1. Baltimore Orioles: Jacob Berry, 3B/OF, LSU
The current betting has the Orioles taking a college position player and
cutting a deal with him, as they did when picking second (2020) and fifth
(2021) in the last two drafts, in part because they don’t believe that Druw
Jones is head-and-shoulders above the remainder of the draft class.
2. Arizona Diamondbacks: Druw Jones, OF, Wesleyan HS, Gwinnett, GA
The Diamondbacks take Jones if he’s here, and I think they’d take either
Elijah Green or Jackson Holliday if he’s not. They seem far less interested
in the college bats than the teams around them.
3. Texas Rangers: Jackson Holliday, SS, Stillwater (OK) HS
The Rangers seem to be on the same three high school bats as Arizona is,
presumably taking Jones in the unlikely event he gets there, then taking
Holliday or Green if he’s not.
4. Pittsburgh Pirates: Brooks Lee, SS, Cal Poly
The Pirates seem more inclined to go college with Lee, Berry, or maybe Jace
Jung, but they’ve been all over local product Cole Young, and I wouldn’t be
shocked if they went with Cam Collier, who’ll fare well in draft models
because he’s 17 in junior college.
5. Washington Nationals: Kevin Parada, C, Georgia Tech
6. Miami Marlins: Termarr Johnson, SS, Mays HS, Atlanta
Could be Elijah Green here too. They were one of the teams highest on Dylan
Lesko before he got hurt, not that that means much now.
7. Chicago Cubs: Cam Collier, 3B, Chipola College
Collier’s realistic range probably starts here and runs into the early teens;
I’ve also heard them with Zach Neto. It sounds like it’s more likely a
college bat than a high school one, although that may assume that Jones/Green/
Johnson/Holliday are all gone.
Scouting report: “Collier finished high school early to go to two-year
Chipola, probably the best junior college baseball program in the country. As
a 17-year-old, he hit well despite facing pitchers who were mostly two-to-four
years older. He has a plus-plus arm and the athleticism to stay at third base,
although ultimately it’s his feel to hit that makes him a top-five talent in
this draft. Look for teams that weigh age heavily in their draft models to
target him in July.”
8. Minnesota Twins: Cole Young, SS, North Allegheny HS, Wexford, PA
9. Kansas City Royals: Elijah Green, OF, IMG Academy
10. Colorado Rockies: Jace Jung, 2B, Texas Tech
11. New York Mets: Daniel Susac, C, Arizona
12. Detroit Tigers: Gavin Cross, OF, Virginia Tech
13. Los Angeles Angels: Gabriel Hughes, RHP, Gonzaga
14. New York Mets: Connor Prielipp, LHP, Alabama
15. San Diego Padres: Dylan Lesko, RHP, Buford (GA) HS
16. Cleveland Guardians: Brock Porter, RHP, St. Mary’s Prep, Orchard Lake, MI
17. Philadelphia Phillies: Brandon Barriera, LHP, American Heritage, Hollywood, FL
18. Cincinnati Reds: Zach Neto, SS, Campbell University
19. Oakland A’s: Jett Williams, SS, Rockwall-Heath (TX) HS
20. Atlanta: Justin Crawford, OF, Bishop Gorman HS, Las Vegas
21. Seattle Mariners: Jordan Beck, OF, Tennessee
22. St. Louis Cardinals: Cooper Hjerpe, LHP, Oregon State
23. Toronto Blue Jays: Chase Delauter, OF, James Madison
24. Boston Red Sox: Max Wagner, 3B, Clemson
25. New York Yankees: Blade Tidwell, RHP, Tennessee
26. Chicago White Sox: Robby Snelling, LHP, McQueen HS, Reno
27. Milwaukee Brewers: Adam Mazur, RHP, Iowa
28. Houston Astros: Jud Fabian, OF, Florida
29. Tampa Bay Rays: Sterlin Thompson, OF, Florida
30. San Francisco Giants: Drew Gilbert, OF, Tennessee