prospect — will dictate how Washington plays this one.
2. Los Angeles Angels — Jamie Arnold, LHP, Florida State
This is going to shock you, but the Angels are being tied to college players who can move quickly. Arnold, Doyle, and Arquette are mentioned the most, but any of the college players in the top 12 of my rankings could be the guy with a strong finish and the right price tag.
3. Seattle Mariners — Seth Hernandez, RHP, Corona HS (California)
The M’s are mostly being tied to Willits, Hernandez and Arnold, so I think they’ll end up with one of those three. Hernandez is seen as one of the best prep righties in a while, but that is also the riskiest position demographic in the draft by a mile due to performance and injury risks (think running backs in the NFL draft).
A weaker top of the draft with a rare prospect like Hernandez may be the only time Seattle would consider a prep righty this high, but the Mariners are taking a long look and the positive early returns on Ryan Sloan (a prep righty who was their second-round pick) from last year’s draft may be emboldening them, too. Here’s some video showing what I saw from Hernandez this spring.
4. Colorado Rockies — Liam Doyle, LHP, Tennessee
The Nats and Rockies are widely viewed as the two most likely landing spots for Holliday — meaning he likely stops here if not off the board already on draft day; I’d say it’s a 75% chance he goes first or fourth. The possibility of Colorado floating Holliday an overslot number to get him here may change the math enough to take him out of consideration for the first pick.
The question is who is next on Colorado’s list if the Rockies don’t land Holliday. Teams picking in this area have said with confidence both that it will be whomever is still available of Doyle/Arnold and shortstop Aiva Arquette.
5. St. Louis Cardinals — Kade Anderson, LHP, LSU
The Cards love to take college lefties historically and one of the three elite ones in this class is almost sure to be available here. Similar to Colorado, I think St. Louis takes Holliday if he gets here (though that seems unlikely given the Rockies’ interest), and their mix beyond that is a bit unclear.
6. Pittsburgh Pirates — Billy Carlson, SS, Corona HS (California)
Pittsburgh is believed to be locked in on Carlson (whose range seems to start here) and Aiva Arquette, with some other players also being considered. Carlson (here’s some video I took this spring) has a number of similarities with Konnor Griffin, the Pirates’ first-round pick last year, so the belief in the industry is he’s the pick if he’s here.
7. Miami Marlins — Eli Willits, SS, Fort Cobb-Broxton HS (Oklahoma)
Willits is in consideration at many of the picks above this but likely stops here or the next pick to Toronto. Miami is believed to be leaning toward hitters with a focus on contact ability, so Carlson, Willits and JoJo Parker get mentioned the most. Here’s a look at Willits from when I saw him this spring.
8. Toronto Blue Jays — Aiva Arquette, SS, Oregon State
The Jays are sitting here waiting to see how the potential chaos in front of them will play out and to pick up what’s left. In this scenario it’s Arquette, but his safer player demographic means a lot of teams will be considering him above this pick. My ranking below has a top tier of eight players, and I’d bet only one or two of those players get here because that grouping is pretty consensus within the industry (and even more so if you include a couple from the next tier).
9. Cincinnati Reds — Jace LaViolette, CF, Texas A&M
Seth Hernandez could end up here because isn’t a fit for a number of teams that don’t tend to take pitchers, older high school players or prep righties at high picks. But in this scenario, LaViolette fits the Reds’ history of taking the best player still on the board and is the pick in this scenario.
10. Chicago White Sox — Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Oklahoma
Chicago has been tied to yet another lower-slot lefty (Hagen Smith and Blake Larson last year, Garrett Crochet and Chris Sale in the past) in high schooler Kruz Schoolcraft at this pick, but he feels like more of a backup option than the primary target.
The White Sox are right at the tail end of having access to a certain tier of player in this class, so I think they’ll be reactive to what’s happening above them. Their return from Boston for Garrett Crochet included Braden Montgomery who was LaViolette’s running mate in the Texas A&M outfield last year and the buzz is the current Aggies star has a landing spot here if he’s on the board.
11. Athletics — JoJo Parker, Purvis HS (Mississippi)
Parker’s name was being whispered earlier this spring as the sneaky fourth-best prep position player in this class at a time that he was perceived as more of a late-first-round talent for most teams. That talk has gotten louder to the point that he seems to be the backup option for a number of teams once you get outside of the top five picks, so Parker is now just seen as the consensus next-best prep hitter, who should go somewhere between No. 5 and No. 15 on draft day. I do think the A’s will scoop him up here if he’s available as he fits their type.
This is where I’ll cut off the mock as the consensus top talents are gone and there are about a dozen players who start to come into play in the next few picks.
I mentioned above that the top of this draft is seen as weaker, though the depth is seen as strong. What this means functionally, in my mind, isn’t that this draft as a whole is bad, because it’s made up of thousands of players and the classes don’t vary that much year-to-year in terms of the number of good players.
A couple of scouts have mentioned the 2016 draft to me as a comp. At the time, the top of the draft was also seen as weaker (Mickey Moniak, Nick Senzel, Ian Anderson were the top three picks) and has played out that way, but the later rounds were so loaded in retrospect that, if those players were evaluated correctly given what we know now and went in the top ten picks, that draft would be seen as one of the better ones in recent memory.
Wondering who those stars later in the 2016 draft were? In the top 29 picks, the best player was either Josh Lowe, A.J. Puk or Gavin Lux. But after that? Cole Ragans and Will Smith went in the 30s, Pete Alonso and Bo Bichette went in the 60s and then the murderers’ row of sleepers went between Picks 83-122: Sean Murphy, Jesus Luzardo, Dustin May, Zac Gallen, Corbin Burnes, and Shane Bieber.
I wouldn’t count on that level of impact late in this draft, but we could see something similar as many of those potential stars will go later and are ranked somewhere below now that I’ve expanded it to 150.
I rank players using the FV system so you can see where they’d slot into your team’s prospect list or a full MLB top 100 (more details on the scale are included at that link). The 50 FV tier usually runs from around 45 to about 120 on the overall pro prospects list.
Top 150 MLB draft prospects
50 FV Tier
1. Jamie Arnold (21.2), LHP, Florida State
Arnold has three above-average to plus pitches from a low arm slot in his fastball, sweeper and newly improved changeup. He’s added a shorter cutter-like breaking ball and has two shapes to his fastball, filling out his arsenal.
That was the main concern at this time last year when he was mostly just throwing a fastball and sweeper that moved so much he had trouble keeping them in the zone regularly. The movement his low slot creates is part of what makes his control (throwing it in the strike zone) better than his command (hitting spots), but when your stuff is this lively and angles are working in your favor, that’s workable and also improvable over time.
3:20
Which MLB draft prospects could have star potential?
Kiley McDaniels provides some key prospects to look out for in the MLB draft, including Florida State’s Jamie Arnold and Seth Hernandez from Corona High School.
2. Eli Willits (17.6), SS, Fort Cobb-Broxton HS (OK), Oklahoma commit
Willits is narrowly the best of this class of high school players in my mind. He’s an advanced hitter with a strong track record who is young for the class and regularly faces SEC competition due to his brother and father both being in the Oklahoma program.
He’s also a plus runner and good shortstop, so the lack of impact raw power due to his medium-sized frame doesn’t bother me; this kind of player is often underrated at this stage. Here’s some video from my look this spring and some longer thoughts on Willits.
3. Ethan Holliday (18.3), 3B, Stillwater HS (OK), Oklahoma State commit
Holliday has even stronger bloodlines (brother Jackson, father Matt) than Willits and comes with the conventional size and left-handed raw power that teams like to see with top-of-the-draft prep position players. He’s a solid defender who should be above-average defensively at third base, but he lacks the range/speed to stay at shortstop in pro ball.
The main concerns here are that Holliday’s summer performances have been just OK and he didn’t face much elite velocity this spring, so he may just be a .240ish hitter going forward. The rest of the profile isn’t in dispute, so he could actually be a .240 hitter and still be a really good big leaguer. Here’s some spring video I took and longer form thoughts.
4. Seth Hernandez (19.0), RHP, Corona HS (CA), Vanderbilt commit
Prep righties are the worst player demographic in the draft and some teams approach it with extreme caution; some have told me they won’t take a prep righty in the top 10 picks under any circumstances. Some teams that believe that are picking in the top 10 this year.
I also feel somewhat strongly about prep righties in general — but for Hernandez specifically — that we may be looking at an exception. His measurable athleticism, standout position-player performances and elite changeup all point to things that the typical prep righty doesn’t possess. Hernandez tickles the triple digits in most outings, his curveball is now flashing above average, and his changeup is plus-plus — have a look at what I saw this spring and some longer thoughts.
5. Billy Carlson (19.0), SS, Corona HS (CA), Tennessee commit
Hernandez’s high school teammate is how you draw up a prep shortstop prospect: solid performances with the bat, above-average to plus bat speed and raw power, a plus defender, an 80-grade arm and clear twitchy athleticism in all aspects (take a look and read longer thoughts).
Carson will need to tone down his swing mechanics a bit in pro ball, but the big hesitation for teams is his age. The track record of prep position players of this age (he turns 19 just after draft day) suggests, in short, that they tend to be overrated at draft time because they’re facing exclusively younger competition at a point when age is very important. On the other hand, Carlson looks like Bobby Witt Jr. if his build and tools were just taken down a notch. In a weaker draft, that upside is very attractive.
6. Liam Doyle (21.0), LHP, Tennessee
7. Kade Anderson (21.0), LHP, LSU
I’ll group these two college lefties together. Both are carving up the SEC but go about it very differently. Doyle offers power stuff and intensity on the mound with some relief risk because of how he does it. Anderson has a much smoother, true starter look with four above-average pitches and above-average command.
Traditionally, scouts prefer the clear starter in this kind of situation at the top of a draft, but Doyle’s pitch data and improvement have some teams thinking he could be a big league starter in short order, with a backup plan of impact reliever, while Anderson likely takes a more conventional path.
8. Aiva Arquette (21.7), SS, Oregon State
Arquette is clearly the best college position player but is generally seen as having a slight contact/approach question and is so big (6-foot-5, 220 pounds) that most evaluators think he’ll slide over to third base as a pro.
He has plus raw power and is performing well (albeit against slightly lesser competition), so he is being mentioned in conversations all over the top 10, but has more in common with Braden Montgomery (12th overall pick last year) or Christian Moore (eighth overall pick) than the top college position players who went in the top seven picks of last year’s draft (Jac Caglianone, Nick Kurtz, Charlie Condon and J.J. Wetherholt).
45+ FV Tier
9. JoJo Parker (18.8), SS, Purvis HS (MS), Mississippi State commit
Parker is seen alongside Willits as the highest probability hitter in the top tier of this year’s prep class, which is driving his rise up the board. He has roughly average raw power and speed and can stick in the infield, but likely isn’t a long-term shortstop. Parker isn’t seen as having a huge upside, but if a year from now he looks like a plus-plus hitter who will hit 15-20 homers while playing a solid second or third base, that concern will seem a little silly. Here’s some video from my spring look at him.
10. Kyson Witherspoon (20.9), RHP, Oklahoma
Witherspoon remade his delivery and is getting Dylan Cease comparisons due to his build, mid-to-upper-90s velocity and three breaking ball shapes. He has pared down his arsenal of late to a four-seamer, cutter and curveball. There are still some questions about his command and if he has a true second plus pitch behind his heater, but on some days both of those concerns seem misguided.
11. Steele Hall (17.9), SS, Hewitt-Trussville HS (AL), Tennessee commit
I’m pretty sure I’ll be the high guy on Hall, but I’m good with that. He’s a plus-plus runner who will stick at shortstop and is somewhere in the Trea Turner/Anthony Volpe/Jett Williams spectrum of smaller shortstops with real speed and real ability to lift the ball to maximize power at a young age. Being among the youngest players in the draft after reclassifying only helps the case here.
12. Jace LaViolette (21.6), CF, Texas A&M
Opinions on LaViolette have been up and down a lot this year, but on the right day scouts see a 6-foot-6 plus runner who can play center field at least for now, has plus-plus raw power and is performing in the SEC. On the other hand, some evaluators see a long-term corner outfield with long arms that make him streaky offensively and will limit him to being a .240 hitter at best — more in line with non-peak Adam Dunn or Joey Gallo. That’s still a good player, but a flawed one.
45 FV Tier
13. Gavin Fien (18.2), 3B, Great Oak HS (CA), Texas commit
14. Wehiwa Aloy (21.4), SS, Arkansas
15. Marek Houston (21.2), SS, Wake Forest
16. Slater de Brun (18.1), CF, Summit HS (OR), Vanderbilt commit
17. Kayson Cunningham (19.0), SS, Johnson HS (TX), Texas commit
18. Josh Hammond (18.8), 3B, Wesleyan Christian HS (NC), Wake Forest commit
19. Xavier Neyens (18.7), 3B, Mount Vernon HS (WA), Oregon State commit
20. Daniel Pierce (18.9), SS, Mill Creek HS (GA), Georgia commit
21. Gage Wood (21.5), RHP, Arkansas
22. Tate Southisene (18.8), SS, Basic HS (NV), USC commit
23. Sean Gamble (18.9), 2B, IMG Academy HS (FL), Vanderbilt commit
24. Gavin Kilen (21.2), SS, Tennessee
25. Ethan Conrad (21.0), RF, Wake Forest
26. Ike Irish (21.6), C, Auburn
27. Brendan Summerhill (21.7), CF, Arizona
28. Tyler Bremner (21.2), RHP, UC Santa Barbara
29. Jordan Yost (18.5), SS, Sickles HS (FL), Florida commit
30. Luke Stevenson (21.0), C, North Carolina
31. Mason Neville (21.5), CF, Oregon
32. Cam Appenzeller (18.5), LHP, Glenwood HS (IL), Tennessee commit
33. Kruz Schoolcraft (18.2), LHP, Sunset HS (OR), Tennessee commit
34. Cam Cannarella (21.8), CF, Clemson
I’ll stay as the high guy on Fien as I believe in what I saw last summer (above-average-to-plus hitter, plus power, great performances, decent shot to stick at third base), despite a tough spring. Aloy and Houston are the rare college true shortstops, but Aloy has real contact/chase questions while Houston can look like Dansby Swanson at times but his offensive upside is in question. Among college hitters, Irish and Neville are rising while Kilen is getting a shot to play shortstop now for the Volunteers.
The real intrigue in this pack, as it was during the loaded 2023 draft, is the prep position players — mostly infielders. There is probably a star or two in this group, though I said that for the 2023 draft and there may be more in that group. De Brun has some Corbin Carroll elements to his game, Hammond looks like the Blue Jays’ version of Josh Donaldson and Cunningham may be the best pure hitter in the whole draft and he’s a plus runner who can play the infield. Neyens may have the most raw power in the whole draft. Pierce is a scout favorite for his athleticism, makeup and defense, while Southisene and Gamble have big upside but contact questions.
40+ FV Tier
35. Caden Bodine (21.6), C, Coastal Carolina
36. Aaron Watson (18.5), RHP, Trinity Christian HS (FL), Virginia commit
37. Marcus Phillips (21.0), RHP, Tennessee
38. Zach Root (21.4), LHP, Arkansas
39. Alex Lodise (21.4), SS, Florida State
40. Matthew Fisher (19.3), RHP, Evansville Memorial HS (IN), Indiana commit
41. Landon Harmon (18.8), RHP, East Union HS (MS), Mississippi State commit
42. Cade Obermueller (22.0), LHP, Iowa
43. Patrick Forbes (20.9), RHP, Louisville
44. Brock Sell (18.7), CF, Tokay HS (CA), Stanford commit
45. Nick Becker (18.6), SS, Don Bosco HS (NJ), Virginia commit
46. Riley Quick (21.1), RHP, Alabama
47. Alec Blair (18.7), CF, De La Salle HS (CA), Oklahoma commit
48. Max Belyeu (21.5), RF, Texas
49. Anthony Eyanson (20.8), RHP, LSU
50. J.B. Middleton (21.6), RHP, Southern Miss
51. Dax Kilby (18.6), SS, Newnan HS (GA), Clemson commit
Watson is the most complete and advanced prep pitcher in the class behind Hernandez. Fisher offers a nice mix of polish and stuff while Harmon offers high-octane stuff with less feel. Phillips has an iffy arm action but extremely lively stuff. Sell is probably unsignable, but top 100 hoops recruit Blair might be signable for the right price with some Cody Bellinger vibes to his game. Quick was a four-star offensive tackle recruit in high school and has plus stuff but below-average feel. Eyanson and Middleton are rising college starters while Kilby could sneak into the top 30-40 picks due to a great swing and strong athletic testing.
In the 40 FV tier below, keep an eye on low-slot lefty Fernsler as a rising prep prospect who could sneak into the top 40 picks.
40 FV Tier
52. Charles Davalan (21.6), LF, Arkansas
53. Andrew Fischer (21.0), 3B, Tennessee
54. Jack Bauer (18.5), LHP, Lincoln Way East HS (IL), Virginia commit
55. Jaden Fauske (18.7), RF, Nazareth Academy HS (IL), LSU commit
56. Uli Fernsler (17.9), LHP, Novi HS (MI), TCU commit
57. Devin Taylor (21.5), LF, Indiana
58. Mason Pike (18.9), RHP/SS, Puyallup HS (WA), Oregon State commit
59. J.D. Thompson (21.8), LHP, Vanderbilt
60. Korbyn Dickerson (21.7), CF, Indiana
61. Taitn Gray (17.8), C, Grimes Community HS (IA), Oregon commit
62. Angel Cervantes (17.8), RHP, Warren HS (CA), UCLA commit
63. Ethan Petry (21.0), 1B, South Carolina
64. Dean Curley (21.1), 3B, Tennessee
65. Daniel Dickinson (21.5), 2B, LSU
66. Mitch Voit (20.9), 2B, Michigan
67. Drew Faurot (21.7), 2B, Florida State
68. Dean Moss (19.1), CF, IMG Academy HS (FL), LSU commit
69. Easton Carmichael (21.7), C, Oklahoma
70. Kyle Lodise (21.8), SS, Georgia Tech
71. Kane Kepley (21.3), CF, North Carolina
72. R.J. Austin (21.6), CF, Vanderbilt
73. Malachi Witherspoon (20.9), RHP, Oklahoma
74. Joseph Dzierwa (21.1), LHP, Michigan State
75. Brian Curley (22.0), RHP, Georgia
76. Cade Crossland (21.4), LHP, Oklahoma
77. Michael Lombardi (21.9), RHP, Tulane
78. Lucas Franco (18.1), SS, Cinco Ranch HS (TX), TCU commit
79. Briggs McKenzie (18.8), LHP, Corinth Holders HS (NC), LSU commit
80. A.J. Russell (21.0), RHP, Tennessee
81. Ben Jacobs (21.1), LHP, Arizona State
82. Henry Godbout (21.7), 2B, Virginia
83. Aiden Stillman (18.6), LHP, Trinity Prep HS (FL), Virginia commit
84. Rory Fox (21.4), RHP, Notre Dame
85. Ethan Moore (18.8), SS, Oak Park & River Forest HS (IL), Tennessee commit
86. Trent Caraway (21.2), 3B, Oregon State
87. Shane Sdao (21.8), LHP, Texas A&M
88. Brandon Compton (21.7), LF, Arizona State
89. Michael Oliveto (18.4), C, Hauppauge HS (NY), Yale commit
90. Max Williams (20.9), RF, Florida State
91. Tanner Franklin (21.0), RHP, Tennessee
92. Jared Spencer (22.0), LHP, Texas
93. Sean Youngerman (21.0), RHP, Oklahoma State
94. Sam Horn (21.8), RHP, Missouri
95. Nelson Keljo (21.9), LHP, Oregon State
96. Gustavo Melendez (17.8), SS, Colegio La Merced HS (PR), Wake Forest commit
97. Mason Morris (21.9), RHP, Ole Miss
98. Jason Reitz (21.0), RHP, Oregon
99. Griffin Hugus (21.4), RHP, Miami
100. Kaleb Wing (18.5), RHP, Scotts Valley HS (CA), Loyola Marymount commit
101. Quentin Young (18.2), 3B, Oaks Christian HS (CA), LSU commit
102. Cam Leiter (21.4), RHP, Florida State
103. Micah Bucknam (21.9), RHP, Dallas Baptist
104. Brady Ebel (17.9), 3B, Corona HS (CA), LSU commit
105. Johnny Slawinski (18.3), LHP, Johnson City HS (TX), Texas A&M commit
106. Brayden Jaksa (18.4), C, Irvington HS (CA), Oregon commit
107. Ben Abeldt (21.6), LHP, TCU
108. Josiah Hartshorn (18.4), LF, Orange Lutheran HS (CA), Texas A&M commit
109. J.T. Quinn (21.1), RHP, Georgia
110. James Ellwanger (21.0), RHP, Dallas Baptist
111. Chase Shores (21.0), RHP, LSU
112. Marcos Paz (18.7), RHP, Hebron HS (TX), LSU commit
113. Kade Elam (19.0), 3B, Corbin HS (KY), Louisville commit
114. Nathan Hall (21.9), CF, South Carolina
115. Cooper Flemming (18.9), SS, Aliso Niguel HS (CA), Vanderbilt commit
116. Aidan West (18.1), SS, Long Reach HS (MD), North Carolina State commit
117. Nico Partida (18.7), SS/RHP, Pearland HS (TX), Texas A&M commit
118. Cam Tilly (21.0), RHP, Auburn
119. Matt Barr (19.5), RHP, Niagara County JC (NY), Uncommitted
120. Jayden Stroman (18.1), RHP, Patchogue-Medford HS (NY), Duke commit
121. Kaeden Kent (21.9), SS, Texas A&M
122. Henry Ford (21.0), LF, Virginia
123. Griffin Enis (18.8), CF, Corinth HS (MS), Duke commit
124. Reagan Ricken (18.8), RHP, Great Oak HS (CA), LSU commit
125. Cooper Underwood (18.5), LHP, Allatoona HS (GA), Georgia Tech commit
126. Brock Ketelsen (18.0), CF, Valley Christian HS (CA), Stanford commit
127. Ethan Frey (21.3), C, LSU
128. Omar Serna (18.4), C, Lutheran South Academy HS (TX), LSU commit
129. Antonio Jimenez (21.1), SS, UCF
130. Ryan Weingartner (21.0), SS, Penn State
131. Cade Kurland (21.3), 2B, Florida
132. Colin Yeaman (21.2), SS, UC Irvine
133. Chris Arroyo (20.9), 1B, Virginia
134. Xavier Mitchell (19.0), LHP, Prestonwood Christian HS (TX), Texas commit
135. Brent Iredale (22.0), 3B, Arkansas
35+ FV Tier
136. Josh Owens (18.5), SS, Providence Academy HS (TN), Georgia Southern commit
137. Ethan Grim (18.0), RHP, Governor Mifflin HS (PA), Virginia Tech commit
138. Jaiden LoRe (18.4), SS, Corona Del Sol HS (AZ), BYU commit
139. Dom Fritton (22.2), LHP, North Carolina State
140. Coy James (18.3), SS, Davie County HS (NC), Ole Miss commit
141. Tim Piasentin (18.3), 3B, Foothills Composite HS (CAN), Miami commit
142. Tre Phelps (21.0), RF, Georgia
143. Jordan Martin (18.5), RHP, Jefferson City HS (MO), Arkansas commit
144. Ryan Mitchell (18.5), SS, Houston HS (TN), Georgia Tech commit
145. William Patrick (19.0), CF, St. Frederick HS (LA), LSU commit
146. Michael Winter (18.0), RHP, Shawnee Mission East HS (KS), Dartmouth commit
147. Colby Shelton (22.6), SS, Florida
148. Ty Harvey (19.0), C, Inspiration Academy HS (FL), Florida State commit
149. Brett Crossland (18.9), RHP, Corona Del Sol HS (AZ), Texas commit
150. Nick Dumesnil (21.3), CF, Cal Baptist
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Sports
How Alex Bregman is adjusting to life in a new clubhouse
Published
3 mins agoon
May 15, 2025By
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On the day Alex Bregman met Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer this spring, the two Boston Red Sox uber-prospects greeted him with a proposition: Let us play student to your teacher. Bregman, who joined the Red Sox days earlier on a three-year, $120 million contract, has cultivated a reputation as perhaps the smartest baseball mind in the game, a combination of film hound, analytics dork, eagle-eyed scout and pure knower of ball gleaned from a wildly successful big league career. As Mayer put it in his unique verbiage: “Hey, bro, do you just want to marinate in the clubhouse and talk shop?'”
“It made me laugh,” Bregman said, “because, like, ‘marinate in the clubhouse and talk shop’ — it sounds like me when I was 21. All I wanted to do is just sit in the clubhouse for four hours after a game and talk about baseball.”
All these years later — having played more than 1,000 games, whacked 200 home runs and worn the countless slings and arrows of those who can’t bring themselves to look past his role on the Houston Astros team that cheated amid its championship run in 2017 — Bregman is still in love with the game. When his wife, Reagan, was about to give birth to their second child in mid-April, Bregman told teammates he didn’t plan to take full advantage of Major League Baseball’s three-game paternity leave. That day in Tampa, Florida, he went 5-for-5 with two home runs, flew to Boston, saw the birth of Bennett Matthew Bregman, and returned to the team. He missed one game.
At 31, Bregman is scarcely different from the baseball obsessive who brute-forced his way to the big leagues within a year of being drafted and has logged the second most postseason plate appearances since. Even as others seek his wisdom, he still fancies himself an apprentice, an explorer with an endless font of curiosity– someone who watches closely and studies ceaselessly, capable of making adjustments from pitch to pitch, at-bat to at-bat, game to game. Bregman converses in English and Spanish, with hitters and pitchers, finding himself at the intersection of the Venn diagrams that illustrate divisions in plenty of clubhouses.
“It’s consistent ball talk,” said Garrett Crochet, the Red Sox ace also acquired over the winter. “When I’m not starting, in between innings, he’ll come over on the bench and pull out the iPad and be like, ‘I was looking for this right here. He’s going to give it to me the next at-bat,’ and then [the pitcher] does, and it’s a single or double.”
Bregman’s instincts come from a place of necessity. His biographical details don’t scream big leaguer. In a game increasingly inhabited by physically imposing athletes, he stands a couple of inches shy of 6 feet. He grew up in New Mexico, nobody’s idea of a baseball hotbed. Bregman’s love of the game has fueled him every step of the way, from starring at SEC powerhouse LSU as a freshman to being selected No. 2 in the 2015 MLB draft and becoming a mainstay in a loaded Astros lineup since his debut as a 22-year-old.
“His energy is very contagious,” said Red Sox first baseman Abraham Toro, who also spent parts of three seasons as Bregman’s teammate in Houston. “He’s always talking about baseball. Even when the game’s over, he’s talking about baseball. And it makes you want to get better.”
Bregman started his career picking the brains of veteran teammates such as Justin Verlander, Martin Maldonado, Brian McCann and Carlos Correa in his quest for improvement. Now, a decade later, he is relishing the opportunity to foster those discussions with the next generation of players in his new home.
“Baseball talk is the key,” Bregman said. “Just talking the game with your teammates, coaches, talking about the pitcher you’re facing or the hitters that our pitchers are facing, how you see it and how they see it. And then if you see anything in their game or they see anything in your game, you go back and forth on how guys can improve.
“It’s energizing, to be honest with you. Especially it being a bunch of younger guys who are trying to improve the same way I am. I feel like I’m young and want to get a lot better. And I feel like my best baseball’s ahead of me.”
As the offseason languished on, it became increasingly clear that Bregman would have to find a different home than the only clubhouse he’d ever known. When Bregman’s primary suitors finally came into focus, the favorites were the Detroit Tigers — managed by A.J. Hinch, with whom he spent four seasons in Houston — and the Red Sox.
In the final hours, Bregman asked Boston for its best offer — one the Red Sox had loaded up with annual salary and opt-outs after each of the first two seasons in hopes of proving sufficiently alluring.
It was a staggering deal for someone who over the previous five seasons was plenty good (.261/.350/.445 with 92 home runs) but objectively not a $40 million-a-year player. But Bregman and the Red Sox both believed he could get himself back to the version of himself from 2018 and 2019 — the one who posted more than 16 wins above replacement and ranked among the game’s elite.
Bregman accepted. And that’s when Boston’s hitting machine went to work. Red Sox coaches already had put together a presentation to explain how and why he needed to fix his swing. Over time, Bregman had developed almost imperceptible bad habits. The timing of Bregman loading his hands was too late and too fast. Moving his hands as the ball left the pitcher’s hand left him vulnerable, and never did Bregman possess the sort of bat velocity to make up for it.
“After those [successful] years, it was like, I wanna be better, I wanna be better, I wanna be better, I wanna be better,” Bregman said. “So I started trying to change things and improve, improve, improve instead of doing what made me who I am and just refining what I was already doing at the time.”
Red Sox hitting coach Peter Fatse and assistants Dillon Lawson and Ben Rosenthal loved the simplicity of Bregman’s move in the batter’s box, but they saw more potential and knew swing adjustments would be necessary. Change doesn’t exactly suit Bregman. He is the guy who eats the same meal every day and never deviates from his hitting schedule. But he is also the son of two lawyers and at least open to practical solutions, so he was willing to hear out his new coaching staff.
The Red Sox worked with Bregman to address the flaw in the swing: It all started, they agreed, with a poor setup and load. Rather than exclusively focus on bat-speed training, Bregman committed to loading earlier and rebuilt his swing in a place that’s heaven to baseball rats like him: the batting cage.
“Get back to doing what I did in my best years, which was to focus on being the best in the cage that day,” Bregman said. “Not worrying about if I’m hitting well on the field; more like, can I master the f—ing cage today? Can I square the ball up? Can I execute the drill in the cage and then go play in the game? As opposed to, I need to go 4-for-4 tonight with two doubles and a homer. I’m gonna be the best hitter before the game in the cage, and then I’m gonna go out and just try and repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.”
Bregman had found his greatest success when he followed a few cues: load slowly, take the bat’s knob past the ball in front of the plate and strike the inside part of the ball. Finding that simplicity in his purpose and swing would be the goals. He did not need to set specific production expectations, instead trusting process over outcome. He would fix the swing in time for the numbers to reflect it. When the ball started jumping off Bregman’s bat again, he knew he had hacked himself successfully. His average exit velocity over the first seven regular-season weeks with the Red Sox jumped by 3 mph. His hard-hit rate spiked to 48.5% — up eight percentage points over his previous career high. He is hitting .304./381/.567 with 10 home runs and 32 RBIs in 43 games.
“Honestly,” Bregman said, “I feel like this has been the best I’ve hit in my career.”
Bregman’s desire for improvement does not begin and end with himself. When he recently overheard Fatse and Ceddanne Rafaela, the Red Sox’s talented 24-year-old super-utility man, talking about ways to improve Rafaela’s poor swing decisions, he couldn’t help but chime in.
“We were talking about simplicity of the load, and [Bregman] just goes, ‘One, two,'” Fatse said. “One, be ready to hit. Two, be in a position to get your swing off. And it was amazing. It just clicked. In the dugout, we’ll scream: ‘one, two.’ Rafa’s walking up plate: ‘one, two, one, two.’ [Bregman] will be screaming it from the dugout, and it’s simple, but it’s his ability to connect with everybody that makes him a unicorn in that regard. He cares so much about his teammates. He wants to win.
“It’s just the urgency behind it,” Fatse continued. “If he has something, he’s going to go right to you and give it to you. And whether it’s something with his swing or if we’re talking about somebody else’s approach or swing or matchup-related stuff, he’s ready to engage in the conversation immediately. There’s no waiting around. When you have that level of urgency, everybody responds to it.”
In much the same way that his advice has rejuvenated Rafaela — who has four two-hit games in his past eight and has struck out only twice — Bregman’s arrival has changed the Boston clubhouse by bringing to it an edge that left with the 2019 retirement of Dustin Pedroia, the second baseman who was every bit the heart of the Red Sox’s three most recent championships as David Ortiz. Bregman grew up idolizing Pedroia for his outsized production from an undersized body. He was unaware of the other qualities they share: the encyclopedic knowledge of the game, the capacity to evoke fits of uproarious laughter at team dinners, the desire to help others find the best version of themselves the same way he did.
“Everyone understands [Bregman’s] process is just to win that game and he’ll do whatever it takes that day or night to win,” Red Sox outfielder Rob Refsnyder said. “He’ll adjust his swing, his setup, his thoughts, his scouting, everything. It’s all about just winning that game. I think guys are a lot more receptive to him, and obviously he’s a winner and he works so hard. It’s easy to take advice from somebody like that because you know it’s from a genuine, we’re-just-trying-to-win-this-game [perspective].”
Winning comes in plenty of forms, be it a 5-for-5, two-homer day or an 0-for-4 bummer in which Bregman does the work with his glove or legs. By now, his teammates know that no matter how early they show up to the ballpark, Bregman will be there first, his white pants already on, ready to attack the day. He’s always happy to pore over information and develop a detailed scouting report, Crochet said, “based off of analytics, video, prior at-bats. For him, it’s really a happy medium of all three. I feel like he’s able to get on TruMedia — that’s our site with all the pitch-usage breakdown by count and pitch-frequency maps — and window a guy or sit on a specific pitch, specific spot. It’s incredibly impressive.”
The Red Sox aren’t taking for granted the time they get with Bregman. As much as they’ve loved the knowledge and production, they recognize that a seasonlong jag almost certainly will precipitate him opting out of his contract. Bregman now knows he can replicate for other teams what he developed in Houston, where he was lionized by local fans amid the festering fallout of the cheating scandal in 29 other stadiums.
If this does wind up as a Boston gap year, a la Adrian Beltre, Bregman’s influence will continue to reverberate. He did spend time marinating with Anthony and Mayer — and also bought them, and a host of other top Red Sox prospects, tailored suits to help them feel comfortable in a major league setting. By Bregman’s second week with the Red Sox, the kids were already giving him grief, wondering aloud if he had gray pants in his spring training locker — an implication that he’s too big-time to travel for a Grapefruit League road game. Never one to be told what he is or isn’t, Bregman went for a 90-minute bus ride with Anthony and Mayer from Fort Myers to Sarasota.
Bregman’s connection to the Red Sox is generational. His grandfather was the general counsel for the Washington Senators and helped hire Ted Williams, who spent the entirety of his 19-year Hall of Fame playing career with Boston, as their manager. His father, Sam — currently running for governor in New Mexico — grew up around the Senators and Williams. And it sparked a fondness for baseball he passed on to his son.
The allure of Boston that helped guide Bregman to the Red Sox — familial and modern — has been substantiated in every way but their record, which, at 22-22, is good enough for second place in the American League East but would leave Bregman on the outside looking in at the postseason for the first time in a full season spent in the big leagues. Boston has plenty of time to right itself, which would be the final validation for Bregman on his stay in Boston, however long it lasts.
“I felt like it was a place I could win,” Bregman said. “I felt like it was a place where I could prove the caliber a player that I believe I am. And I wasn’t scared to go prove it.”
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Sports
Angels’ Joyce has shoulder surgery, done for ’25
Published
3 mins agoon
May 15, 2025By
admin
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Associated Press
May 14, 2025, 06:17 PM ET
SAN DIEGO — Hard-throwing reliever Ben Joyce will miss the rest of the Los Angeles Angels‘ season after undergoing surgery on his right shoulder.
The Angels announced the setback Wednesday for Joyce, who went on the injured list a month ago with inflammation in his throwing shoulder.
The team declined to provide any specifics about the nature of the latest injury and surgery for the 6-foot-5 Joyce, who can throw a 105 mph fastball when healthy.
Joyce is in his third season with the Angels after making his major league debut two years ago. After being limited by injuries in 2023, he made 31 appearances for Los Angeles last season, posting a 2.08 ERA and showing promise as a setup man and an eventual closer.
He also threw a 105.5 mph fastball last September against the Dodgers’ Tommy Edman. The pitch was the third-fastest recorded in the majors since 2008.
But Joyce went on the injured list a week after throwing that pitch, and he made just five appearances this season before going on the list again after a downtick in his velocity. The Angels transferred him to the 60-day disabled list last week, raising alarms about another major injury setback.
Joyce has made 48 career appearances for the Angels, going 4-1 with a 3.12 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP.
Joyce had Tommy John surgery during his college career at Tennessee, but he threw a 105 mph fastball when he returned from injury. He also missed a season of junior college play prior to joining the Volunteers due to a stress fracture in his elbow.
Sports
Red Sox put RHP Houck on IL with forearm strain
Published
3 mins agoon
May 15, 2025By
admin
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Field Level Media
May 14, 2025, 07:02 PM ET
The Boston Red Sox placed right-hander Tanner Houck on the 15-day injured list Wednesday because of a flexor pronator strain in his right forearm.
The move is retroactive to Tuesday. In a corresponding move, the Red Sox recalled right-hander Cooper Criswell from Triple-A Worcester.
Houck yielded 11 runs, nine hits (including two home runs) and three walks in 2 1/3 innings Monday night in a 14-2 loss at Detroit.
“This is definitely probably the most lost I’ve ever been,” Houck, 28, said after the game. “And just not getting the job done, which weighs on me heavily.”
Asked about his health, Houck said, “Physically, I feel good,” and added, “I just need to be better.”
Houck is 0-3 with an 8.04 ERA, 17 walks, 32 strikeouts, an America League-high 57 hits allowed and a major league-worst 39 earned runs in 43 2/3 innings over nine starts this season.
An All-Star in 2024, Houck owns a career 24-32 record with nine saves, a 3.97 ERA, 158 walks and 449 strikeouts in 474 1/3 innings over 113 regular-season games (80 starts) since 2020.
The Red Sox selected Houck 24th overall in the 2017 MLB draft out of the University of Missouri.
Criswell, 28, is 0-0 with one save, a 10.38 ERA, one walk and no strikeouts in 4 1/3 innings over three relief appearances this season. For his career, he is 7-7 with one save, a 4.78 ERA, 44 walks and 104 strikeouts in 141 1/3 innings over 41 games (20 starts) for the Los Angeles Angels (2021), Tampa Bay Rays (2022-23) and Red Sox (2024-present).
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