Post by Commissioner Erick on Apr 23, 2022 11:58:15 GMT -5
The 2022 PBA Draft was an interesting one, with a handful of superstars in the first round, a few more taken in the fifth round, and a ton of trades and free agency decisions that cemented runs from league powers. Whether or not teams passed on the draft talent available, and whether they acquired the correct superstar via trades ultimately determined most of the grades from the draft.
Arizona Diamondbacks:
First Round: (10) Josh Aldag—P (Pick acquired from Kansas City for Juan Vega)
First Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Chris Archer
Second Round: (26) Trevor Jones—P
Third Round: (27) David Weikart—P
Third Round: (40) Chris Paramore—SS (Pick acquired along with fourth round pick [Chris Kirkpatrick] from Chicago Cubs for Trevor Oaks)
Best Player: Chris Paramore
Best Deep Cut: (11) Leo Guzman—SS
Total ML WAR: 0.7
Review: Arizona traded away Juan Vega, a good-looking power prospect who has had some PBA success with Pittsburgh, to acquire a pick that became Josh Aldag, a pitcher who has been replacement level at Triple-A. There weren’t many good pitchers taken towards the back of the first round, but not getting a PBA player with a first round pick is terrible. This was a disaster all around.
They lost their own first round pick to sign Chris Archer. Archer had three years with Arizona, two of them good ones, and he helped deliver them a championship. Flags Fly Forever.
Trevor Jones and David Weikart were Arizona’s second and third round picks. With a torn UCL, Jones will never pitch in the PBA, at least not effectively. Weikart has been a replacement level swingman for the Cubs.
Chicago picked up extra third and fourth round picks for offloading Trevor Oaks. The righty produced 0.3 WAR for the Cubs and never pitched in the PBA again. The picks turned into second division Shortstop Chris Paramore, and talented minor league pitcher Chris Kirkpatrick. While Kirkpatrick hasn’t done much himself, getting a starting position player in Paramore was a nice return for Oaks.
Arizona’s own fourth rounder was spent on Casey Shapland, a lefty who pitched in Double-A last year with minimal success. He looks like a Double-A arm gong forward. Arizona’s fifth rounder, Greg Malloy, isn’t anything to write home about either. Their sixth rounder, Carlos Reveles has hit well in the minors and is a solid defender at Catcher. He may be able to make it as a PBA backup.
Grade: D: Arizona made some nice pitching decisions, giving up on Oaks and getting something in return, and getting Archer to help with a title run. They also got a depth Catcher. Ultimately though, swapping Vega for a busted pick is such a disaster it weighs everything down.
Atlanta Braves:
First Round: (7) Inacio Manta—CF
First Round: (Pick received from Texas along with Second round pick (Mat Sowell*), Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, Kevin Flippo for Ozzie Albies) Pick forfeited as a result of signing Zach Davies.
Second Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Eduardo Rodriguez
Second Round: (22) *
Third Round: (6) Nate Sprague—C
Notes: Received a 6th rounder (Shohei Shibata) and Peter Lambert from Colorado for Jonathan Holder
Best Player: (5) Tony Sierra—CF
Best Deep Cut: (16) Francisco Burciaga—SS
Total ML WAR: 19.5
Review: The Braves have the most WAR from the class, despite not getting much out of a Top 10 pick, which is remarkable. Inacio Manta was their first rounder. He doesn’t have much defensive versatility in the outfield, lacks patience, and has a lot of swing and miss. He has enough extra base power to be fine, but he’s fairly fringy in an area of the draft where stars were drafted.
They picked up a pick that became Mat Sowell, Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, Kevin Flippo and a forfeited first rounder for Ozzie Albies. Sowell is a fringy two-way player, Ryder Green is a fringy Quad-A First Baseman, Luis Ramirez hasn’t developed quickly. He could be a starting Shortstop or a Triple-A infielder. Median outcome is a fringy infielder. Kevin Flippo has been a back-end starter. It’s decent depth, but Ozzie Albies has been a Hall of Famer in Texas.
The first rounder Atlanta got from Texas was forfeited when Atlanta signed Eduardo Rodriguez. E-Rod only spent one season in Atlanta after being sent out to Los Angeles in a trade, but his 5-year, $56 million contract worked out with three All-Star nods during the contract, well worth a second rounder.
Atlanta’s third rounder was used on Nate Sprague, a solid backup Catcher at a period where Catchers stopped producing value. Atlanta’s fourth rounder was C.J. Hoover, who has the most WAR of any fourth round pick and has been an All-Star.
Atlanta picked Tony Sierra in round five, which is the best pick in the draft. Sierra produced 7.8 WAR his first full year, with a .320 average, 39 homes, and 21 steals. He’ll be an MVP candidate for a long time as he’s only 24 years old.
The Braves got an extra sixth rounder plus Peter Lambert for Jonathan Holder. The pick turned into Shohei Shibata, a low-minors reliever, and Lambert has been a fringy swingman since the trade. Holder has been a more reliable arm with more success. The Braves slightly lost the trade.
Virtually every other player Atlanta drafted is still active, but is also a player with no chance of making it to the PBA. Tenth rounder John Wesley may be able to play as a fifth outfielder, but that’s all.
Grade: B+: It’s a complicated draft with wild successes, but also huge failures. The Albies trade and the Manta pick add up to an F, but Hoover, Sierra, and the Rodriguez signings are all As or A-plusses. The Braves get slight credit for so many of their players still active in the minors, but also lost the Holder-Lambert swap. Getting the high-end talent they did outweighs missing in the first round, but the Braves could have had a better draft than they did.
Baltimore Orioles:
First Round: (2) Justin Townes—CF
First Round: (23) Vinny Escudero—CF (Pick acquired along with second rounder (Brian Mach*), third rounder (Chris Schoepflin*), Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing from Chicago Cubs for Manny Machado
Second Round: *
Second Round: (2) Pick traded to Milwaukee for Chad Woods. Pick became Wing-Fung Qu
Third Round: *
Third Round: (2) Carlos A. Cortes—2B
Notes: Received a 7th rounder (Eric Davis) from Kansas City for Alec Asher
Best Player: Vinny Escudero
Best Deep Cut: (16) Ryan Waters—2B
Total ML WAR: 11.7
Review: Baltimore selected Justin Townes second overall, which looks like a massive mistake. Townes runs well, fields well, and has good power for a center fielder, but he doesn’t have an approach that leads to successful offense. Baltimore could have had a few superstars, including Roderick Dalton, and walked away with a second division starter.
The Orioles next pick was acquired when they picked up Chicago’s first rounder, Seattle’s second and third rounders, Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing for Manny Machado. Machado has been spectacular, but Baltimore did get good players. Floyd’s been a strong hitter for a Second Baseman, but an awful defender. Still, he’s won two Platinum Stick awards in his career. Eric Dusing has been a fine relief arm. The picks turned into Vinny Escudero, an All-Star; Chris Schoepflin, a Second Base prospect who has crushed Triple-A; and Brian Mach, a replacement level Left Fielder. That’s still probably not a haul that equals Manny Machado’s value, but it’s a very reasonable return.
The Orioles traded away their own second rounder to Milwaukee for Chad Woods. Woods looks like a player that can start at Second Base. The pick became Wing-Fung Qu, who has already retired. The trade looks like a terrific decision.
Baltimore’s third round pick was spent on Carlos A. Cortes, who looks like he’s topped out as a Triple-A Second Baseman. They picked outfielder Jonathan DiGiovanni in round four, and with good bat-to-ball skills and a big arm, he looks like a future PBA backup. Fifth round pitcher Luis Colon dominated Triple-A last year and can likely hold his own in the PBA.
Sixth round selection Chris Foster has struggled as a starting pitcher for Baltimore, but with three plus pitches, he’s thrived in relief for them. Seventh round pick Rafael Alonzo has also thrived in relief, with a 3.94 career ERA, and a 3.27 mark last year. The Orioles traded Alec Asher for an additional seventh rounder, but though Asher only pitched in 21 more career innings, the pick was used on career minor leaguer Eric Davis.
Baltimore continued to nail depth pieces in the ninth round. Jeff Potter has struggled in the minors and only has two reliable pitches, but his stuff should play up if he moves to the pen, and he projects to have adequate control and movement with his triple-digit fastball. Even 16th rounder Ryan Waters has a shot at a PBA career. The Second Baseman runs well, makes contact, and can hold his own on defense.
Grade: B+: While Baltimore traded Manny Machado, the depth they received from the class is fantastic. Most of Baltimore’s mid-round selections have a chance at a career, and very few players have retired already. The main drawback is the chance at a star that they failed to get with their first pick. If Townes turns into Roderick Dalton—or even Matt Aceto, it’s a perfect draft.
Boston Red Sox:
First Round: (8) Joel McCabe—SS
Supplemental Round: (1) Bobby Mendez—P—Compensation for not signing Javier Baez
Supplemental Round: (2) Chris Barrientos—CF—Compensation for not signing Zack Greinke
Second Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Max Scherzer
Third Round: (7) Zion Alexander—SS
Best Player: Joel McCabe
Best Deep Cut: (11) Ryan Proctor—SS
Total ML WAR: 6.0
Review: Joel McCabe was picked eighth overall as a very raw Shortstop with big upside. He hasn’t reached the majors yet, but was the number 17 prospect entering 2027. He eventually will move off of Shortstop, but the 6-5 McCabe has big power from the middle infield, a good approach, and he should become one of the best offensive infielders in the league. Other good players were selected after him, but Boston deserves credit for not screwing up the pick.
The rebuilding Red Sox let Javier Baez and Zack Greinke walk in Free Agency, which was the right decision. Baez had a solid post-Boston career in Cleveland, and Greinke fell apart in Houston. Boston used the comp pick for Baez on Bobby Mendez, a top-flight reliever. They used the comp pick from Greinke on Chris Barrientos, a mid-minors Center Fielder. Switching from Baez to Mendez is probably a B- decision, with the savings from the Greinke decision, also a B- move as well.
Boston signed Max Scherzer, a curious decision resulting in a lost second round pick. Scherzer went 16-40 over three seasons in Boston, and was cut before his final year. Considering how Boston was rebuilding, that was an exceptionally dumb move.
They picked Zion Alexander in the third round, a fringy utility player without the bat to play above the mid-minors. All but one of their picks from rounds four-eight have retired, and seventh rounder Chris Petrie, probably should too.
Boston made a great pick with their ninth rounder, grabbing Andy DeShaw. The power arm has a great changeup and splitter that he’s used to rack up close to 200 strikeouts a season the past two years. He’s an excellent find in the ninth round.
Boston also gets credit for Ryan Proctor, a pitcher grabbed in the 11th round. He gets good movement on his fastball resulting in ground balls, and his offspeed pitches can put hitters away. He’s still wild, but if he can harness his mechanics, he should be able to hold up as a plus arm. Scouts like his potential.
Grade: B+: Boston ended up with a top prospect from the draft, a very good starting pitcher, an excellent reliever, and a probable successful starter should Proctor pan out. That’s enough to make it a successful draft. There were some befuddling decisions thrown in, a lack of upper minors depth, and they may have done better with their Supplemental picks. Those hit the Red Sox at the margins, but they should still be satisfied with the work they did.
Chicago White Sox:
First Round: (1) Pat French—P (Pick acquired from Kansas City for 1st Rounder (Roger Airhart*), 2nd Rounder (Ted Wilson*), Jorge Vargas, and Jadon Ancrum
First Round: (28) *
Supplemental Round: (12) Jeremy Myers—P—Compensation for not signing Eduardo Rodriguez
Second Round: *
Third Round: (37) Terrance Roberts—SS
Third Round: (39) Ed Gallego—P—Compensation for not signing Bob Kaiser.
Notes: Received Raymelis Rosa and Xavier Cedeno from Colorado for a 24th round pick
Best Player: Pat French
Best Deep Cut: (11) Mike Darling—SS
Total ML WAR: 5.8
Review: Chicago acquired the first overall pick in one of the more disastrous trades in PBA history. They moved Jorge Vargas and Jadon Ancrum, each already a two-time All-Star, plus picks that became Roger Airhart, a good-looking pitching prospect, and Ted Wilson, a failed prospect. With that kind talent being offloaded, they needed a hall-of-fame caliber player first overall to justify the move. They selected Pat French, a pitcher with ace-upside who hasn’t shown anything close to it early in his career. Even if they selected Roderick Dalton, it would be hard to justify the move.
They didn’t sign Eduardo Rodriguez, letting the lefty walk during Free Agency despite Chicago still being a contender and Rodriguez still being a quality arm. Rodriguez would go on to make two All-Star teams after leaving Chicago. The Supplemental pick they received became Jeremy Myers, a quality arm with upside, but one who wasn’t able to keep Chicago’s championship window open the way Rodriguez may have.
Terrance Roberts was Chicago’s third round selection. He has a glove that only plays at Second Base, no speed, and no power. His ability to make contact is fantastic and allows him to play in the upper minors, but Chris Paramore may have been a better pick. They picked up Ed Gallego with a comp pick for not signing Bob Kaiser the year prior. Gallegos is a pitcher who has already retired, while Kaiser has a slim chance of making the show as a Second Baseman.
Chicago’s fourth rounder, Nick East, is a pitcher who has already retired. Their fifth rounder, Tyler Dettlinger, won’t play above Double A. Their sixth rounder, Ed Russell, is a good defender with enough speed and enough of a bat to be a PBA backup. None of their later picks were of note, though they did take on Xavier Cedeno’s dead salary to acquire Raymelis Rosa, a reliever, from Colorado. Rosa had a 3.64 career ERA in 263 Games.
Grade: F: Chicago essentially gave up on three All-Stars as a result of the draft, plus a quality arm and a Second Base prospect with a prayer. They obtained a pair of high variance pitchers, a backup middle infielder, and a good reliever. That’s an awful swap that has contributed to Chicago’s malaise the last few years.
Chicago Cubs:
First Round: (23) Pick traded to Baltimore along with Mike Floyd, Eric Dusing, Seattle’s second rounder (Brian Mach*) and Seattle’s third rounder (Chris Schoepflin*) for Manny Machado. Pick became Vinny Escudero
Second Round: *—Pick acquired along with third round pick, Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing from Seattle for Chris Sale
Second Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Steven Matz
Third Round: *
Third Round: (40) Pick traded along with fourth round pick (Chris Kirkpatrick) to Arizona for Trevor Oaks. Pick became Chris Paramore
Best Player: (12) David Janes—P
Best Deep Cut: David Janes
Total ML WAR: 1.0 WAR
Review: The Cubs laundered Seattle’s second and third rounders, Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing, routing them to Baltimore along with Chicago’s first rounder to turn Chris Sale into Manny Machado. Sale had one spectacular year in Chicago, but fell apart quickly. Machado, meanwhile, has been spectacular since the trade, one of the best Third Baseman in a league deep with sensational Third Basemen. They lost out on Vinny Escudero, who has been a good talent, but getting Machado was still worth Escudero and Sale.
The Cubs lost their second rounder to sign Steven Matz. The lefty was very good in Chicago—well worth a second-round pick—and continued a fine career with the Dodgers.
Chicago traded their third and fourth rounders to Arizona for Trevor Oaks. The picks became Chris Kirkpatrick and Chris Paramore. Paramore looks like a good second-division Shortstop and Kirkpatrick, a Triple-A arm. Oaks had one replacement level year with the Cubs. Keeping Paramore and Kirkpatrick would have been the right play.
Chicago traded or signed away most of their draft picks. Eighth rounder Morten Harris has been fine in Triple-A, but likely isn’t a PBA pitcher. David Janes, their 12th rounder, looks like a decent prospect. His fastball and changeup make him a lights out reliever at worst, and he has enough of a changeup to make it as a mid-level starter most likely.
Grade: A-: Chicago used its resources to obtain Manny Machado and Steven Matz, which is a very successful use of draft picks. Picking up David Janes late in the draft is also a success. They didn’t get much depth, and should have held on to Chris Paramore, knocking the grade down a touch.
Cincinnati Reds:
First Round: (16) Josh Jones—P
Second Round: (4) Pablo Montiel—P—Compensation for not signing Arturo Rivera
Second Round: (12) Tim Johnson—P
Third Round: (14) John Davis—P—Compensation for not signing Chris Schoepflin
Third Round: (15) Pick traded along with Matt Andriese to New York Mets for Paul DeJong, Dalton Ewing, and Nate Pearson. Pick became Brian McCammack
Best Player: Tim Johnson
Best Deep Cut: (22) Doug Dombrowski—P
Total ML WAR: 9.1
Review: Cincinnati got three excellent starting pitchers in the draft, though they missed with their initial attempt at one. They picked Josh Jones 16th overall and the man nicknamed “Crusher” immediately crushed Cincinnati’s hopes with numerous arm injuries. He hasn’t pitched above High-A and his career is hanging by a thread.
The Reds didn’t sign Arturo Rivera in 2021, which was a mistake as Rivera has blossomed into a first division starter. They rectified their mistake by drafting Pablo Montiel, a Top 50 prospect. Ape Montiel has huge stuff, with a triple-digit fastball, an excellent curveball, and a strong splitter, plus a developing changeup. He should be a top arm for a number of years.
Cincinnati used their own second rounder on Tim Johnson, a power arm who keeps the ball in the park, developing into an excellent mid-rotation arm with San Francisco. He’s already produced 6.2 WAR his first two seasons and looks poised to build on his success moving forward.
The Reds had an extra third rounder as a result of not signing Chris Schoepflin the year prior. The middle infielder has hit well in Colorado Springs for Milwaukee’s Triple-A team and has enough of a bat to be on the PBA radar. The Reds used their comp pick on Eagle Eye John Davis, who will never pitch above A-ball. They should have signed Schoepflin.
With an extra pick, they traded the pick that became Brian McCammack and Matt Andriese for Paul DeJong, Dalton Ewing, and Nate Pearson. Andriese has a couple more good seasons, though McCammack has already retired. Cincinnati got a bad single year of Nate Pearson, a bad first year out of Paul DeJong, and a good second year out of DeJong. They probably should have help on to Andriese, though both they and the Mets got similar value.
The Reds didn’t get too much out of the rest of their draft, but they did draft Doug Dombrowski in the 22nd round. Dombrowski went 11-11 last year with a 4.16 ERA as a 23-year-old rookie. Dombrowski gets good movement out of his cutter/splitter combination, and should be a mid-rotation arm for years to come.
Grade: B+: The Reds got three starting pitchers out of the draft, and can be argued to have won the Paul DeJong trade. They didn’t get a ton of depth and missed with some decisions, but they still walked away with a good amount of quality.
Cleveland Indians:
First Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Javier Baez
Supplemental Round: (4) David Bollman—CF—Compensation for not signing Corey Kluber—UNSIGNED
Supplemental Round: (5) Brian Hyslop—P—Compensation for not signing Addison Russell—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (20) Matt Howell—P—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (25) Roland Lemon—P—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (8) John Kinser—P
Best Deep Cut: (22) Angel Vasquez—P
Total ML WAR: 1.9
Review: Cleveland’s GM David Springgay ghosted during the season, leading to a bizarre draft. He signed Javier Baez to a contract, allowing Addison Russell to leave a free agency for a comp pick. Russell has been more effective than Baez, with potential gains limited in 2027 for Russell due to vesting option concerns. Russell also cost far more than Baez, but had an early out clause. Cleveland had some financial issues in 2022, but ostensibly was still a contender. Keeping Russell and a first round pick likely would have been the better move, but it’s defensible to go with Baez and a supplemental option.
Cleveland, however, didn’t sign its Supplemental option, Brian Hyslop, getting Brian Wright in the next year’s draft with the comp pick. Wright was a decent reliever in the minors, but didn’t have much upside. Hyslop looks like a future major leaguer.
Cleveland also let Corey Kluber walk in Free Agency and Kluber won the Cy Young Award the next year and had a stellar career for the Dodgers. Cleveland let him go to draft and not sign David Bollman, a nice-looking Left Fielder currently in the Dodgers system. Instead, Cleveland rolled the pick and drafted Kevin Austin, a slick-gloved, big swinged Shortstop with contact issues. Austin’s not the worst defensive replacement/platoon Shortstop, but he’s not Corey Kluber.
They drafted Matt Howell with their second round pick and didn’t sign him. Howell looks like a Quad-A arm, so maybe letting him go unsigned wasn’t too bad, but the rolled over pick turned into Jamie Carroll, who looks like a perennial Double-A arm. Roland Lemon was unsigned in the third round and flashed as a Top 100 Prospect with the Rockies, but he hasn’t put things together. The rolled over pick turned into Phil Anderson, and he never flashed as anything before retiring.
Cleveland did get some talent in the sixth and eighth round. Adam Langford, their sixth rounder, struggled in 2026, but pitched to a 1.75 ERA out of the pen in 2027 and looks like a possible bullpen member. Their eighth rounder John Kinser has a great Cutter. Nicknamed John the Terrible, he Saved 19 Games and had 2.2 WAR in 2027.
He’s pitching overseas now, but their 16th rounder, Ezra Doney, was a nice pick. He struggled a few years before putting things together with a 2.76 ERA in High-A in 2025, and put himself on the radar as a possible future starter. He ended up in Korea last year where he kept the ball in the park and put up 1.7 WAR with 134 strikeouts in 115 innings.
Their 22nd rounder, Angel Vasquez, has a shot to make the majors with the Cardinals. He has great arm action on his changeup and forkball, plus a good curve. He holds runners and because he doesn’t tax his arm with 90 mph stuff, he can work deep into games. Homers are a problem, but for a 22nd rounder, he looks like a steal.
Grade: D: Cleveland’s Baez and Russell decisions, plus the decision to roll the Russell compensation pick over nets a D in aggregate. Cleveland saved a little bit of money but didn’t end up with a good return, and Baez didn’t help them contend. Letting Kluber go is likely a D, salvaged only by Kevin Austin having some upside from the 2023 draft and by Cleveland having financial issues. They didn’t get anything out of most of their mid round picks, though they got some relief options out of their sixth, eighth, and 22nd rounders.
Colorado Rockies:
First Round: (19) Dave Serrano—P
Second Round: (18) Bill Estrada—P
Third Round: (22) Felix Madrigal—P
Notes: Traded away a 6th rounder (Shohei Shibata) and Peter Lambert to Atlanta for Jonathan Holder
Traded away Raymelis Rosa and Xavier Cedeno to Chicago White Sox for 24th round pick
Best Player: (18) Keith Nield—P
Best Deep Cut: (18) Keith Nield
Total ML WAR: 5.4
Review: First round selection Dave Serrano had the makings of a future big league starter coming out of the University of Florida. Unfortunately, a ruptured UCL in 2023 sapped him of all of that potential, and he has yet to make it past A+ at 25 years old. RF Bill Estrada was selected in the second round, but has faired even worse than Serrano, spending his first six seasons in rookie ball before finally being promoted to A- in 2027.
P/OF Felix Madrigal was taken in the third round and has had a cup of coffee in the big leagues. He's has an interesting skill set in that he can pitch and potentially be a middle of the road leadoff hitter against RHP. But somehow he can hit 96 on the radar gun, but cannot throw the ball back into the infield from the warning track, making it difficult to find a place for him on the field. He looks to be maxed out as a AAAA player that could be a big league roster filler.
Despite a fairly disasterous first three picks, the Rockies did salvage the draft somewhat in the 18th round, with the selection of Keith Nield. Nield has blossomed into a regular in the Rockies rotation over the last three seasons, posting a 2+ WAR each of the last two seasons. Scouts think that his electric stuff could make him a strong middle rotation arm in the big leagues if he can ever get away from Coors Field.
Even the trades leave much to be desired. It could be argued Lambert outperformed Holder following the trade involving the 6th, and Raymelis Rosa has developed into a decent reliever for Chicago in what appears to have been a salary dump of Cedeno's contract.
Grade: D: Overall, it was not a great draft for the Colorado organization. Scoring Nield in the 18th was nice, but even with him, there's no proof yet that he's anything better than an average starting pitcher.
Detroit Tigers:
First Round: (3) Roderick Dalton—1B
Second Round: (3) Danny Garza—P
Third Round: (3) Mike Farrar—P
Best Player: Roderick Dalton
Best Deep Cut: (16) Tao Fou
Total ML WAR: 13.2
Review: Detroit got an offensive superstar in the first round. Dalton is one of the youngest players in the draft and is already second in WAR from the class. He produced an 8.4 WAR season where he led the league in average, OBP, slugging percentage, and OPS. Tony Sierra will have something to say, but Dalton is the favorite to produce the most WAR from the class.
They picked up a decent swingman in Danny Garza in the second round. Garza’s shown regular season success with the Tigers in 2025, and has done very well in Triple-A. Mike Farrar is a swingman taken in the third round, but Farrar looks like he’ll top out in Triple-A and there are better players picked in the third round after Farrar.
Jamie Harrington is a good looking youngster picked in the fourth round. He doesn’t have great stuff, so he’s had to rely on throwing strikes and being wily, which he’s still learning how to do as he’s only 24. If Harrington’s slider comes along, he’s a solid back end starter, and if he doesn’t, he looks like a dependable reliever.
Neil Mallison hasn’t reached the majors yet and has struggled in Triple-A. He’s a good defensive outfielder though, who makes contact and puts the bat on the ball. There’s fifth-outfielder potential there.
The Tigers didn’t get much out of any player after the fifth round.
Grade: A: Detroit got a star with their first pick, a good looking arm with Harrington in the fourth round, and a decent piece in Garza in round two. Dalton wasn’t a complete automatic—two teams passed on him—and Detroit got enough depth to give the grade an easy A.
Houston Astros:
First Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Anthony Rizzo
Second Round: Pick acquired from Tampa Bay along with Wyatt Cross, Leonardo Sanchez and Rodolfo Sanchez from Tampa Bay for Jose Altuve. Pick forfeited as a result of signing Zach Greinke
Second Round: (28) Pick traded along with fourth rounder (Ricardo Ponce) to San Francisco for Melvin Adon. Pick became Willie Roldan.
Second Round: (30) Joe Dyck—P (Pick acquired from Tampa Bay for Christian Yelich)
Third Round: (13) Cesar Cortes—P
Third Round: (33) Jerrod Rodgers—P Pick acquired with Will Coronado, Jorge Cotto, Jared Jackson, Alfredo Contreras, Michell Miliano, and Cole Hamels from Texas for Carlos Correa.
Best Player: Joe Dyck
Best Deep Cut: (12) Jerry Castillo—CF
Total ML WAR: 2.7
Review: Houston was very active with the 2022 draft. They gave up their first rounder to sign Anthony Rizzo. Rizzo was given a 2-year, $24 million value contract, had a huge 2022 where he earned an All-Star nod, and struggled in 2023 before moving on. Houston lost 104 games in 2022, and went 84-78 in 2023. Would a pick in the middle of the first round be better than 6 WAR at $4 million-per WAR for one awful season and one good season?
Houston then took on a ransom from Tampa Bay for Jose Altuve. Altuve was sub-replacement for Tampa Bay, and Houston got a starting Catcher in Wyatt Cross. They also got Leonardo Sanchez, and Rodolfo Sanchez, but neither made a difference for Houston. The Astros got a draft pick they eventually forfeited to sign Zach Greinke for 248 underwhelming innings over four seasons of a 10-year contract he walked away from four seasons in.
They lost their own second rounder along with a fourth rounder to acquire Melvin Adon. The righty had a solid three-year career with the Astros. The draft picks became Ricardo Ponce and Willie Rodan. Ponce looks like a slick-gloved utility infielder, while Rodan looks like a Triple-A starting pitcher. They probably won that deal.
Not wanting to be out a Second Rounder, they traded Christian Yelich to Tampa Bay for another Astros’ Second Rounder. Yelich had a very good single season for Tampa Bay, but the Astros lost 100 games that year. Instead, Houston got a very good reliever in the draft in Joe Dyck.
They used their own third rounder to draft Cesar Cortes, a fringy swingman who has struggled in Triple-A.
They got an extra third-rounder in the Carlos Correa deal. They lost the All-Star infielder to Texas, but picked up the pick that would become Jerrod Rogers, plus Will Coronado, Jorge Cotto, Jared Jackson, Alfredo Contreras, Michell Miliano, and the corpse of Cole Hamels. Rodgers looks like a good-looking reliever, while Cotto developed into a star that led the AL in Wins in 2026. Coronado got hurt and never amounted to anything, but Contreras has been fine as a fifth starter, Jackson has been exactly replacement level in a six-season pitching career, and Miliano has been a very effective reliever for five seasons in Milwaukee. Eating $14.5 in dead money in Hamel’s contract hurt, and likely neutralizes the depth Houston received in the deal.
Houston didn’t sign its fourth or fifth rounders, and their later picks don’t have a prayer of pitching in the PBA.
Grade: B-: The Rizzo sign is probably a C. Moving on from Altuve to get an All-Star in Cross, while tying up their books with Greinke is a B. Trading for Adon is a B. Trading Yelich for Dyck is a C. The Cortes pick is a C. Getting Cotto and a slew of relievers for a superstar in Correa is probably a C. Not having anything at all really after the third round is an F, but is the least relevant part of their draft. In a relatively weak draft, Houston made a lot of splashy moves that ultimately worked out—fine. That nets them a B-.
Kansas City Royals:
First Round: (1) Pick acquired along with Ken Stockwell, Blake Hunt, Joey Wentz, and C.J. Hinojosa from Seattle for Luis Arraez, Jeifry Nunez, Mitch Nay, and Hayato Sakamoto. Pick then traded to Chicago White Sox for First Rounder (Roger Airhart*), Second Rounder (Ted Wilson*), Jorge Vargas and Jadon Ancrum. Pick became Pat French
First Round: (10) Pick traded to Arizona for Juan Vega. Pick became Josh Aldag.
First Round: (28) *
Second Round: (8) Tomito Kawamoto—P
Second Round: (13) Pick acquired along with Jake Lamb and Manuel Margot from San Diego for Stevan Duggar. Pick then traded along with third rounder (Javier Guerra*), Jake Lamb, and Mike Osborn to San Francisco for Anderson A. Tejada. Pick became Arturo Rivera.
Second Round: (29) *—Unsigned
Third Round: (9) Todd Buonadonna—P—Unsigned
Third Round: (16) * Pick acquired along with Michael Reed and Dylan Cozens from San Diego for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 million in cash. Pick became Javier Guerra.
Third Round: (30) Larry Price—P (Pick acquired with Marino Campana from Oakland for Reyes Moronta and Jeter Downs)
Notes: Traded away a 7th rounder (Eric Davis) to Baltimore for Alec Asher
Best Player: (5) Jonathan Bakos—LF
Best Deep Cut: (16) Jimmy Williams—CF
Total ML WAR: 9.7
Review: It’s complicated to grade Kansas City’s draft because so many of their moves are tied in up relationships with other picks that were both acquired and traded away. Some selections may need to be grouped with other picks for simplicity. For example, the first overall pick:
Kansas City both acquired and traded away the first pick in the draft. First, they gave up Jeifry Nunez, a future All-Star, to Seattle along with fringe players Mitch Nay dead contract Hayato Sakamoto. They picked up future All-Star Blake Hunt, a strong starter in Joey Wentz, a decent fringe backup infielder in C.J. Hinojosa, and a decent fringe swingman in Ken Stockwell. The trade alone leans towards the Royals winning the trade even before considering the selection that became Pat French.
Kansas City then turned around and traded the number one pick to Chicago for Jorge Vargas, Jadon Ancrum, plus picks that became Roger Airhart, and Ted Wilson. That piece of arbitrage netted the Royals two future AL MVP runner ups, a strong pitcher and playoff hero—albeit for Los Angeles—a strong pitcher prospect, an All-Star Catcher, and a couple of decent depth pieces. The Royals also got off a dead eight-figure contract, and all they gave up of value was one-time All-Star Jeifry Nunez, and the enigma, French. There’s still a universe where French develops into a Cy Young candidate, but the value Kansas City still gets from the series of deals still weighs heavily in their favor, and if French doesn’t hit his 90th percentile outcome, Kansas City laps the field with the superstars they acquired. Just a fantastic job of asset manipulation, and that’s just with their first pick they were involved with.
They had their own first round pick that they then swapped to Arizona for Juan Vega. The pick became Josh Aldag, who is a busted pick. Vega has a .794 career OPS and a 30-homer season under his belt before the age of 25. He’s an awful defender, which limits him to DH, and makes an interesting question as to whether he’s worth the 10th overall pick in the draft. A less interesting question is whether he’s better than Josh Aldag, which is a resounding yes.
The Royals didn’t do anything fancy with their own second rounder, simply choosing to keep it and select Tomito Kawamoto. The Japanese-born pitcher who somehow ended up at HBCU Bethune Cookman has turned into an All-Star after another Royals trade with Seattle. Tim Johnson would have been an interesting pitcher pick as well, but Kansas City definitely made a solid selection.
Daniel Kent was back on his bullshit with his other second rounder. He scooped up a second-round pick from the Padres, along with Manuel Margot, and mostly dead contract Jake Lamb, in exchange for Steven Duggar. He also picked up a third rounder from the Padres with Michael Reed and Dylan Cozens for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 million in cash. The Royals then packaged the Padres second and third rounders and Lamb with Mike Osborn to San Francisco for Anderson A. Tejada. The picks became Arturo Rivera and Javier Guerra.
To simplify, the Royals netted out with Manny Margot, Michael Reed, Dylan Cozens, and Anderson A. Tejada for Steven Duggar, Rogelio Herrera, Mike Osborn, and $1.4 million. Lamb and picks that became Arturo Rivera and Javier Guerra were used as catalysts in the deal.
None of the players actually gained or lost became significant players. Reed was immediately cut and never again played in the PBA. Cozens never played in the PBA again either. Margot was awful the rest of 2022 for Kansas City, but had a nice defensive run the next year before being traded to the Yankees. Tejada was traded twice in four months following the deal and became a serviceable, if overstretched, second division infielder. Not too much of value.
The Royals sent away Duggar, who had a nice 2022 in Seattle before becoming a second division outfielder, and Herrera and Osborn were career minor leaguers, before a nice stint in the Meridian League for Osborne. The $1.4 million may have been the most valuable commodity lost or gained, and Rivera was easily the best player that ended up in any of the deals. Kansas City lost the series of trades, but aside from Rivera, the aspects gained or lost are pretty negligible.
Kansas City’s own third rounder was used to make a selection, and they picked up Todd Buonadonna, an elite reliever that they failed to sign. The comp pick turned into Ted Wilson, a player The Royals drafted in the second round and failed to sign. They should have learned their lesson and not drafted him again, as he’s a career minor leaguer and Buonadonna is a tremendous bullpen weapon.
The Royals picked up an extra third rounder, plus Marino Campana for Reyes Moronta and Jeter Downs. The pick was used on Larry Price, who had a roller coaster rookie year, but projects to be a late inning weapon, plus Campana, who bashed lefties for the early part of the decade for the Royals. They gave up Downs, a good starting infielder, and Moronta a decent reliever. Kansas City also probably lost that trade by a small margin.
Kansas City’s fourth rounder was used on Waylon Linkletter, a mid-minors arm, but their fifth rounder was used on Jonathan Bakos, an outstanding pick and a playoff hero. Bakos has a good bat, outstanding doubles power, and he can both run and field well. A fan favorite, he was an outstanding pick.
Kansas City’s sixth rounder was used on reliever Jim Pennington, who has carved up the mid minors and deserves a trip to Triple-A Omaha. He has a good enough cutter and great intangibles that have him on the PBA radar.
The Royals traded their seventh rounder to Baltimore for Alec Asher. The pick turned into career minor leaguer Eric Davis, while Asher pitched 7 good innings of two-run ball for the Royals. Those were 7 more innings than Davis played in, so a successful trade.
Kansas City’s eighth rounder turned into Ryan Hutchinson, another arm that has dominated the mid minors and needs a promotion to Triple-A. He doesn’t quite have the stuff or command to be on the PBA radar, but a solid upper minors arm is good for the eighth round.
16th rounder Jimmy Williams deserves mention. He can play all three outfield spots, runs well, and has a good approach. There’s no power to speak of, but he may have enough of a bat to warrant being a last man on a roster some day. 18th rounder Oscar Mota is similar in that he has an adequate bat and approach, no power, but can hold his own at a premium position, in this case Shortstop. Mota doesn’t have speed, which will likely keep him in Triple-A.
Grade: A+: Kansas City lost some trades by small margins, and they should have signed Buonadonna, but they also got so much value out of their moves involving the first overall pick. They then supplemented that value with stars in Kawamoto and Bakos, and got some decent depth. It’s between them and Texas with who had the better draft, with Texas’ fleecing in the Albies deal giving the Royals a well-deserved Silver.
Los Angeles Angels:
First Round: (4) Kelyn Klatenburger—RF—UNSIGNED
First Round: (13) Mark Storr—1B—Compensation for not signing Sergio Ramirez—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (5) Dave Withrow—3B—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (17) Bobby McConnel—P—Compensation for not signing Juan Orozco—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (4) Mike Mendez—P—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (20) Kyle Ramey—P—Compensation for not signing Jeff Watase—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (9) Matt McMahan
Best Deep Cut: (12) Miguel Acosta—C
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: This draft was conducted in the middle of a run where the Angels almost never signed their early picks. The compensation picks were rolled so far, direct comparisons are almost fruitless because it would take forever for any of the rolled over picks to actually be used. Ultimately, looking at Angels drafts after 2022, there are few players they’ve selected this decade who have any chance of being impact players until the 2027 draft.
The Angels could have had an impact player in superstar Kelyn Klattenburger when he was drafted fourth overall, but they didn’t sign him. Mark Storr looks like a future slugger as well. Incidentally, both Angels unsigned first rounders eventually ended up with the Giants. The Angels could have had a pair of sluggers and ended up with nothing.
Dave Withrow was an unsigned second round Third Baseman who also ended up with San Francisco, but he was cut and is now in the Mexican League. Bobby McConnel, however, looks like a decent middle relief prospect that Los Angeles punted on. Third rounder Mike Mendez has already retired, but Kyle Ramey is still pitching in the minors with the hopes of being a future swingman.
Los Angeles ended up with none of these players, and nobody of note overall aside from Miguel Acosta, a replacement level backup Catcher who has been the only player from the Angels class to make the PBA thus far. Ninth rounder Matt McMahan also has a chance as a reliever with good stuff, but his lack of control may keep him in the minors permanently.
Grade: F: There were good players throughout the draft—Los Angeles even selected some of them—but the net result was a third string catcher and maybe an eighth reliever. This period of failed drafts is a major reason why the Angels have been unable to escape the basement.
Los Angeles Dodgers:
First Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Corey Kluber
First Round: (24) Jayden Howell—RF—Compensation for not signing Jon Todd
Supplemental Round: (14) Dale Messina—P—Compensation for not signing Ben Sweitzer
Supplemental Round: (15) John Thacker—P—Compensation for not signing Jamie Ison
Second Round: (23) John Woodard—LF
Third Round: (28) Antonio Zamora—P
Third Round: (38) Jonathan Roman—P—Compensation for not signing Raheem Owusu
Best Player: Dale Messina
Best Deep Cut: (30) Brian Blair—P
Total ML WAR: -0.5
Review: The Dodgers forfeited their first round pick to sign Corey Kluber, who won a Cy Young with the Dodgers, produced 16.1 WAR, made the World Series three times and won two titles with LA. Injuries hampered the end of his career, but he was dynamite early in his LA tenure, and well worth a late first round pick. They still had a first rounder as a comp pick for not signing Jon Todd the year prior, which they used on Jayden Howell. Todd is a replacement level reliever currently with Minnesota, while Howell is a speedster who might have enough batting average to make it as a second division starter. He’s better than Todd, and the best outfielder taken at his point in the draft until the fifth round.
The Dodgers didn’t sign compensation picks Ben Sweitzer or Jamir Ison in 2021, getting Dale Messina and John Thacker as compensation picks. Sweitzer has retired, while Ison finally made the majors last year as a replacement level 30-year-old relief arm. The Dodgers got Dale Messina, a future ace, and John Thacker, also a replacement level reliever, but younger than Ison.
The Dodgers’ own second rounder was used on John Woodard during a dead zone for outfielder’s during the draft. Woodard doesn’t have much patience or defense, but he has a strong bat with good power. Considering how rough outfielders are until the first round, he’s a good selection.
Los Angeles plucked Antonio Zamora in the third round, a Triple-A caliber arm, still young enough to have a slim chance at the PBA. They also got a comp pick for not signing Raheem Owusu, a good reliever from the 2021 draft, and used it on Jonathan Roman, a fringy reliever. Owusu is the clearly better pitcher.
The Dodgers selected Mike Sturrock in the fourth round, a reliever without the command or stuff to pitch above Double-A effectively. The Dodgers didn’t pick another guy they signed who is still active until Omar Alvarez in the ninth round. The Mexican native gets good bite on his sinker and pitches with good craft, but his lack of a real out pitch and plane of his sinker results in too many homers for the PBA. He’s been effective in Triple-A Oklahoma City though, and may play up as a relief arm.
The Dodgers also got a good arm with their 30th rounder. Drafted and almost immediately cut, Brian Blair caught on with Fukuoka Softbank in the Nippon League, pitching in their minors from 2023 until a cup of coffee with the major league club for three games this year. He has three different fastballs, a great circle changeup, and he throws strikes. If he ever came back stateside, he’s be in the majors.
Grade: A-: The Dodgers got two aces in Kluber and Messina, plus Howell and Woodard look like future pros. Thacker, Zamora, Roman, and Sturrock are fringy, but there’s strength in numbers. Blair left the organization immediately, but was clearly a good pick. All-in-all, a solid draft.
Miami Marlins:
First Round: (11) Sergio Ochoa—P
Second Round: (9) Nick Tincher—P
Third Round: (10) Josh Fitzpatrick—P
Best Player: Sergio Ochoa
Best Deep Cut: (16) Adam Taylor—RF
Total ML WAR: 0.4
Review: Ochoa had huge potential when taken by Miami. Previously, he went 1:1 to Boston in 2019, then spent three seasons at Georgia Tech. His stuff has developed, but his mechanics are awful and he’s never been able to pitch up to his stuff. He’s wild on the mound, and 2027 was his worst year yet. It feels like he’s going in the wrong direction. There are better relievers taken after him, and Matt Aceto has turned to a star picked only four spots later. Ochoa still is young enough and still has the stuff to dream upon, but time is running out.
Nick Tincher was taken in the second round and could be an okay reliever. He has big stuff out of the pen at least. Tim Johnson is the only good arm taken immediately after Tincher, though Arturo Rivera was four spots later.
Josh Fitzpatrick was one of the better picks of Round 3. He also has a big arm, but gets good sink with his two-seamer, and has a good slider with downward plane. He had a 3.05 ERA for Atlanta last year.
Their fourth rounder, Wilson Infante, has bounced around the Dodgers low minors after a 2023 trade. He has good stuff and good movement and can maybe end up as a relief arm. He also has good offensive tools, though he’s never put things together in the minors. There’s still hope his bat will play, though it’s unsure at what position. There may be something there, but it will likely take a few more years to determine what.
Fifth round Catcher Jake Bolling was their first “miss,” but they did grab a PBA arm in the seventh round. Alex Cano was brutal for the Phillies last year, but he touches the mid-90s, throws strikes, and has a slider that can put away hitters. The stats don’t match the scouts, but for a seventh rounder, he’s a success.
There’s not too much in the deep minors, but Austin Taylor has the approach and enough power to end up in Triple-A. He doesn’t have the hit tool or defense to make it one more level up, but a 16th rounder with a prayer is better than most 16th rounders.
Grade: C-: Miami had a chance to get better guys than who they ultimately drafted, but did end up with a few players who look like decent players with upside. It’s likely this grade will look worse in the future should Ochoa continue to struggle, but it could also look low if Ochoa puts it all together.
Milwaukee Brewers:
First Round: (6) Danny Tammaro—LF
Second Round: (2) Wing-fung Qu (Pick acquired from Baltimore for Chad Woods)
Second Round: (6) Tim Jones—P
Third Round: (5) Jeff Kopf—CF—UNSIGNED
Best Player: Danny Tammaro
Best Deep Cut: (15) Yoshitomo Kaneko—P
Total ML WAR: 8.1
Review: This was probably the worst draft the Brewers had since 2019, but it was still a strong one. Danny Tammaro was selected eighth overall and quickly became an impact player, with 1.5 WAR in 2025. He was a force for a couple of seasons, but faded the last two. On a worse team, he would have had more opportunities to overcome a disappointing 2026, and he still scouts as a ferocious bat with good speed.
Milwaukee acquired their initial second rounder for Chad Woods. Nicknamed “The Undertaker,” Woods chokeslammed Triple-A competition last year, but has struggled in very brief tastes of PBA pitching. He looks like a future starting Second Baseman. Milwaukee gave him up to draft Wing-fung Qu, who has already retired. Their next second rounder was used on Tim Jones, who put up negative WAR in High-A last year.
Milwaukee didn’t sign Jeff Kopf after using a third-round pick on him. Kopf projects to have trouble getting above Double-A. Milwaukee rolled the pick and got good looking relief arm Rob Whalen, which worked out well.
The Brewers selected an older Catcher in Jason Lyons with their fourth rounder, but Lyons has already given up on baseball. They used their fifth rounder on a younger Catcher, Warren Hall, and Hall has decent pop and a decent eye. If he was a little bit better defensively, he’d be an ideal backup backstop. As is, he’s probably an ideal third-string Catcher.
Milwaukee used a sixth round selection on reliever Malik Moultry. The righty has a devastating Curveball, though he hangs his pitches too much. The out pitch is enough to dream on, and he was strong in Triple-A last year. Their next few picks are mid-minors fodder, though 10th rounder Orlando Quintana looks like a strong utility player in Triple-A.
While he was awful for a year, Daniel Escobar did make the majors, albeit as a sub-replacement level starting Shortstop with the Angels. The speed and the glove are good, but he’d be better in a backup role. 15th rounder Yoshitomo Kaneko touches triple digits, which results in strikeouts and weak contact. If he improves his control, he’d be a major leaguer.
Grade: C+: Milwaukee gets an A- for Tammaro, but notches failing marks for their second rounders. They did a decent job with rolling over their third rounder, and got some intriguing depth pieces. All-in-all, a decent draft.
Minnesota Twins:
First Round: (18) Jon Todd—P
Second Round: (14) Jamie Ison—P
Third Round: (17) Jonathan Russack—P
Best Player: Jonathan Russack—P
Best Deep Cut: (21) Ramon Flores—CF
Total ML WAR: 2.7
Review: Jon "Big Herman" Todd was taken by the Twins in the first round with the hopes that his pinpoint accuracy would translate to the big leagues. Todd cracked the big league roster in 2025, but struggled mightily posting a 6+ ERA before tearing his flexor tendon. Todd has yet to make it back to the big leagues and in all likelihood will play the rest of his baseball in the minors.
In the second round, Minnesota took 25-year-old - yes, 25 year old - Jamie Ison. Even at 25 years old, the Twins took their time moving Ison through their system. After three straight seasons of pitching very well at Triple A Rochester, the Twins couldn't ignore Ison and finally called him up to the big leagues at 30 years old. Ison didn't fare well, PBA hitters batted .360 off of him as he finished 2027 with an ERA well above 5. Ison will likely start the spring fighting for a big league roster spot for Minnesota, but it seems unlikely he'll ever be an impact player.
The best selection in the 2022 draft for Minnesota was third round pick Jonathan Russack. Russack worked his way up to the Twins big league club in 2025, and was a part of the clubs' rotation for all of 2026 and to start 2027. 2027 was definitely his best season in the pros, posting a 4.22 ERA, but the club optioned him back to Triple A following the acquisition of Robert Stephenson. Expect Russack to return to the majors in 2028, but it remains to be seen if he can build on a fairly average showing in 2027, or if he ends up regressing to his 2026 numbers.
Grade: D-: 15 of the Twins' 28 2022 draft selections have retired from baseball. That says all that you need to know about the 2022 Minnesota draft.
New York Yankees:
First Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Danny Salazar—Compensation for not signing Frazer McWhir.
First Round: (25) Bryce Zettel—1B—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (25) Josh Thomas—CF—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (32) Rob Franco—3B—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (36) Pat Place—P—Compensation for not signing Gil Caldwell—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (27) Enrique Gomez—P
Best Deep Cut: Enrique Gomez—P
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: It was a rough draft for New York, the result of not signing any of their first five picks. They failed to sign Frazer McWhir in 2021, then surrendered the compensation pick to sign Danny Salazar. Given that they weren’t going to sign their picks, it wasn’t a bad move, but Salazar blew out his elbow and only had two decent seasons and one awful one for New York.
Their next picks went unsinged, Bryce Zettel, Josh Thomas, Rob Franco, and Pat Place. Zettel is currently a Top 100 prospect, Franco has an outside shot at a PBA career as a reliever, and Pat Place can make it to Triple-A.
By rolling the picks over, Zettel became Bob Allison, a decent Center field prospect but a downgrade Thomas became Hidemichi Hirai, an upgrade as Hirai looks like a backup Right Fielder, while Thomas may never get out of Rookie Ball.
Franco turned into slugger Marty Murphy, an upgrade as Murphy has clear big league power. Finally, Place turned into Keith Walling, a glove-oriented Triple-A Shortstop, who likely won’t make it to the majors. The last three picks are all modest upgrades as a result of rolling the pick over, while not signing Zettel was a clear downgrade.
The Yankees only have one player they actually picked who looks like a clear major leaguer, 27th rounder Enrique Gomez. He has four pitches including a great slider, and if his changeup develops, he can be a special arm. He pitched 13.1 innings for the Yankees last year and had a 4.05 ERA.
Grade: C-: The aggregate rollover decisions probably net a C+, though losing the pick that became McWhir in order to sign Danny Salazar doesn’t look great. New York also loses some marks for the sheer lack of depth in its class, with only Gomez looking like a decent player.
New York Mets:
First Round: (20) Brad Street—P
Supplemental Round: (13) Ron Proffitt—P—Compensation for not signing Lothar Vorstermans
Second Round: (19) Kyle Shafer—1B
Third Round: (15) Brian McCammack—SS (Pick acquired from Cincinnati along with Matt Andreise for Paul DeJong, Dalton Ewing, and Nate Pearson)
Third Round: (24) Jonathan Hatcher—P
Best Player: (14) Tony Gonzalez—P
Best Deep Cut: Tony Gonzalez
Total ML WAR: 2.9
Review: It’s not the most exciting draft, but the Mets did get a lot of relief options out of the class. Brad Street has pitched two years with the Mets and has a 2.34 career ERA. He’s a nice safe reliever, with the misfortune of being grabbed just before Isaiah High and Vinny Escudero.
Ron Proffitt has great stuff, and a wild delivery that leads to too many walks. He’ll never pitch above the mid-minors. Lothar Vorstermans should eventually make the majors as a reliever and still has an outside chance at developing his changeup enough to start. That was a whiff. Kyle Shafer in the second round never hit enough to be anything more than a minor leaguer, though that spot in the draft was a dead zone for middle infielders.
Brian McCammack was also taken in that dead zone and also will not make the majors as he just retired. The Mets also got Matt Andreise in the deal that got them the McCammack pick, and Andreise had a good three-quarter season helping the Mets win 88 games in 2021. The Mets gave up Paul DeJong, who had a bad 2021 and a serviceable 2022 for the Reds, plus Dalton Ewing, who never made the majors, and Nate Pearson who pitched in roughly 100 career innings after the trade.
They plucked Jonathan Hatcher in the third round and he looks like a Triple-A starter at this point in his career.
The Mets then stared hitting on relievers who can do okay as starters. Their fourth rounder was Mike Stangeland, a control artist with power issues probably pitching in the wrong park in Texas. He hasn’t had much success yet, but Stangeland’s stuff will likely play up in the pen, and he looks like he could make it as a back-end starter in a better park.
Raheem Owusu was the Mets fifth rounder. He could likely pass as a back-end starter, but the Mets have used him entirely in relief. He was almost the hero of the 2026 NLDS and had a 2.78 ERA last year. New York drafted C.J. Nicol in the sixth round, but he won’t make it above the low minors. There’s not much in the way of pitchers taken after C.J. Hoover in the fourth through sixth rounds, so getting two good arms is solid work.
The Mets drafted position players who won’t do much from the seventh through ninth rounds, and the next pick they hit on was in the 14th round. Tony Gonzalez was left to suffer through a miserable 2025, an underwhelming 2026, and a rough start to 2027 before putting things together as a strong reliever. Gonzalez only allowed seven home runs in 73.1 innings last year and struck out 107 as he looks like a big-time reliever. He may even be able to cut in a rotation.
Grade: C: The Mets probably get a D for Street, as getting a serviceable reliever in a field of stars isn’t a great outcome, and Proffitt and Shafer get failing marks. They didn’t get anything out of the Hatcher pick either. They get a B for the combination of trading for Andriese and drafting McCammack as Andreise was good for parts of a season and they only gave up Paul DeJong. A missed draft pick isn’t worse than no draft pick. The draft after the fourth round takes a more optimistic turn as Stangeland, and especially Owusu and Gonzalez were great picks. Put together, the Mets didn’t get a star and picked up less than a year of a good starter, three good relievers, and a backend starting pitcher with the draft. It's decent quantity, though Escudero would have given it quality too.
Oakland Athletics:
First Round: (22) Tommy Hobby—P—UNSIGNED
Supplemental Round: (6) Dave Roberts—P—Compensation for not signing Ryan Dull
Second Round: (24) Joe Vitale—P
Third Round: (30) Pick Traded to Kansas City with Marino Campana for Reyes Moronta and Jeter Downs. Pick became Larry Price
Best Player: Dave Roberts—P
Best Deep Cut: (13) Ismael Lopez—P
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: The A’s are the only team who haven’t had a single player from the class make the PBA as of the 2027 season. They plucked Tommy Hobby in the first round, but didn’t sign him. That was probably a smart move as Short Circuit’s career short-circuited and he retired after the 2027 season. Oakland rolled over the pick, but didn’t sign any of their first rounders again until 2025.
They got a compensation pick for letting Ryan Dull walk as the team had financial issues. Dull had a fantastic career in Seattle for a time, while Roberts was jerked around between Double-A and Triple-A, succeeding at both levels. He retired after the 2027 season, mostly with frustrations due to how Oakland handled him.
Joe Vitale was plucked in the second round. He has big stuff that hasn’t translated to success. He’s now in the Korean minors. Oakland’s third rounder was sent out with Marino Campana, a player who found a niche in a platoon against lefties for the Royals for six seasons. The pick became Larry Price, a homer-prone power arm who had an unsuccessful stint as the Orioles closer this year. He should rally with a year of experience under him. Oakland received Jeter Downs, who was a solid starting infielder for them for a number of years, and Reyes Moronta, a respectable swingman. Oakland likely received the better end of the deal as Downs simply played more than Campana and Moronta has shown more to date than Price.
Matt Hendrickson was Oakland’s fourth rounder, a player who has slugged at every level, but likely doesn’t have enough of a skill set to escape Double-A. Broad-shouldered Josh Parsons, nicknamed “Shoulders” has been a strong Triple-A outfielder as his speed and defense are elite, but he doesn’t have the bat for the PBA.
10th round pick Mike de Leon has crushed A-Ball, and has enough speed, defense, power, and patience to play in Triple-A, but doesn’t have the hit tool to go further. 13th rounder Ismael Lopez also looks like a Triple-A player, as he has decent command and good movement, but doesn’t have the one skill to put him in the PBA.
Grade: D: Oakland got Jeter Downs with their draft assets, plus a reliever, but it cost them two major leaguers to do so. Their first rounder netted them nothing, and they didn’t get anything out of letting Ryan Dull walk.
Philadelphia Phillies:
First Round: (21) Isaiah High—3B
Second Round: (21) Justin Doyle—LF
Third Round: (26) Joel Robert—RF
Best Player: Isaiah High
Best Deep Cut: (16) Jorge Serrano—P
Total ML WAR: 1.9
Review: Philadelphia plucked Isaiah High 21st overall in 2022. The Third Baseman clubbed 26 home runs in half a season his rookie year and looks like an absolute star in the making. He hasn’t turned 24 so he’ll be able to provide value for years to come. There doesn’t look like a better player picked soon after him either. Arturo Rivera is a good player, but High has MVP upside, and you need to go into round five to find another hitter with that upside, so High was a fantastic pick.
Justin Doyle was taken in the second round and is less fantastic. He plays a great left field and has speed, but a one position defender with a poor bat isn’t even a Triple-A player. The only saving grace is that there weren’t other outfielder’s taken at that spot of the draft who look like they’ll amount to much. For example, Philadelphia’s third rounder, Joel Robert, is an outfielder who has produced negative WAR in Double-A—the definition of an outfielder who doesn’t look like he’ll amount to much.
Philadelphia made a nice selection with its fourth rounder, grabbing John Martel. Martel has a solid fastball/splitter combination, and he has a decent curveball and a nominal changeup. He doesn’t get strikeouts, so he’ll need to keep the ball in the park to have a chance at a successful career, but he was respectable as a 23-year-old rookie last year.
Ismael Olea was selected in the fifth round. He has a good glove at Second Base, and good speed, but he’s a terrible baserunner, doesn’t have a good bat, and is only a one-positional defender.
Sixth rounder Caleb Barker has some promise as a Quad-A First Baseman. He won’t provide value anywhere but with his bat, and he doesn’t look to have a special one, but he should be balanced enough to hold his own as a second division player, which is a fine outcome for a sixth-rounder. Seventh rounder Eric Beckman is a similar story. He has no defensive skills, and a lack of patience may make him a mark for big league pitching, but the average and power should hold up in the PBA in a pinch.
Tenth round pitcher Jason DeLisio has had success in Triple-A as an upper-90s arm who keeps the ball down. Already 29, a chance at a PBA career is rapidly closing, but a good Triple-A career from a 10th rounder is fine. Dusty Cannon was Philadelphia’s 11th rounder, and while he can’t hit, his range and cannon arm make him a possible utility infielder.
Philadelphia’s 16th round selection, Jorge Serrano, also deserves mention. While his command and lack of a third pitch sometimes results in his pitches getting hit hard, he has an upper 90s fastball and a curveball that can generate strikeouts. He’s pitched well in Lehigh Valley and may be able to hold his own in the PBA.
Grade: B+: Philadelphia nailed the most important part of the draft and got a superstar in High. They also did a great job getting bites at the apple with a number of players who have a chance at cutting it in the majors. However, Philadelphia also missed on its second and third rounders and only has High as a sure thing. Still, a strong draft.
Pittsburgh Pirates:
First Round: (14) Jayden Parker—LF—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (11) Andes Reyna—CF—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (12) Andre Stinson—P—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (14) Marc Troy—P
Best Deep Cut: Marc Troy—P
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: The Pirates didn’t sign the players they drafted in 2022, not getting much talent from the draft. They picked Parker, but got intel that he wanted to play football so they didn’t sign him. He left to be a professional football player, and the comp pick turned into Bert Medrano, who looks like a possible mid-rotation arm.
Andres Reyna, however, is a speedy outfielder with a good bat and power to boot. He went to college and graduated in 2026 from Long Beach State, so he doesn’t have a long track record, but a starting Center Fielder is a possibility. Sal Miranda was the player snagged the next year as a comp pick, and Miranda looks like a fringy reliever. A possible starting outfielder is always a better call than a possible sixth reliever.
Andre Stinson got off to a slow start to his career, but is a solid starter with the Mets, who might be a dynamite reliever if New York used him that way. Pittsburgh passed on signing him to grab Kevin Ramsey, who has already had two torn labrums.
The Pirates picks they did make have all been minor league fodder. Carlos Preciado, a 10th rounder, and Marc Troy, a 14th rounder, are the only ones with any upside as both could be fifth starters.
Grade: F: The Pirates got a number four starter out of the draft, maybe a couple of fifth starters and passed on some good talent. They didn’t get much depth in the draft either with few Quad-A types picked.
San Diego Padres:
First Round: (17) Greg Kelly—2B
Supplemental Round: (3) Kane Guyatt—P—Compensation for not signing Zach Davies
Second Round: (13) Pick traded to Kansas City along with Jake Lamb and Manuel Margot for Steven Duggar. Pick became Arturo Rivera
Third Round: (16) Pick traded to Kansas City along with Dylan Cozens and Michael Reed for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 million. Pick became Javier Guerra.
Third Round: Andy Bartron—P—Compensation for not signing Chris Littleton
Best Player: Greg Kelly
Best Deep Cut: (14) Sean Perry—P
Total ML WAR: 3.8
Review: One of the youngest players in the draft, Greg Kelly had a great rookie year and has a bright future ahead of him. Kelly had a special first season defensively with a double-digit Zone Rating at Second Base. His offense lagged behind, but he was 22-years-old in a tough park and still hit 19 home runs and 32 doubles. He has a fast bat, sneaky power, and could be an offensive monster. If he can’t put it together, he’s an average hitter with great defense. He’s been well worth the 17th pick.
The Padres let Zach Davies walk in Free Agency and got a comp pick as a result, drafting and signing Kane Guyatt. Davies had a strong run in Atlanta, leading the league in Pitching WAR one season. His contract wasn’t unreasonable, and San Diego probably should have held on to him with the career minor leaguer Kane Guyatt an underwhelming return.
San Diego’s Second Round pick was traded in a disastrous deal. The Padres gave up Jake Lamb, Manuel Margot, and the pick that became Arturo Rivera for Stevan Duggar. They got off of Lamb’s contract, and Margot struggled in Kansas City as well, but they cost of saving money was Arturo Rivera. Rivera was the 2026 Rookie of the Year and looks like a perennial All-Star and could have been a Padre. They did get Stevan Duggar, who was worth about 1 WAR for San Diego and was waived the following season.
The Padres gave away their third rounder with Michael Reed and Dylan Cozens for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 Million. The pick became Javier Guerra, a mid-minors Catcher. Reed was terrible for the Padres and never played in the majors again, while Cozens also never played in the majors after the deal. Herrera never pitched above rookie ball. The best asset in the deal was likely the $1.4 million cash.
They drafted Andy Bartron in the third round with a compensation pick. Bartron got hurt and lost his passion for baseball almost immediately. Actually signing Chris Littleton, who at least is playing in the Korean minors, would have been better.
Most of San Diego’s picks after the first three rounds have retired already, and those who are left are career minor leaguers.
Grade: C-: San Diego got Greg Kelly out of the deal, which was the most important thing, but their other moves are pretty bleak. Not signing Davies or getting bad compensation for Davies looks bad in hindsight, as does the Rivera trade. They didn’t get any value from their mid-round and later picks to supplement their value. Kelly may be good enough to override the complete lack of other value, but the Padres could have done better.
San Francisco Giants:
First Round: (22) Aaron Allen—1B
Second Round: (7) Octavio Lopez—P
Second Round: (13) Arturo Rivera—1B (Pick acquired from Kansas City along with third rounder [Javier Guerra*], Jake Lamb, and Mike Osborn for Anderson A. Tejada)
Second Round: (28) Willie Roldan—P (Pick acquired along with fourth rounder [Ricardo Ponce] from Houston for Melvin Adon
Third Round: (8) Kevin Gebhard—P
Third Round: (16) *
Third Rounder: (29) Antonio Espinosa—P (Pick acquired from Tampa Bay with Brandon Waddell, Ignacio Soto for Nick Kingham)
Notes: Traded Rodolfo Martinez to Tampa Bay for fourth rounder (Mark Kastner), Joe Sliger, and Shamar Motin.
Best Player: Arturo Rivera
Best Deep Cut: (17) Matt Isom—2B
Total ML WAR: 14.0
Review: The Giants were incredibly active during the draft, a reason they had a success one. Their first round pick was used on Aaron Allen, a slow-developing slugger with big power in the minors. The pressure is on Allen as other quality players were taken after him, including First Baseman Vinny Escudero. Allen does project to be a Starting First Baseman, but his future is still ahead of him.
San Francisco had three picks in the second round, the result of two trades. Their own pick was used on Octavio Lopez, one of the league’s better relievers. Lopez was taken in a spot of the draft where Tomito Kawamoto, and Tim Johnson were taken, so while the pick is still good, it’s not an A.
The Giants got their next second rounder and a third rounder in a trade with Kansas City. The Giants gave up Anderson A. Tejada, a player reliably getting 400 at bats a season to produce a career OBP of.292. They received Jake Lamb’s $15 million in dead money, Mike Osborn, who would languish in the low minors before a star turn in The Netherlands, minor league backup Catcher Javier Guerra, and finally, one of the best sluggers in the National League, Arturo Rivera. $15 million is a steep price, but a fair one for an All-Star.
The Giants got their other second rounder from Houston, trading Melvin Adon for picks that would become Willie Roldan and Ricardo Ponce. Adon had a couple of decent seasons for Houston before bouncing around the PBA, while a UCL injury has removed some of the potential for Roldan to be more than a Quad-A arm, and Ponce looks like a future backup infielder. A fair trade.
San Francisco drafted Kevin Gebhard with their own third rounder, a good Triple-A arm who doesn’t look like he’ll take the next leap to the PBA. They acquired another third rounder in a deal where they gave up Nick Kingham. The righty had a few nice years after the trade, putting up 2.7 or 2.8 WAR a season from 2023 to 2025. They got back Brandon Waddell, who had more WAR than Kingham each of those seasons at a higher salary, plus future swing man Ignacio Soto, and a busted pick in Antonio Espinosa. The Giants used their higher payroll to get the better player in the deal.
The Giants used their own fourth rounder on Eliott Cohen, who has already retired, but they got an extra one in a deal with the Rays. They got the pick that became Mark Kastner in the deal, though Kastner looks like a Triple-A arm. They also got Shamar Motin and Joe Sliger—prospects at the time who won’t play in the PBA. They sent out Rodolfo Martinez, who would go on to have serviceable ERA for Tampa Bay despite having negative WAR.
The Giants drafted a seventh rounder in the deal, Corey Taylor, who is constantly being claimed and waived as a young, fringy reliever with upside. Their ninth rounder, Andy McCarthy, pitched last year for Boston and had a solid 3.97 ERA as a rookie. None of the Giants later picks will amount to anything—in fact, they only signed four players after the 15th round.
Grade: A: San Francisco used its draft assets to obtain two starting-caliber First Basemen, one of the game’s better relievers, an upgraded Starting Pitcher, a handful of fringy starters, a prospective backup infielder, and two more PBA-caliber arms. They didn’t give up anything regrettable in the deals they made to acquire the extra picks, and for the most part, made the right selections at their places in the draft. A lot will ride on Anthony Allen to determine how successful the draft will ultimately be considering the Giants had a number of bites at the apple.
Seattle Mariners:
First Round: (1) Pick traded to Kansas City with Ken Stockwell, Blake Hunt, Joey Wentz, and C.J. Hinojosa for Luis Arraez, Mitch Nay, Jeifry Nunez, and Hayato Sakamoto. Pick became Pat French.
Second Round: (1) Pick traded to Chicago Cubs along with third rounder (Chris Schoepflin*), Eric Dusing, and Mike Floyd for Chris Sale. Pick became Brian Mach.
Third Round: *
Best Player: (27) Jamie Nelson—P
Best Deep Cut: Jamie Nelson—P
Total ML WAR: 0.2
Review: Seattle made a pair of gambits, trading away their early draft picks to get talent.
Their first rounder was traded with a host of talented players for Luis Arraez, Mitch Nay, Jeifry Nunez, and Hayato Sakamoto. Arraez had negative WAR as a bit player for Seattle. Mitch Nay was worth roughly -1.0 WAR for four teams after the deal. Hayato Sakamoto was dead money taken on for two more seasons before he retired. Jeifry Nunez is the one player acquired who has been a plus player for Seattle, leading the lead in Wins one year, and Strikeouts one year. He’s been an All-Star and has been an All-Star worthy pitcher parts of his tenure.
Trading away Pat French for Nunez is an interesting thought experiment. French hasn’t done much yet, but still has front-line potential he hasn’t shown. Nunez, however, has proven he’s a solid starter who can perform at an All-Star level. However, Seattle ALSO traded away an All-Star catcher in Blake Hunt, a playoff hero and solid starting arm in Joey Wentz, a decent swingman in Ken Stockwell, and a serviceable backup infielder and Triple-A depth piece in C.J. Hinojosa. Those extra players Seattle gave up make them a clear loser of the trade.
Their second round pick trade turned out to be even worse. They acquired Chris Sale who was spectacular in 2022, leading the league in both Strikeouts and WHIP and then immediately fell apart. He was worth -3.7 WAR his last two years, meaning his overall WAR total post trade was roughly 3.0. For that production, Seattle gave away a pick that became Brian Mach, a pick that became Chris Schoepflin, Eric Dusing, and Mike Floyd. Mach was a replacement-level Left Fielder in 130 Games last year, but Schoepflin looks like a starting Second Baseman, Mike Floyd has been a Platinum Stick winner, and Eric Dusing has evolved into a terrific reliever. Sale did have a special 2022, but the Mariners lost that trade.
Seattle didn’t sign their fourth rounder and their fifth rounder has retired. Their sixth-eighth rounders all look like Triple-A fodder, with most picks after looking worse. Jamie Nelson, plucked in the 27th round, does look like a Starting Pitcher in the PBA, with a good curveball and changeup.
Grade: D-: Seattle got one great year from Chris Sale as they were building their team to the AL West powerhouse they are today. Jeifry Nunez has also helped Seattle’s run this decade as well. That keeps the grade from being an F. They gave up so much though that they can’t be above a D-.
St. Louis Cardinals:
First Round: (5) Erik Benoit—SS—Compensation for not signing Chris Cammett
First Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Addison Russell
Second Round: (16) Nick Chesley—C
Third Round: (21) Chad Carlson—P
Best Player: Erik Benoit
Best Deep Cut: (11) Munenori Fujimoto—RF
Total ML WAR: 8.5
Review: St. Louis used a rolled over pick to draft Basket Case Benoit. Benoit has good position flexibility, a terrific bat, and is still young and improving his power. He’s a premier infielder, and considering his age, a very good selection for where he was taken. Chris Cammett could be a front-line starter, but is already 26 and racing the development clock. Rolling the pick did result in a year removed from developing a good player and getting it in St. Louis’ system, but the punishment won’t be too severe.
Their own first rounder was lost to sign Addison Russell, and St. Louis won 97 games in 2023 and made the playoffs. He was injured in 2022, and barely played in 2027, meaning he only provided 15.5 WAR over six years and at $252 paid out over the contract, so it wasn’t the most efficient contract. St. Louis won 83 Games in 2021 and was trying to be competitive so maybe only a slight demerit for giving up the pick to sign Big Vesty.
Their Second Rounder was used on Catcher Nick Chesley, who had a good rookie year in 2026, and an underwhelming season in 2027. He projects as a second division starter or good backup, and rates similarly to other second-round Catcher Nate Sprague.
Third rounder Chad Carlson throws hard but never developed his control and is low-minor leaguer as a result. Fourth round starter Pat Brooks got hurt in 2024 limiting his development, but was replacement level for a couple of cups of coffee. There haven’t been too many stellar arms in the fourth round to make the pick look too bad, and a replacement level arm after round three isn’t something to sneeze at.
Rob Erickson was grabbed in the fifth round and is a low minors Left Fielder, but sixth rounder Brad Golden looks like a Triple-A reliever, who may be able to make the majors with some luck. Eighth rounder Corey Fields doesn’t have much of a bat, but his speed and defense have made him a star in High-A. He likely won’t get past Double-A. Ninth rounder Anthony Redd has speed, a good glove, and a good eye. He’s held his own in Triple-A as a ninth rounder. Tenth Rounder Steve Shea, to continue the trend, plays great defense, runs fast, and likely isn’t a PBA player, but has held his own in Triple-A.
Grade B-: St. Louis made a good selection in Benoit, has a lot of upper minors depth, and made a decent selection with Chesley. The Russell signing is a C- move, and they didn’t get anything out of Carlson. Overall, it’s a solid draft.
Tampa Bay Rays:
First Round: (27) Chris Muchmore—RF
Supplemental Round: (10) Santiago Olvera—P—Compensation for not signing Steven Matz
Supplemental Round: (11) Josh Swanson—P—Compensation for not signing Chris Archer
Second Round: Pick traded to Houston along with Wyatt Cross, Leonardo Sanchez, and Rodolfo Sanchez for Jose Altuve. Pick forfeited as a result of signing Zach Greinke
Second Round: (30) Pick traded to Houston for Christian Yelich—Compensation for not signing Humberto Argueta. Pick became Joe Dyck
Third Round: (29) Pick traded to San Francisco along with Brandon Waddell and Ignacio Soto for Nick Kingham. Pick became Antonio Espinoza
Third Round: (35) Justin Hall—Compensation for not signing Ismael Carnero
Notes: Traded fourth rounder (Mark Kastner), Shamar Motin, and Joe Sliger for Rodolfo Martinez
Best Player: Chris Muchmore
Best Deep Cut: (28) Bobby Burns—P
Total ML WAR: 1.6
Review: There are a lot of moving parts to the Rays draft. Their first round pick was Chris Muchmore, a serviceable fourth outfielder who was overstretched as a starter for Texas last year. It takes until the fifth round and Tony Sierra to find an outfielder taken after Muchmore who has done anything in the majors, though Eric Walker is a Catcher with a lot of upside taken two spots later.
In the supplemental rounds, Tampa Bay let Steven Matz and Chris Archer go, getting Santiago Olvera and Josh Swanson as supplemental picks. Olvera and Swanson look like Triple-A arms, while Matz continued a fine career in Chicago and LA, and Archer put up about 7 WAR and a Diamondbacks championship over the rest of his career. Maybe Tampa Bay couldn’t afford the two arms and needed to move on, but there were some pitchers taken later in the Supplemental and early second rounds—Jeremy Myers, Octavio Lopez, Dale Messina, Tim Johnson—that would have served Tampa Bay better.
Tampa Bay traded their second rounder, Wyatt Cross, Leonardo Sanchez, and Rodolfo Sanchez for Jose Altuve. The pick disappeared with Houston signing Zach Grienke, though a pick deep in the second round wouldn’t have netted Tampa Bay much. Altuve produced negative WAR for the Rays, and while the Sanchezes never amounted to much, Wyatt Cross turned into a Gold Glover and a starting Catcher. Tampa should have not made the trade for that reason.
The Rays made another trade with Houston, swapping what would eventually turn into Joe Dyck for Christian Yelich. Tampa had the pick available as a result of not signing Humberto Argueta the year prior. Argueta’s been on a slow burn through the Yankees system, not really impressing along the way, so not signing him wasn’t a bad decision. Yelich won a Platinum Stick award for the Rays in 2022 and helped the team make the ALCS, while Dyck emerged in 2027 as one of the best relievers in baseball. One very good year of Christian Yelich as a contender versus Joe Dyck is an interesting call where a case can be made either way.
Tampa Bay wasn’t done trading draft picks though, swapping a pick that became Antonio Espinoza, Brandon Waddell, and Ignacio Soto for Nick Kingham. Kingham was worth 0.7 WAR in roughly a season with the team, while Waddell went on to have four very good seasons before injuries hampered the tail end of his career. Espinoza is a career minor leaguer, while Soto has a chance to make it as a backend starter.
They also drafted Justin Hall, a Center Fielder who had -0.8 WAR in full season ball before retiring. The pick was a comp pick for not signing Ismael Carnero, an arm that could be a 26th man.
They then sent their fourth rounder, a pick that became Mark Kastner, plus Shamar Motin and Joe Sliger to San Francisco for Rodolfo Martinez. None of the assets given up amounted to anything, but Martinez was worth -1.4 WAR for the Rays!
The only player drafted after Muchmore who looks like they have a chance to have more than a cup of coffee is 28th rounder Bobby Burns. The righty has a good delivery that allows his fastball to play up, plus a sinker that plays. The changeup is still developing and limits Burns to a reliever, but he struck out 13 in 12.1 innings for the Rays last year.
Grade: F: Tampa Bay didn’t clearly win any trade where they offloaded a pick, they didn’t get much for the compensation picks they received, and they didn’t get an impact player with their first round pick. The third-round comp pick they made wasn’t as good as the player they didn’t sign with their 2021 third rounder. There wasn’t a disastrous decision, but a lot of little misses add up to an F.
Texas Rangers:
First Round: Pick traded to Atlanta along with second round pick*, Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, and Kevin Flippo for Ozzie Albies. Pick forfeited to sign Zach Davies. 2nd Round Pick forfeited to sign Eduardo Rodriguez.
Supplemental Round: (8) Dan O’Rourke—P—Compensation for not signing Danny Salazar
Supplemental Round: (9) Aaron Wallace—P—Compensation for not signing Giancarlo Stanton
Second Round: *
Third Round: (33) Pick traded to Houston along with Will Coronado, Jorge Cotto, Jared Jackson, Alfredo Contreras, Michell Miliano and Cole Hamels for Carlos Correa. Pick became Jerrod Rodgers
Best Player: Aaron Wallace
Best Deep Cut: (21) Chris Ely—P
Total ML WAR: 7.6
Review: Texas traded its first and second round picks, Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, and Kevin Flippo to Atlanta for Ozzie Albies. Albies has won three Platinum Sticks and three Gold Gloves for Texas. The draft picks were given up for the Braves to sign free agents. Ramirez hasn’t hit enough to be more than a 26th man, Ryder Green is a Quad-A player, and Kevin Flippo is a backend pitcher. Texas didn’t give up much and got a superstar.
The Rangers lost Danny Salazar and Giancarlo Stanton in the offseason and got a pair of supplemental picks as a result. Salazar only had one more successful season, and Stanton was replacement level the rest of his career. Texas made the right decision to let each of them go. Dan O’Rourke has been one of the AL’s best relief arms the last three seasons, and Aaron Wallace had a strong rookie season last year.
Texas gave up its third round pick in a deal for Carlos Correa. The Shortstop has won three Platinum Stick awards in Texas and has been worth 22 WAR. They gave up Jorge Cotto in the deal, and Cotto has won 20 games and is only just 25. Texas also gave up a number of picks and prospects that turned into fringy relievers or fifth starters, but they also jettisoned Cole Hamels’ dead money. Even with losing Cotto, Texas remained a force throughout the decade and has to be thrilled with what Correa provided.
Texas’ only other top 10 draft picks they made were on fourth rounder Jack Covault, seventh rounder Tom Robertson, and ninth rounder Davis Daniel. They’ve all retired. In fact, the Rangers don’t have many drafted players from the draft other than their supplemental picks that are even still active. One of their few active picks is Top 100 prospect Chris Ely. The 21st rounder underwent a huge velocity spike in the minors, making his sinker play up as a result. He looks like a future mid-rotation arm.
Grade: A+: Texas didn’t make many draft picks, but they used their picks flawlessly, whether using their own selections or making trades. getting a spectacular infield, a great reliever, and two future top flight starters. It’s hard to argue with anything they did.
Toronto Blue Jays:
First Round: (12) David Kouns—P
First Round: (15) Matt Aceto—3B—Compensation for not signing Joe Knight
First Round: (29) Eric Walker—C—Compensation for not signing Wing-fung Qu
Second Round: (10) Frank Becker—3B
Second Round: (15) Devon Roedahl—P—Compensation for not signing Phil Wittwer
Third Round: (11) Chris Gentry—P
Third Round: (19) Sergio Ramirez—P—Compensation for not signing Ben McGraw
Third Round: (23) Chris Littleton—CF—Compensation for not signing Jeff Smart
Best Player: Matt Aceto
Best Deep Cut: (28) Jimmy Caliendo—P
Total ML WAR: 14.9
Review: Most of Toronto’s value in the draft came from not signing picks in earlier drafts. For the most part, the decision paid off.
The Blue Jays selected David Kouns with their original pick, a slap-hitter with great speed, defense, and bat-to-ball skills. He doesn’t get on base though and has no power, rendering him a Triple-A backup right now. There’s potential for more, but right now it’s a bad pick. They grabbed Matt Aceto a few picks later, with a pick obtained by not signing Joe Knight. Aceto leads the class in WAR to date and is an All-Star, while Knight mat be a reliever. Rolling the pick paid major dividends.
Their final first round pick was rolled over for two seasons, with Toronto passing on players from the 2020 and 2021 drafts who haven’t done much, to grab Eric Walker. The Catcher has been blocked by Gary Sanchez, but looks like a First Division player. He once had three homers and nine RBIs in a game.
Their own second rounder was used on Frank Becker, a speedster who puts the bat on the ball, but doesn’t have much else as a skillset. Arturo Rivera was picked up a few picks later. They rolled over a Second Rounder to get Devon Roedahl, who pitched six career games in the majors, instead of holding on to Phill Wittwer, a career minor-leaguer.
Chris Gentry was their third round pick, a Triple-A starter, and fringy major league swingman. Not much came out of the third round for pitchers, so a swingman isn’t a bad outcome. Their other third rounders won’t ever play in the PBA, and were only available to Toronto because they didn’t sign other third rounders in prior years who also won’t play in the majors.
Toronto’s fourth, sixth, and ninth rounders have already retired, and their eighth rounder won’t ever escape the mid-minors. Their fifth rounder, pitcher Ismael Carnero, and seventh rounder, Second Baseman J.J. Vahling, look like Triple-A depth pieces which aren’t unexpected outcomes for where they were picked.
Toronto got a couple of fringy arms deep in the draft. With their 26th rounder they selected Chris Rose, a finesse lefty with a curve and change that play well in Triple-A, and a Jimmy Caliendo, a homer-prone righty, with a big fastball and curveball that might play as a 13th member of a pitching staff. Those are successful late-round picks.
Grade: B: Toronto’s most important thing was grabbing a strong player in the draft with Matt Aceto. With Eric Walker, they got two starting-caliber players, and they generally didn’t lose value by rolling over picks. Almost all their other players are fringy, however, and they had a lot of extra picks to get more value. With what they had available, it was a very good, but not a great draft.
Washington Nationals:
First Round: (26) Billy Guerin—P—UNSIGNED
Supplemental Round: (7) Etienne Toet—P—Compensation for not signing Max Scherzer
Second Round: (26) Bob Gonzalez—P
Third Round: (34) Jonathan Barton—P—UNSIGNED
Best Player: Etienne Toet
Best Deep Cut: (11) Cody Bernard—CF
Total ML WAR: -0.3
Review: Washington drafted Billy Guerin the first round, didn’t sign him, and got a comp pick for it. Guerin wasn’t drafted and signed by another team until five seasons later, and while he may become a decent pitcher, he has lost a lot of development time. The comp pick got rolled over, and was forfeited to sign Gerrit Cole to a $3 million contract a season later. Cole helped the Nationals win 96 games in 2023, but only pitched for one year. His signing wasn’t a bad one, but wasn’t a great one.
A.J. Toet was picked up in the Supplemental Round after Washington let Scherzer go in Free Agency. Scherzer was essentially done and Washington got a free draft pick for not signing him. They grabbed Toet, and watched him turn into a Quad-A player. The next two players taken were Dan O’Rourke and Aaron Wallace, so Washington definitely picked the wrong guy. Still, getting anyone back for Scherzer was a win.
Bob Gonzalez was their second-round selection, a pitcher without much control or movement who has topped out in Triple-A. Jonathan Barton was their third rounder, and he was drafted a year later in the 29th round. Washington was wise to move on from him, and got Devon Armiger, a big-armed reliever, as compensation.
The Nationals didn’t sign their fourth and fifth rounders, making underwhelming Triple-A reliever Travis Snow, the only other player they selected in the first ten rounds who they signed and is still active
Grade: D: Washington walked away from the draft with a season of Gerrit Cole, a good arm in Devin Armiger, a mediocre arm in A.J. Toet, and nothing else. It’s not a whole lot with what they had to offer.
Total WAR From the class by team
Atlanta Braves 19.6
Toronto Blue Jays 15.1
San Francisco Giants 14
Detroit Tigers 13.2
Baltimore Orioles 11.8
Kansas City Royals 9.7
Cincinnati Reds 9
St. Louis Cardinals 8.5
Milwaukee Brewers 8.1
Texas Rangers 7.5
Boston Red Sox 6.1
Chicago White Sox 5.9
Colorado Rockies 5.3
San Diego Padres 3.9
New York Mets 2.9
Houston Astros 2.7
Minnesota Twins 2.7
Cleveland Indians 2
Philadelphia Phillies 1.9
Tampa Bay Rays 1.7
Chicago Cubs 1
Arizona Diamondbacks 0.7
Miami Marlins 0.3
Seattle Mariners 0.3
Los Angeles Angels 0
New York Yankees 0
Pittsburgh Pirates 0
Washington Nationals -0.3
Los Angeles Dodgers -0.5
Arizona Diamondbacks:
First Round: (10) Josh Aldag—P (Pick acquired from Kansas City for Juan Vega)
First Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Chris Archer
Second Round: (26) Trevor Jones—P
Third Round: (27) David Weikart—P
Third Round: (40) Chris Paramore—SS (Pick acquired along with fourth round pick [Chris Kirkpatrick] from Chicago Cubs for Trevor Oaks)
Best Player: Chris Paramore
Best Deep Cut: (11) Leo Guzman—SS
Total ML WAR: 0.7
Review: Arizona traded away Juan Vega, a good-looking power prospect who has had some PBA success with Pittsburgh, to acquire a pick that became Josh Aldag, a pitcher who has been replacement level at Triple-A. There weren’t many good pitchers taken towards the back of the first round, but not getting a PBA player with a first round pick is terrible. This was a disaster all around.
They lost their own first round pick to sign Chris Archer. Archer had three years with Arizona, two of them good ones, and he helped deliver them a championship. Flags Fly Forever.
Trevor Jones and David Weikart were Arizona’s second and third round picks. With a torn UCL, Jones will never pitch in the PBA, at least not effectively. Weikart has been a replacement level swingman for the Cubs.
Chicago picked up extra third and fourth round picks for offloading Trevor Oaks. The righty produced 0.3 WAR for the Cubs and never pitched in the PBA again. The picks turned into second division Shortstop Chris Paramore, and talented minor league pitcher Chris Kirkpatrick. While Kirkpatrick hasn’t done much himself, getting a starting position player in Paramore was a nice return for Oaks.
Arizona’s own fourth rounder was spent on Casey Shapland, a lefty who pitched in Double-A last year with minimal success. He looks like a Double-A arm gong forward. Arizona’s fifth rounder, Greg Malloy, isn’t anything to write home about either. Their sixth rounder, Carlos Reveles has hit well in the minors and is a solid defender at Catcher. He may be able to make it as a PBA backup.
Grade: D: Arizona made some nice pitching decisions, giving up on Oaks and getting something in return, and getting Archer to help with a title run. They also got a depth Catcher. Ultimately though, swapping Vega for a busted pick is such a disaster it weighs everything down.
Atlanta Braves:
First Round: (7) Inacio Manta—CF
First Round: (Pick received from Texas along with Second round pick (Mat Sowell*), Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, Kevin Flippo for Ozzie Albies) Pick forfeited as a result of signing Zach Davies.
Second Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Eduardo Rodriguez
Second Round: (22) *
Third Round: (6) Nate Sprague—C
Notes: Received a 6th rounder (Shohei Shibata) and Peter Lambert from Colorado for Jonathan Holder
Best Player: (5) Tony Sierra—CF
Best Deep Cut: (16) Francisco Burciaga—SS
Total ML WAR: 19.5
Review: The Braves have the most WAR from the class, despite not getting much out of a Top 10 pick, which is remarkable. Inacio Manta was their first rounder. He doesn’t have much defensive versatility in the outfield, lacks patience, and has a lot of swing and miss. He has enough extra base power to be fine, but he’s fairly fringy in an area of the draft where stars were drafted.
They picked up a pick that became Mat Sowell, Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, Kevin Flippo and a forfeited first rounder for Ozzie Albies. Sowell is a fringy two-way player, Ryder Green is a fringy Quad-A First Baseman, Luis Ramirez hasn’t developed quickly. He could be a starting Shortstop or a Triple-A infielder. Median outcome is a fringy infielder. Kevin Flippo has been a back-end starter. It’s decent depth, but Ozzie Albies has been a Hall of Famer in Texas.
The first rounder Atlanta got from Texas was forfeited when Atlanta signed Eduardo Rodriguez. E-Rod only spent one season in Atlanta after being sent out to Los Angeles in a trade, but his 5-year, $56 million contract worked out with three All-Star nods during the contract, well worth a second rounder.
Atlanta’s third rounder was used on Nate Sprague, a solid backup Catcher at a period where Catchers stopped producing value. Atlanta’s fourth rounder was C.J. Hoover, who has the most WAR of any fourth round pick and has been an All-Star.
Atlanta picked Tony Sierra in round five, which is the best pick in the draft. Sierra produced 7.8 WAR his first full year, with a .320 average, 39 homes, and 21 steals. He’ll be an MVP candidate for a long time as he’s only 24 years old.
The Braves got an extra sixth rounder plus Peter Lambert for Jonathan Holder. The pick turned into Shohei Shibata, a low-minors reliever, and Lambert has been a fringy swingman since the trade. Holder has been a more reliable arm with more success. The Braves slightly lost the trade.
Virtually every other player Atlanta drafted is still active, but is also a player with no chance of making it to the PBA. Tenth rounder John Wesley may be able to play as a fifth outfielder, but that’s all.
Grade: B+: It’s a complicated draft with wild successes, but also huge failures. The Albies trade and the Manta pick add up to an F, but Hoover, Sierra, and the Rodriguez signings are all As or A-plusses. The Braves get slight credit for so many of their players still active in the minors, but also lost the Holder-Lambert swap. Getting the high-end talent they did outweighs missing in the first round, but the Braves could have had a better draft than they did.
Baltimore Orioles:
First Round: (2) Justin Townes—CF
First Round: (23) Vinny Escudero—CF (Pick acquired along with second rounder (Brian Mach*), third rounder (Chris Schoepflin*), Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing from Chicago Cubs for Manny Machado
Second Round: *
Second Round: (2) Pick traded to Milwaukee for Chad Woods. Pick became Wing-Fung Qu
Third Round: *
Third Round: (2) Carlos A. Cortes—2B
Notes: Received a 7th rounder (Eric Davis) from Kansas City for Alec Asher
Best Player: Vinny Escudero
Best Deep Cut: (16) Ryan Waters—2B
Total ML WAR: 11.7
Review: Baltimore selected Justin Townes second overall, which looks like a massive mistake. Townes runs well, fields well, and has good power for a center fielder, but he doesn’t have an approach that leads to successful offense. Baltimore could have had a few superstars, including Roderick Dalton, and walked away with a second division starter.
The Orioles next pick was acquired when they picked up Chicago’s first rounder, Seattle’s second and third rounders, Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing for Manny Machado. Machado has been spectacular, but Baltimore did get good players. Floyd’s been a strong hitter for a Second Baseman, but an awful defender. Still, he’s won two Platinum Stick awards in his career. Eric Dusing has been a fine relief arm. The picks turned into Vinny Escudero, an All-Star; Chris Schoepflin, a Second Base prospect who has crushed Triple-A; and Brian Mach, a replacement level Left Fielder. That’s still probably not a haul that equals Manny Machado’s value, but it’s a very reasonable return.
The Orioles traded away their own second rounder to Milwaukee for Chad Woods. Woods looks like a player that can start at Second Base. The pick became Wing-Fung Qu, who has already retired. The trade looks like a terrific decision.
Baltimore’s third round pick was spent on Carlos A. Cortes, who looks like he’s topped out as a Triple-A Second Baseman. They picked outfielder Jonathan DiGiovanni in round four, and with good bat-to-ball skills and a big arm, he looks like a future PBA backup. Fifth round pitcher Luis Colon dominated Triple-A last year and can likely hold his own in the PBA.
Sixth round selection Chris Foster has struggled as a starting pitcher for Baltimore, but with three plus pitches, he’s thrived in relief for them. Seventh round pick Rafael Alonzo has also thrived in relief, with a 3.94 career ERA, and a 3.27 mark last year. The Orioles traded Alec Asher for an additional seventh rounder, but though Asher only pitched in 21 more career innings, the pick was used on career minor leaguer Eric Davis.
Baltimore continued to nail depth pieces in the ninth round. Jeff Potter has struggled in the minors and only has two reliable pitches, but his stuff should play up if he moves to the pen, and he projects to have adequate control and movement with his triple-digit fastball. Even 16th rounder Ryan Waters has a shot at a PBA career. The Second Baseman runs well, makes contact, and can hold his own on defense.
Grade: B+: While Baltimore traded Manny Machado, the depth they received from the class is fantastic. Most of Baltimore’s mid-round selections have a chance at a career, and very few players have retired already. The main drawback is the chance at a star that they failed to get with their first pick. If Townes turns into Roderick Dalton—or even Matt Aceto, it’s a perfect draft.
Boston Red Sox:
First Round: (8) Joel McCabe—SS
Supplemental Round: (1) Bobby Mendez—P—Compensation for not signing Javier Baez
Supplemental Round: (2) Chris Barrientos—CF—Compensation for not signing Zack Greinke
Second Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Max Scherzer
Third Round: (7) Zion Alexander—SS
Best Player: Joel McCabe
Best Deep Cut: (11) Ryan Proctor—SS
Total ML WAR: 6.0
Review: Joel McCabe was picked eighth overall as a very raw Shortstop with big upside. He hasn’t reached the majors yet, but was the number 17 prospect entering 2027. He eventually will move off of Shortstop, but the 6-5 McCabe has big power from the middle infield, a good approach, and he should become one of the best offensive infielders in the league. Other good players were selected after him, but Boston deserves credit for not screwing up the pick.
The rebuilding Red Sox let Javier Baez and Zack Greinke walk in Free Agency, which was the right decision. Baez had a solid post-Boston career in Cleveland, and Greinke fell apart in Houston. Boston used the comp pick for Baez on Bobby Mendez, a top-flight reliever. They used the comp pick from Greinke on Chris Barrientos, a mid-minors Center Fielder. Switching from Baez to Mendez is probably a B- decision, with the savings from the Greinke decision, also a B- move as well.
Boston signed Max Scherzer, a curious decision resulting in a lost second round pick. Scherzer went 16-40 over three seasons in Boston, and was cut before his final year. Considering how Boston was rebuilding, that was an exceptionally dumb move.
They picked Zion Alexander in the third round, a fringy utility player without the bat to play above the mid-minors. All but one of their picks from rounds four-eight have retired, and seventh rounder Chris Petrie, probably should too.
Boston made a great pick with their ninth rounder, grabbing Andy DeShaw. The power arm has a great changeup and splitter that he’s used to rack up close to 200 strikeouts a season the past two years. He’s an excellent find in the ninth round.
Boston also gets credit for Ryan Proctor, a pitcher grabbed in the 11th round. He gets good movement on his fastball resulting in ground balls, and his offspeed pitches can put hitters away. He’s still wild, but if he can harness his mechanics, he should be able to hold up as a plus arm. Scouts like his potential.
Grade: B+: Boston ended up with a top prospect from the draft, a very good starting pitcher, an excellent reliever, and a probable successful starter should Proctor pan out. That’s enough to make it a successful draft. There were some befuddling decisions thrown in, a lack of upper minors depth, and they may have done better with their Supplemental picks. Those hit the Red Sox at the margins, but they should still be satisfied with the work they did.
Chicago White Sox:
First Round: (1) Pat French—P (Pick acquired from Kansas City for 1st Rounder (Roger Airhart*), 2nd Rounder (Ted Wilson*), Jorge Vargas, and Jadon Ancrum
First Round: (28) *
Supplemental Round: (12) Jeremy Myers—P—Compensation for not signing Eduardo Rodriguez
Second Round: *
Third Round: (37) Terrance Roberts—SS
Third Round: (39) Ed Gallego—P—Compensation for not signing Bob Kaiser.
Notes: Received Raymelis Rosa and Xavier Cedeno from Colorado for a 24th round pick
Best Player: Pat French
Best Deep Cut: (11) Mike Darling—SS
Total ML WAR: 5.8
Review: Chicago acquired the first overall pick in one of the more disastrous trades in PBA history. They moved Jorge Vargas and Jadon Ancrum, each already a two-time All-Star, plus picks that became Roger Airhart, a good-looking pitching prospect, and Ted Wilson, a failed prospect. With that kind talent being offloaded, they needed a hall-of-fame caliber player first overall to justify the move. They selected Pat French, a pitcher with ace-upside who hasn’t shown anything close to it early in his career. Even if they selected Roderick Dalton, it would be hard to justify the move.
They didn’t sign Eduardo Rodriguez, letting the lefty walk during Free Agency despite Chicago still being a contender and Rodriguez still being a quality arm. Rodriguez would go on to make two All-Star teams after leaving Chicago. The Supplemental pick they received became Jeremy Myers, a quality arm with upside, but one who wasn’t able to keep Chicago’s championship window open the way Rodriguez may have.
Terrance Roberts was Chicago’s third round selection. He has a glove that only plays at Second Base, no speed, and no power. His ability to make contact is fantastic and allows him to play in the upper minors, but Chris Paramore may have been a better pick. They picked up Ed Gallego with a comp pick for not signing Bob Kaiser the year prior. Gallegos is a pitcher who has already retired, while Kaiser has a slim chance of making the show as a Second Baseman.
Chicago’s fourth rounder, Nick East, is a pitcher who has already retired. Their fifth rounder, Tyler Dettlinger, won’t play above Double A. Their sixth rounder, Ed Russell, is a good defender with enough speed and enough of a bat to be a PBA backup. None of their later picks were of note, though they did take on Xavier Cedeno’s dead salary to acquire Raymelis Rosa, a reliever, from Colorado. Rosa had a 3.64 career ERA in 263 Games.
Grade: F: Chicago essentially gave up on three All-Stars as a result of the draft, plus a quality arm and a Second Base prospect with a prayer. They obtained a pair of high variance pitchers, a backup middle infielder, and a good reliever. That’s an awful swap that has contributed to Chicago’s malaise the last few years.
Chicago Cubs:
First Round: (23) Pick traded to Baltimore along with Mike Floyd, Eric Dusing, Seattle’s second rounder (Brian Mach*) and Seattle’s third rounder (Chris Schoepflin*) for Manny Machado. Pick became Vinny Escudero
Second Round: *—Pick acquired along with third round pick, Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing from Seattle for Chris Sale
Second Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Steven Matz
Third Round: *
Third Round: (40) Pick traded along with fourth round pick (Chris Kirkpatrick) to Arizona for Trevor Oaks. Pick became Chris Paramore
Best Player: (12) David Janes—P
Best Deep Cut: David Janes
Total ML WAR: 1.0 WAR
Review: The Cubs laundered Seattle’s second and third rounders, Mike Floyd, and Eric Dusing, routing them to Baltimore along with Chicago’s first rounder to turn Chris Sale into Manny Machado. Sale had one spectacular year in Chicago, but fell apart quickly. Machado, meanwhile, has been spectacular since the trade, one of the best Third Baseman in a league deep with sensational Third Basemen. They lost out on Vinny Escudero, who has been a good talent, but getting Machado was still worth Escudero and Sale.
The Cubs lost their second rounder to sign Steven Matz. The lefty was very good in Chicago—well worth a second-round pick—and continued a fine career with the Dodgers.
Chicago traded their third and fourth rounders to Arizona for Trevor Oaks. The picks became Chris Kirkpatrick and Chris Paramore. Paramore looks like a good second-division Shortstop and Kirkpatrick, a Triple-A arm. Oaks had one replacement level year with the Cubs. Keeping Paramore and Kirkpatrick would have been the right play.
Chicago traded or signed away most of their draft picks. Eighth rounder Morten Harris has been fine in Triple-A, but likely isn’t a PBA pitcher. David Janes, their 12th rounder, looks like a decent prospect. His fastball and changeup make him a lights out reliever at worst, and he has enough of a changeup to make it as a mid-level starter most likely.
Grade: A-: Chicago used its resources to obtain Manny Machado and Steven Matz, which is a very successful use of draft picks. Picking up David Janes late in the draft is also a success. They didn’t get much depth, and should have held on to Chris Paramore, knocking the grade down a touch.
Cincinnati Reds:
First Round: (16) Josh Jones—P
Second Round: (4) Pablo Montiel—P—Compensation for not signing Arturo Rivera
Second Round: (12) Tim Johnson—P
Third Round: (14) John Davis—P—Compensation for not signing Chris Schoepflin
Third Round: (15) Pick traded along with Matt Andriese to New York Mets for Paul DeJong, Dalton Ewing, and Nate Pearson. Pick became Brian McCammack
Best Player: Tim Johnson
Best Deep Cut: (22) Doug Dombrowski—P
Total ML WAR: 9.1
Review: Cincinnati got three excellent starting pitchers in the draft, though they missed with their initial attempt at one. They picked Josh Jones 16th overall and the man nicknamed “Crusher” immediately crushed Cincinnati’s hopes with numerous arm injuries. He hasn’t pitched above High-A and his career is hanging by a thread.
The Reds didn’t sign Arturo Rivera in 2021, which was a mistake as Rivera has blossomed into a first division starter. They rectified their mistake by drafting Pablo Montiel, a Top 50 prospect. Ape Montiel has huge stuff, with a triple-digit fastball, an excellent curveball, and a strong splitter, plus a developing changeup. He should be a top arm for a number of years.
Cincinnati used their own second rounder on Tim Johnson, a power arm who keeps the ball in the park, developing into an excellent mid-rotation arm with San Francisco. He’s already produced 6.2 WAR his first two seasons and looks poised to build on his success moving forward.
The Reds had an extra third rounder as a result of not signing Chris Schoepflin the year prior. The middle infielder has hit well in Colorado Springs for Milwaukee’s Triple-A team and has enough of a bat to be on the PBA radar. The Reds used their comp pick on Eagle Eye John Davis, who will never pitch above A-ball. They should have signed Schoepflin.
With an extra pick, they traded the pick that became Brian McCammack and Matt Andriese for Paul DeJong, Dalton Ewing, and Nate Pearson. Andriese has a couple more good seasons, though McCammack has already retired. Cincinnati got a bad single year of Nate Pearson, a bad first year out of Paul DeJong, and a good second year out of DeJong. They probably should have help on to Andriese, though both they and the Mets got similar value.
The Reds didn’t get too much out of the rest of their draft, but they did draft Doug Dombrowski in the 22nd round. Dombrowski went 11-11 last year with a 4.16 ERA as a 23-year-old rookie. Dombrowski gets good movement out of his cutter/splitter combination, and should be a mid-rotation arm for years to come.
Grade: B+: The Reds got three starting pitchers out of the draft, and can be argued to have won the Paul DeJong trade. They didn’t get a ton of depth and missed with some decisions, but they still walked away with a good amount of quality.
Cleveland Indians:
First Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Javier Baez
Supplemental Round: (4) David Bollman—CF—Compensation for not signing Corey Kluber—UNSIGNED
Supplemental Round: (5) Brian Hyslop—P—Compensation for not signing Addison Russell—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (20) Matt Howell—P—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (25) Roland Lemon—P—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (8) John Kinser—P
Best Deep Cut: (22) Angel Vasquez—P
Total ML WAR: 1.9
Review: Cleveland’s GM David Springgay ghosted during the season, leading to a bizarre draft. He signed Javier Baez to a contract, allowing Addison Russell to leave a free agency for a comp pick. Russell has been more effective than Baez, with potential gains limited in 2027 for Russell due to vesting option concerns. Russell also cost far more than Baez, but had an early out clause. Cleveland had some financial issues in 2022, but ostensibly was still a contender. Keeping Russell and a first round pick likely would have been the better move, but it’s defensible to go with Baez and a supplemental option.
Cleveland, however, didn’t sign its Supplemental option, Brian Hyslop, getting Brian Wright in the next year’s draft with the comp pick. Wright was a decent reliever in the minors, but didn’t have much upside. Hyslop looks like a future major leaguer.
Cleveland also let Corey Kluber walk in Free Agency and Kluber won the Cy Young Award the next year and had a stellar career for the Dodgers. Cleveland let him go to draft and not sign David Bollman, a nice-looking Left Fielder currently in the Dodgers system. Instead, Cleveland rolled the pick and drafted Kevin Austin, a slick-gloved, big swinged Shortstop with contact issues. Austin’s not the worst defensive replacement/platoon Shortstop, but he’s not Corey Kluber.
They drafted Matt Howell with their second round pick and didn’t sign him. Howell looks like a Quad-A arm, so maybe letting him go unsigned wasn’t too bad, but the rolled over pick turned into Jamie Carroll, who looks like a perennial Double-A arm. Roland Lemon was unsigned in the third round and flashed as a Top 100 Prospect with the Rockies, but he hasn’t put things together. The rolled over pick turned into Phil Anderson, and he never flashed as anything before retiring.
Cleveland did get some talent in the sixth and eighth round. Adam Langford, their sixth rounder, struggled in 2026, but pitched to a 1.75 ERA out of the pen in 2027 and looks like a possible bullpen member. Their eighth rounder John Kinser has a great Cutter. Nicknamed John the Terrible, he Saved 19 Games and had 2.2 WAR in 2027.
He’s pitching overseas now, but their 16th rounder, Ezra Doney, was a nice pick. He struggled a few years before putting things together with a 2.76 ERA in High-A in 2025, and put himself on the radar as a possible future starter. He ended up in Korea last year where he kept the ball in the park and put up 1.7 WAR with 134 strikeouts in 115 innings.
Their 22nd rounder, Angel Vasquez, has a shot to make the majors with the Cardinals. He has great arm action on his changeup and forkball, plus a good curve. He holds runners and because he doesn’t tax his arm with 90 mph stuff, he can work deep into games. Homers are a problem, but for a 22nd rounder, he looks like a steal.
Grade: D: Cleveland’s Baez and Russell decisions, plus the decision to roll the Russell compensation pick over nets a D in aggregate. Cleveland saved a little bit of money but didn’t end up with a good return, and Baez didn’t help them contend. Letting Kluber go is likely a D, salvaged only by Kevin Austin having some upside from the 2023 draft and by Cleveland having financial issues. They didn’t get anything out of most of their mid round picks, though they got some relief options out of their sixth, eighth, and 22nd rounders.
Colorado Rockies:
First Round: (19) Dave Serrano—P
Second Round: (18) Bill Estrada—P
Third Round: (22) Felix Madrigal—P
Notes: Traded away a 6th rounder (Shohei Shibata) and Peter Lambert to Atlanta for Jonathan Holder
Traded away Raymelis Rosa and Xavier Cedeno to Chicago White Sox for 24th round pick
Best Player: (18) Keith Nield—P
Best Deep Cut: (18) Keith Nield
Total ML WAR: 5.4
Review: First round selection Dave Serrano had the makings of a future big league starter coming out of the University of Florida. Unfortunately, a ruptured UCL in 2023 sapped him of all of that potential, and he has yet to make it past A+ at 25 years old. RF Bill Estrada was selected in the second round, but has faired even worse than Serrano, spending his first six seasons in rookie ball before finally being promoted to A- in 2027.
P/OF Felix Madrigal was taken in the third round and has had a cup of coffee in the big leagues. He's has an interesting skill set in that he can pitch and potentially be a middle of the road leadoff hitter against RHP. But somehow he can hit 96 on the radar gun, but cannot throw the ball back into the infield from the warning track, making it difficult to find a place for him on the field. He looks to be maxed out as a AAAA player that could be a big league roster filler.
Despite a fairly disasterous first three picks, the Rockies did salvage the draft somewhat in the 18th round, with the selection of Keith Nield. Nield has blossomed into a regular in the Rockies rotation over the last three seasons, posting a 2+ WAR each of the last two seasons. Scouts think that his electric stuff could make him a strong middle rotation arm in the big leagues if he can ever get away from Coors Field.
Even the trades leave much to be desired. It could be argued Lambert outperformed Holder following the trade involving the 6th, and Raymelis Rosa has developed into a decent reliever for Chicago in what appears to have been a salary dump of Cedeno's contract.
Grade: D: Overall, it was not a great draft for the Colorado organization. Scoring Nield in the 18th was nice, but even with him, there's no proof yet that he's anything better than an average starting pitcher.
Detroit Tigers:
First Round: (3) Roderick Dalton—1B
Second Round: (3) Danny Garza—P
Third Round: (3) Mike Farrar—P
Best Player: Roderick Dalton
Best Deep Cut: (16) Tao Fou
Total ML WAR: 13.2
Review: Detroit got an offensive superstar in the first round. Dalton is one of the youngest players in the draft and is already second in WAR from the class. He produced an 8.4 WAR season where he led the league in average, OBP, slugging percentage, and OPS. Tony Sierra will have something to say, but Dalton is the favorite to produce the most WAR from the class.
They picked up a decent swingman in Danny Garza in the second round. Garza’s shown regular season success with the Tigers in 2025, and has done very well in Triple-A. Mike Farrar is a swingman taken in the third round, but Farrar looks like he’ll top out in Triple-A and there are better players picked in the third round after Farrar.
Jamie Harrington is a good looking youngster picked in the fourth round. He doesn’t have great stuff, so he’s had to rely on throwing strikes and being wily, which he’s still learning how to do as he’s only 24. If Harrington’s slider comes along, he’s a solid back end starter, and if he doesn’t, he looks like a dependable reliever.
Neil Mallison hasn’t reached the majors yet and has struggled in Triple-A. He’s a good defensive outfielder though, who makes contact and puts the bat on the ball. There’s fifth-outfielder potential there.
The Tigers didn’t get much out of any player after the fifth round.
Grade: A: Detroit got a star with their first pick, a good looking arm with Harrington in the fourth round, and a decent piece in Garza in round two. Dalton wasn’t a complete automatic—two teams passed on him—and Detroit got enough depth to give the grade an easy A.
Houston Astros:
First Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Anthony Rizzo
Second Round: Pick acquired from Tampa Bay along with Wyatt Cross, Leonardo Sanchez and Rodolfo Sanchez from Tampa Bay for Jose Altuve. Pick forfeited as a result of signing Zach Greinke
Second Round: (28) Pick traded along with fourth rounder (Ricardo Ponce) to San Francisco for Melvin Adon. Pick became Willie Roldan.
Second Round: (30) Joe Dyck—P (Pick acquired from Tampa Bay for Christian Yelich)
Third Round: (13) Cesar Cortes—P
Third Round: (33) Jerrod Rodgers—P Pick acquired with Will Coronado, Jorge Cotto, Jared Jackson, Alfredo Contreras, Michell Miliano, and Cole Hamels from Texas for Carlos Correa.
Best Player: Joe Dyck
Best Deep Cut: (12) Jerry Castillo—CF
Total ML WAR: 2.7
Review: Houston was very active with the 2022 draft. They gave up their first rounder to sign Anthony Rizzo. Rizzo was given a 2-year, $24 million value contract, had a huge 2022 where he earned an All-Star nod, and struggled in 2023 before moving on. Houston lost 104 games in 2022, and went 84-78 in 2023. Would a pick in the middle of the first round be better than 6 WAR at $4 million-per WAR for one awful season and one good season?
Houston then took on a ransom from Tampa Bay for Jose Altuve. Altuve was sub-replacement for Tampa Bay, and Houston got a starting Catcher in Wyatt Cross. They also got Leonardo Sanchez, and Rodolfo Sanchez, but neither made a difference for Houston. The Astros got a draft pick they eventually forfeited to sign Zach Greinke for 248 underwhelming innings over four seasons of a 10-year contract he walked away from four seasons in.
They lost their own second rounder along with a fourth rounder to acquire Melvin Adon. The righty had a solid three-year career with the Astros. The draft picks became Ricardo Ponce and Willie Rodan. Ponce looks like a slick-gloved utility infielder, while Rodan looks like a Triple-A starting pitcher. They probably won that deal.
Not wanting to be out a Second Rounder, they traded Christian Yelich to Tampa Bay for another Astros’ Second Rounder. Yelich had a very good single season for Tampa Bay, but the Astros lost 100 games that year. Instead, Houston got a very good reliever in the draft in Joe Dyck.
They used their own third rounder to draft Cesar Cortes, a fringy swingman who has struggled in Triple-A.
They got an extra third-rounder in the Carlos Correa deal. They lost the All-Star infielder to Texas, but picked up the pick that would become Jerrod Rogers, plus Will Coronado, Jorge Cotto, Jared Jackson, Alfredo Contreras, Michell Miliano, and the corpse of Cole Hamels. Rodgers looks like a good-looking reliever, while Cotto developed into a star that led the AL in Wins in 2026. Coronado got hurt and never amounted to anything, but Contreras has been fine as a fifth starter, Jackson has been exactly replacement level in a six-season pitching career, and Miliano has been a very effective reliever for five seasons in Milwaukee. Eating $14.5 in dead money in Hamel’s contract hurt, and likely neutralizes the depth Houston received in the deal.
Houston didn’t sign its fourth or fifth rounders, and their later picks don’t have a prayer of pitching in the PBA.
Grade: B-: The Rizzo sign is probably a C. Moving on from Altuve to get an All-Star in Cross, while tying up their books with Greinke is a B. Trading for Adon is a B. Trading Yelich for Dyck is a C. The Cortes pick is a C. Getting Cotto and a slew of relievers for a superstar in Correa is probably a C. Not having anything at all really after the third round is an F, but is the least relevant part of their draft. In a relatively weak draft, Houston made a lot of splashy moves that ultimately worked out—fine. That nets them a B-.
Kansas City Royals:
First Round: (1) Pick acquired along with Ken Stockwell, Blake Hunt, Joey Wentz, and C.J. Hinojosa from Seattle for Luis Arraez, Jeifry Nunez, Mitch Nay, and Hayato Sakamoto. Pick then traded to Chicago White Sox for First Rounder (Roger Airhart*), Second Rounder (Ted Wilson*), Jorge Vargas and Jadon Ancrum. Pick became Pat French
First Round: (10) Pick traded to Arizona for Juan Vega. Pick became Josh Aldag.
First Round: (28) *
Second Round: (8) Tomito Kawamoto—P
Second Round: (13) Pick acquired along with Jake Lamb and Manuel Margot from San Diego for Stevan Duggar. Pick then traded along with third rounder (Javier Guerra*), Jake Lamb, and Mike Osborn to San Francisco for Anderson A. Tejada. Pick became Arturo Rivera.
Second Round: (29) *—Unsigned
Third Round: (9) Todd Buonadonna—P—Unsigned
Third Round: (16) * Pick acquired along with Michael Reed and Dylan Cozens from San Diego for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 million in cash. Pick became Javier Guerra.
Third Round: (30) Larry Price—P (Pick acquired with Marino Campana from Oakland for Reyes Moronta and Jeter Downs)
Notes: Traded away a 7th rounder (Eric Davis) to Baltimore for Alec Asher
Best Player: (5) Jonathan Bakos—LF
Best Deep Cut: (16) Jimmy Williams—CF
Total ML WAR: 9.7
Review: It’s complicated to grade Kansas City’s draft because so many of their moves are tied in up relationships with other picks that were both acquired and traded away. Some selections may need to be grouped with other picks for simplicity. For example, the first overall pick:
Kansas City both acquired and traded away the first pick in the draft. First, they gave up Jeifry Nunez, a future All-Star, to Seattle along with fringe players Mitch Nay dead contract Hayato Sakamoto. They picked up future All-Star Blake Hunt, a strong starter in Joey Wentz, a decent fringe backup infielder in C.J. Hinojosa, and a decent fringe swingman in Ken Stockwell. The trade alone leans towards the Royals winning the trade even before considering the selection that became Pat French.
Kansas City then turned around and traded the number one pick to Chicago for Jorge Vargas, Jadon Ancrum, plus picks that became Roger Airhart, and Ted Wilson. That piece of arbitrage netted the Royals two future AL MVP runner ups, a strong pitcher and playoff hero—albeit for Los Angeles—a strong pitcher prospect, an All-Star Catcher, and a couple of decent depth pieces. The Royals also got off a dead eight-figure contract, and all they gave up of value was one-time All-Star Jeifry Nunez, and the enigma, French. There’s still a universe where French develops into a Cy Young candidate, but the value Kansas City still gets from the series of deals still weighs heavily in their favor, and if French doesn’t hit his 90th percentile outcome, Kansas City laps the field with the superstars they acquired. Just a fantastic job of asset manipulation, and that’s just with their first pick they were involved with.
They had their own first round pick that they then swapped to Arizona for Juan Vega. The pick became Josh Aldag, who is a busted pick. Vega has a .794 career OPS and a 30-homer season under his belt before the age of 25. He’s an awful defender, which limits him to DH, and makes an interesting question as to whether he’s worth the 10th overall pick in the draft. A less interesting question is whether he’s better than Josh Aldag, which is a resounding yes.
The Royals didn’t do anything fancy with their own second rounder, simply choosing to keep it and select Tomito Kawamoto. The Japanese-born pitcher who somehow ended up at HBCU Bethune Cookman has turned into an All-Star after another Royals trade with Seattle. Tim Johnson would have been an interesting pitcher pick as well, but Kansas City definitely made a solid selection.
Daniel Kent was back on his bullshit with his other second rounder. He scooped up a second-round pick from the Padres, along with Manuel Margot, and mostly dead contract Jake Lamb, in exchange for Steven Duggar. He also picked up a third rounder from the Padres with Michael Reed and Dylan Cozens for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 million in cash. The Royals then packaged the Padres second and third rounders and Lamb with Mike Osborn to San Francisco for Anderson A. Tejada. The picks became Arturo Rivera and Javier Guerra.
To simplify, the Royals netted out with Manny Margot, Michael Reed, Dylan Cozens, and Anderson A. Tejada for Steven Duggar, Rogelio Herrera, Mike Osborn, and $1.4 million. Lamb and picks that became Arturo Rivera and Javier Guerra were used as catalysts in the deal.
None of the players actually gained or lost became significant players. Reed was immediately cut and never again played in the PBA. Cozens never played in the PBA again either. Margot was awful the rest of 2022 for Kansas City, but had a nice defensive run the next year before being traded to the Yankees. Tejada was traded twice in four months following the deal and became a serviceable, if overstretched, second division infielder. Not too much of value.
The Royals sent away Duggar, who had a nice 2022 in Seattle before becoming a second division outfielder, and Herrera and Osborn were career minor leaguers, before a nice stint in the Meridian League for Osborne. The $1.4 million may have been the most valuable commodity lost or gained, and Rivera was easily the best player that ended up in any of the deals. Kansas City lost the series of trades, but aside from Rivera, the aspects gained or lost are pretty negligible.
Kansas City’s own third rounder was used to make a selection, and they picked up Todd Buonadonna, an elite reliever that they failed to sign. The comp pick turned into Ted Wilson, a player The Royals drafted in the second round and failed to sign. They should have learned their lesson and not drafted him again, as he’s a career minor leaguer and Buonadonna is a tremendous bullpen weapon.
The Royals picked up an extra third rounder, plus Marino Campana for Reyes Moronta and Jeter Downs. The pick was used on Larry Price, who had a roller coaster rookie year, but projects to be a late inning weapon, plus Campana, who bashed lefties for the early part of the decade for the Royals. They gave up Downs, a good starting infielder, and Moronta a decent reliever. Kansas City also probably lost that trade by a small margin.
Kansas City’s fourth rounder was used on Waylon Linkletter, a mid-minors arm, but their fifth rounder was used on Jonathan Bakos, an outstanding pick and a playoff hero. Bakos has a good bat, outstanding doubles power, and he can both run and field well. A fan favorite, he was an outstanding pick.
Kansas City’s sixth rounder was used on reliever Jim Pennington, who has carved up the mid minors and deserves a trip to Triple-A Omaha. He has a good enough cutter and great intangibles that have him on the PBA radar.
The Royals traded their seventh rounder to Baltimore for Alec Asher. The pick turned into career minor leaguer Eric Davis, while Asher pitched 7 good innings of two-run ball for the Royals. Those were 7 more innings than Davis played in, so a successful trade.
Kansas City’s eighth rounder turned into Ryan Hutchinson, another arm that has dominated the mid minors and needs a promotion to Triple-A. He doesn’t quite have the stuff or command to be on the PBA radar, but a solid upper minors arm is good for the eighth round.
16th rounder Jimmy Williams deserves mention. He can play all three outfield spots, runs well, and has a good approach. There’s no power to speak of, but he may have enough of a bat to warrant being a last man on a roster some day. 18th rounder Oscar Mota is similar in that he has an adequate bat and approach, no power, but can hold his own at a premium position, in this case Shortstop. Mota doesn’t have speed, which will likely keep him in Triple-A.
Grade: A+: Kansas City lost some trades by small margins, and they should have signed Buonadonna, but they also got so much value out of their moves involving the first overall pick. They then supplemented that value with stars in Kawamoto and Bakos, and got some decent depth. It’s between them and Texas with who had the better draft, with Texas’ fleecing in the Albies deal giving the Royals a well-deserved Silver.
Los Angeles Angels:
First Round: (4) Kelyn Klatenburger—RF—UNSIGNED
First Round: (13) Mark Storr—1B—Compensation for not signing Sergio Ramirez—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (5) Dave Withrow—3B—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (17) Bobby McConnel—P—Compensation for not signing Juan Orozco—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (4) Mike Mendez—P—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (20) Kyle Ramey—P—Compensation for not signing Jeff Watase—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (9) Matt McMahan
Best Deep Cut: (12) Miguel Acosta—C
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: This draft was conducted in the middle of a run where the Angels almost never signed their early picks. The compensation picks were rolled so far, direct comparisons are almost fruitless because it would take forever for any of the rolled over picks to actually be used. Ultimately, looking at Angels drafts after 2022, there are few players they’ve selected this decade who have any chance of being impact players until the 2027 draft.
The Angels could have had an impact player in superstar Kelyn Klattenburger when he was drafted fourth overall, but they didn’t sign him. Mark Storr looks like a future slugger as well. Incidentally, both Angels unsigned first rounders eventually ended up with the Giants. The Angels could have had a pair of sluggers and ended up with nothing.
Dave Withrow was an unsigned second round Third Baseman who also ended up with San Francisco, but he was cut and is now in the Mexican League. Bobby McConnel, however, looks like a decent middle relief prospect that Los Angeles punted on. Third rounder Mike Mendez has already retired, but Kyle Ramey is still pitching in the minors with the hopes of being a future swingman.
Los Angeles ended up with none of these players, and nobody of note overall aside from Miguel Acosta, a replacement level backup Catcher who has been the only player from the Angels class to make the PBA thus far. Ninth rounder Matt McMahan also has a chance as a reliever with good stuff, but his lack of control may keep him in the minors permanently.
Grade: F: There were good players throughout the draft—Los Angeles even selected some of them—but the net result was a third string catcher and maybe an eighth reliever. This period of failed drafts is a major reason why the Angels have been unable to escape the basement.
Los Angeles Dodgers:
First Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Corey Kluber
First Round: (24) Jayden Howell—RF—Compensation for not signing Jon Todd
Supplemental Round: (14) Dale Messina—P—Compensation for not signing Ben Sweitzer
Supplemental Round: (15) John Thacker—P—Compensation for not signing Jamie Ison
Second Round: (23) John Woodard—LF
Third Round: (28) Antonio Zamora—P
Third Round: (38) Jonathan Roman—P—Compensation for not signing Raheem Owusu
Best Player: Dale Messina
Best Deep Cut: (30) Brian Blair—P
Total ML WAR: -0.5
Review: The Dodgers forfeited their first round pick to sign Corey Kluber, who won a Cy Young with the Dodgers, produced 16.1 WAR, made the World Series three times and won two titles with LA. Injuries hampered the end of his career, but he was dynamite early in his LA tenure, and well worth a late first round pick. They still had a first rounder as a comp pick for not signing Jon Todd the year prior, which they used on Jayden Howell. Todd is a replacement level reliever currently with Minnesota, while Howell is a speedster who might have enough batting average to make it as a second division starter. He’s better than Todd, and the best outfielder taken at his point in the draft until the fifth round.
The Dodgers didn’t sign compensation picks Ben Sweitzer or Jamir Ison in 2021, getting Dale Messina and John Thacker as compensation picks. Sweitzer has retired, while Ison finally made the majors last year as a replacement level 30-year-old relief arm. The Dodgers got Dale Messina, a future ace, and John Thacker, also a replacement level reliever, but younger than Ison.
The Dodgers’ own second rounder was used on John Woodard during a dead zone for outfielder’s during the draft. Woodard doesn’t have much patience or defense, but he has a strong bat with good power. Considering how rough outfielders are until the first round, he’s a good selection.
Los Angeles plucked Antonio Zamora in the third round, a Triple-A caliber arm, still young enough to have a slim chance at the PBA. They also got a comp pick for not signing Raheem Owusu, a good reliever from the 2021 draft, and used it on Jonathan Roman, a fringy reliever. Owusu is the clearly better pitcher.
The Dodgers selected Mike Sturrock in the fourth round, a reliever without the command or stuff to pitch above Double-A effectively. The Dodgers didn’t pick another guy they signed who is still active until Omar Alvarez in the ninth round. The Mexican native gets good bite on his sinker and pitches with good craft, but his lack of a real out pitch and plane of his sinker results in too many homers for the PBA. He’s been effective in Triple-A Oklahoma City though, and may play up as a relief arm.
The Dodgers also got a good arm with their 30th rounder. Drafted and almost immediately cut, Brian Blair caught on with Fukuoka Softbank in the Nippon League, pitching in their minors from 2023 until a cup of coffee with the major league club for three games this year. He has three different fastballs, a great circle changeup, and he throws strikes. If he ever came back stateside, he’s be in the majors.
Grade: A-: The Dodgers got two aces in Kluber and Messina, plus Howell and Woodard look like future pros. Thacker, Zamora, Roman, and Sturrock are fringy, but there’s strength in numbers. Blair left the organization immediately, but was clearly a good pick. All-in-all, a solid draft.
Miami Marlins:
First Round: (11) Sergio Ochoa—P
Second Round: (9) Nick Tincher—P
Third Round: (10) Josh Fitzpatrick—P
Best Player: Sergio Ochoa
Best Deep Cut: (16) Adam Taylor—RF
Total ML WAR: 0.4
Review: Ochoa had huge potential when taken by Miami. Previously, he went 1:1 to Boston in 2019, then spent three seasons at Georgia Tech. His stuff has developed, but his mechanics are awful and he’s never been able to pitch up to his stuff. He’s wild on the mound, and 2027 was his worst year yet. It feels like he’s going in the wrong direction. There are better relievers taken after him, and Matt Aceto has turned to a star picked only four spots later. Ochoa still is young enough and still has the stuff to dream upon, but time is running out.
Nick Tincher was taken in the second round and could be an okay reliever. He has big stuff out of the pen at least. Tim Johnson is the only good arm taken immediately after Tincher, though Arturo Rivera was four spots later.
Josh Fitzpatrick was one of the better picks of Round 3. He also has a big arm, but gets good sink with his two-seamer, and has a good slider with downward plane. He had a 3.05 ERA for Atlanta last year.
Their fourth rounder, Wilson Infante, has bounced around the Dodgers low minors after a 2023 trade. He has good stuff and good movement and can maybe end up as a relief arm. He also has good offensive tools, though he’s never put things together in the minors. There’s still hope his bat will play, though it’s unsure at what position. There may be something there, but it will likely take a few more years to determine what.
Fifth round Catcher Jake Bolling was their first “miss,” but they did grab a PBA arm in the seventh round. Alex Cano was brutal for the Phillies last year, but he touches the mid-90s, throws strikes, and has a slider that can put away hitters. The stats don’t match the scouts, but for a seventh rounder, he’s a success.
There’s not too much in the deep minors, but Austin Taylor has the approach and enough power to end up in Triple-A. He doesn’t have the hit tool or defense to make it one more level up, but a 16th rounder with a prayer is better than most 16th rounders.
Grade: C-: Miami had a chance to get better guys than who they ultimately drafted, but did end up with a few players who look like decent players with upside. It’s likely this grade will look worse in the future should Ochoa continue to struggle, but it could also look low if Ochoa puts it all together.
Milwaukee Brewers:
First Round: (6) Danny Tammaro—LF
Second Round: (2) Wing-fung Qu (Pick acquired from Baltimore for Chad Woods)
Second Round: (6) Tim Jones—P
Third Round: (5) Jeff Kopf—CF—UNSIGNED
Best Player: Danny Tammaro
Best Deep Cut: (15) Yoshitomo Kaneko—P
Total ML WAR: 8.1
Review: This was probably the worst draft the Brewers had since 2019, but it was still a strong one. Danny Tammaro was selected eighth overall and quickly became an impact player, with 1.5 WAR in 2025. He was a force for a couple of seasons, but faded the last two. On a worse team, he would have had more opportunities to overcome a disappointing 2026, and he still scouts as a ferocious bat with good speed.
Milwaukee acquired their initial second rounder for Chad Woods. Nicknamed “The Undertaker,” Woods chokeslammed Triple-A competition last year, but has struggled in very brief tastes of PBA pitching. He looks like a future starting Second Baseman. Milwaukee gave him up to draft Wing-fung Qu, who has already retired. Their next second rounder was used on Tim Jones, who put up negative WAR in High-A last year.
Milwaukee didn’t sign Jeff Kopf after using a third-round pick on him. Kopf projects to have trouble getting above Double-A. Milwaukee rolled the pick and got good looking relief arm Rob Whalen, which worked out well.
The Brewers selected an older Catcher in Jason Lyons with their fourth rounder, but Lyons has already given up on baseball. They used their fifth rounder on a younger Catcher, Warren Hall, and Hall has decent pop and a decent eye. If he was a little bit better defensively, he’d be an ideal backup backstop. As is, he’s probably an ideal third-string Catcher.
Milwaukee used a sixth round selection on reliever Malik Moultry. The righty has a devastating Curveball, though he hangs his pitches too much. The out pitch is enough to dream on, and he was strong in Triple-A last year. Their next few picks are mid-minors fodder, though 10th rounder Orlando Quintana looks like a strong utility player in Triple-A.
While he was awful for a year, Daniel Escobar did make the majors, albeit as a sub-replacement level starting Shortstop with the Angels. The speed and the glove are good, but he’d be better in a backup role. 15th rounder Yoshitomo Kaneko touches triple digits, which results in strikeouts and weak contact. If he improves his control, he’d be a major leaguer.
Grade: C+: Milwaukee gets an A- for Tammaro, but notches failing marks for their second rounders. They did a decent job with rolling over their third rounder, and got some intriguing depth pieces. All-in-all, a decent draft.
Minnesota Twins:
First Round: (18) Jon Todd—P
Second Round: (14) Jamie Ison—P
Third Round: (17) Jonathan Russack—P
Best Player: Jonathan Russack—P
Best Deep Cut: (21) Ramon Flores—CF
Total ML WAR: 2.7
Review: Jon "Big Herman" Todd was taken by the Twins in the first round with the hopes that his pinpoint accuracy would translate to the big leagues. Todd cracked the big league roster in 2025, but struggled mightily posting a 6+ ERA before tearing his flexor tendon. Todd has yet to make it back to the big leagues and in all likelihood will play the rest of his baseball in the minors.
In the second round, Minnesota took 25-year-old - yes, 25 year old - Jamie Ison. Even at 25 years old, the Twins took their time moving Ison through their system. After three straight seasons of pitching very well at Triple A Rochester, the Twins couldn't ignore Ison and finally called him up to the big leagues at 30 years old. Ison didn't fare well, PBA hitters batted .360 off of him as he finished 2027 with an ERA well above 5. Ison will likely start the spring fighting for a big league roster spot for Minnesota, but it seems unlikely he'll ever be an impact player.
The best selection in the 2022 draft for Minnesota was third round pick Jonathan Russack. Russack worked his way up to the Twins big league club in 2025, and was a part of the clubs' rotation for all of 2026 and to start 2027. 2027 was definitely his best season in the pros, posting a 4.22 ERA, but the club optioned him back to Triple A following the acquisition of Robert Stephenson. Expect Russack to return to the majors in 2028, but it remains to be seen if he can build on a fairly average showing in 2027, or if he ends up regressing to his 2026 numbers.
Grade: D-: 15 of the Twins' 28 2022 draft selections have retired from baseball. That says all that you need to know about the 2022 Minnesota draft.
New York Yankees:
First Round: Forfeited as a result of signing Danny Salazar—Compensation for not signing Frazer McWhir.
First Round: (25) Bryce Zettel—1B—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (25) Josh Thomas—CF—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (32) Rob Franco—3B—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (36) Pat Place—P—Compensation for not signing Gil Caldwell—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (27) Enrique Gomez—P
Best Deep Cut: Enrique Gomez—P
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: It was a rough draft for New York, the result of not signing any of their first five picks. They failed to sign Frazer McWhir in 2021, then surrendered the compensation pick to sign Danny Salazar. Given that they weren’t going to sign their picks, it wasn’t a bad move, but Salazar blew out his elbow and only had two decent seasons and one awful one for New York.
Their next picks went unsinged, Bryce Zettel, Josh Thomas, Rob Franco, and Pat Place. Zettel is currently a Top 100 prospect, Franco has an outside shot at a PBA career as a reliever, and Pat Place can make it to Triple-A.
By rolling the picks over, Zettel became Bob Allison, a decent Center field prospect but a downgrade Thomas became Hidemichi Hirai, an upgrade as Hirai looks like a backup Right Fielder, while Thomas may never get out of Rookie Ball.
Franco turned into slugger Marty Murphy, an upgrade as Murphy has clear big league power. Finally, Place turned into Keith Walling, a glove-oriented Triple-A Shortstop, who likely won’t make it to the majors. The last three picks are all modest upgrades as a result of rolling the pick over, while not signing Zettel was a clear downgrade.
The Yankees only have one player they actually picked who looks like a clear major leaguer, 27th rounder Enrique Gomez. He has four pitches including a great slider, and if his changeup develops, he can be a special arm. He pitched 13.1 innings for the Yankees last year and had a 4.05 ERA.
Grade: C-: The aggregate rollover decisions probably net a C+, though losing the pick that became McWhir in order to sign Danny Salazar doesn’t look great. New York also loses some marks for the sheer lack of depth in its class, with only Gomez looking like a decent player.
New York Mets:
First Round: (20) Brad Street—P
Supplemental Round: (13) Ron Proffitt—P—Compensation for not signing Lothar Vorstermans
Second Round: (19) Kyle Shafer—1B
Third Round: (15) Brian McCammack—SS (Pick acquired from Cincinnati along with Matt Andreise for Paul DeJong, Dalton Ewing, and Nate Pearson)
Third Round: (24) Jonathan Hatcher—P
Best Player: (14) Tony Gonzalez—P
Best Deep Cut: Tony Gonzalez
Total ML WAR: 2.9
Review: It’s not the most exciting draft, but the Mets did get a lot of relief options out of the class. Brad Street has pitched two years with the Mets and has a 2.34 career ERA. He’s a nice safe reliever, with the misfortune of being grabbed just before Isaiah High and Vinny Escudero.
Ron Proffitt has great stuff, and a wild delivery that leads to too many walks. He’ll never pitch above the mid-minors. Lothar Vorstermans should eventually make the majors as a reliever and still has an outside chance at developing his changeup enough to start. That was a whiff. Kyle Shafer in the second round never hit enough to be anything more than a minor leaguer, though that spot in the draft was a dead zone for middle infielders.
Brian McCammack was also taken in that dead zone and also will not make the majors as he just retired. The Mets also got Matt Andreise in the deal that got them the McCammack pick, and Andreise had a good three-quarter season helping the Mets win 88 games in 2021. The Mets gave up Paul DeJong, who had a bad 2021 and a serviceable 2022 for the Reds, plus Dalton Ewing, who never made the majors, and Nate Pearson who pitched in roughly 100 career innings after the trade.
They plucked Jonathan Hatcher in the third round and he looks like a Triple-A starter at this point in his career.
The Mets then stared hitting on relievers who can do okay as starters. Their fourth rounder was Mike Stangeland, a control artist with power issues probably pitching in the wrong park in Texas. He hasn’t had much success yet, but Stangeland’s stuff will likely play up in the pen, and he looks like he could make it as a back-end starter in a better park.
Raheem Owusu was the Mets fifth rounder. He could likely pass as a back-end starter, but the Mets have used him entirely in relief. He was almost the hero of the 2026 NLDS and had a 2.78 ERA last year. New York drafted C.J. Nicol in the sixth round, but he won’t make it above the low minors. There’s not much in the way of pitchers taken after C.J. Hoover in the fourth through sixth rounds, so getting two good arms is solid work.
The Mets drafted position players who won’t do much from the seventh through ninth rounds, and the next pick they hit on was in the 14th round. Tony Gonzalez was left to suffer through a miserable 2025, an underwhelming 2026, and a rough start to 2027 before putting things together as a strong reliever. Gonzalez only allowed seven home runs in 73.1 innings last year and struck out 107 as he looks like a big-time reliever. He may even be able to cut in a rotation.
Grade: C: The Mets probably get a D for Street, as getting a serviceable reliever in a field of stars isn’t a great outcome, and Proffitt and Shafer get failing marks. They didn’t get anything out of the Hatcher pick either. They get a B for the combination of trading for Andriese and drafting McCammack as Andreise was good for parts of a season and they only gave up Paul DeJong. A missed draft pick isn’t worse than no draft pick. The draft after the fourth round takes a more optimistic turn as Stangeland, and especially Owusu and Gonzalez were great picks. Put together, the Mets didn’t get a star and picked up less than a year of a good starter, three good relievers, and a backend starting pitcher with the draft. It's decent quantity, though Escudero would have given it quality too.
Oakland Athletics:
First Round: (22) Tommy Hobby—P—UNSIGNED
Supplemental Round: (6) Dave Roberts—P—Compensation for not signing Ryan Dull
Second Round: (24) Joe Vitale—P
Third Round: (30) Pick Traded to Kansas City with Marino Campana for Reyes Moronta and Jeter Downs. Pick became Larry Price
Best Player: Dave Roberts—P
Best Deep Cut: (13) Ismael Lopez—P
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: The A’s are the only team who haven’t had a single player from the class make the PBA as of the 2027 season. They plucked Tommy Hobby in the first round, but didn’t sign him. That was probably a smart move as Short Circuit’s career short-circuited and he retired after the 2027 season. Oakland rolled over the pick, but didn’t sign any of their first rounders again until 2025.
They got a compensation pick for letting Ryan Dull walk as the team had financial issues. Dull had a fantastic career in Seattle for a time, while Roberts was jerked around between Double-A and Triple-A, succeeding at both levels. He retired after the 2027 season, mostly with frustrations due to how Oakland handled him.
Joe Vitale was plucked in the second round. He has big stuff that hasn’t translated to success. He’s now in the Korean minors. Oakland’s third rounder was sent out with Marino Campana, a player who found a niche in a platoon against lefties for the Royals for six seasons. The pick became Larry Price, a homer-prone power arm who had an unsuccessful stint as the Orioles closer this year. He should rally with a year of experience under him. Oakland received Jeter Downs, who was a solid starting infielder for them for a number of years, and Reyes Moronta, a respectable swingman. Oakland likely received the better end of the deal as Downs simply played more than Campana and Moronta has shown more to date than Price.
Matt Hendrickson was Oakland’s fourth rounder, a player who has slugged at every level, but likely doesn’t have enough of a skill set to escape Double-A. Broad-shouldered Josh Parsons, nicknamed “Shoulders” has been a strong Triple-A outfielder as his speed and defense are elite, but he doesn’t have the bat for the PBA.
10th round pick Mike de Leon has crushed A-Ball, and has enough speed, defense, power, and patience to play in Triple-A, but doesn’t have the hit tool to go further. 13th rounder Ismael Lopez also looks like a Triple-A player, as he has decent command and good movement, but doesn’t have the one skill to put him in the PBA.
Grade: D: Oakland got Jeter Downs with their draft assets, plus a reliever, but it cost them two major leaguers to do so. Their first rounder netted them nothing, and they didn’t get anything out of letting Ryan Dull walk.
Philadelphia Phillies:
First Round: (21) Isaiah High—3B
Second Round: (21) Justin Doyle—LF
Third Round: (26) Joel Robert—RF
Best Player: Isaiah High
Best Deep Cut: (16) Jorge Serrano—P
Total ML WAR: 1.9
Review: Philadelphia plucked Isaiah High 21st overall in 2022. The Third Baseman clubbed 26 home runs in half a season his rookie year and looks like an absolute star in the making. He hasn’t turned 24 so he’ll be able to provide value for years to come. There doesn’t look like a better player picked soon after him either. Arturo Rivera is a good player, but High has MVP upside, and you need to go into round five to find another hitter with that upside, so High was a fantastic pick.
Justin Doyle was taken in the second round and is less fantastic. He plays a great left field and has speed, but a one position defender with a poor bat isn’t even a Triple-A player. The only saving grace is that there weren’t other outfielder’s taken at that spot of the draft who look like they’ll amount to much. For example, Philadelphia’s third rounder, Joel Robert, is an outfielder who has produced negative WAR in Double-A—the definition of an outfielder who doesn’t look like he’ll amount to much.
Philadelphia made a nice selection with its fourth rounder, grabbing John Martel. Martel has a solid fastball/splitter combination, and he has a decent curveball and a nominal changeup. He doesn’t get strikeouts, so he’ll need to keep the ball in the park to have a chance at a successful career, but he was respectable as a 23-year-old rookie last year.
Ismael Olea was selected in the fifth round. He has a good glove at Second Base, and good speed, but he’s a terrible baserunner, doesn’t have a good bat, and is only a one-positional defender.
Sixth rounder Caleb Barker has some promise as a Quad-A First Baseman. He won’t provide value anywhere but with his bat, and he doesn’t look to have a special one, but he should be balanced enough to hold his own as a second division player, which is a fine outcome for a sixth-rounder. Seventh rounder Eric Beckman is a similar story. He has no defensive skills, and a lack of patience may make him a mark for big league pitching, but the average and power should hold up in the PBA in a pinch.
Tenth round pitcher Jason DeLisio has had success in Triple-A as an upper-90s arm who keeps the ball down. Already 29, a chance at a PBA career is rapidly closing, but a good Triple-A career from a 10th rounder is fine. Dusty Cannon was Philadelphia’s 11th rounder, and while he can’t hit, his range and cannon arm make him a possible utility infielder.
Philadelphia’s 16th round selection, Jorge Serrano, also deserves mention. While his command and lack of a third pitch sometimes results in his pitches getting hit hard, he has an upper 90s fastball and a curveball that can generate strikeouts. He’s pitched well in Lehigh Valley and may be able to hold his own in the PBA.
Grade: B+: Philadelphia nailed the most important part of the draft and got a superstar in High. They also did a great job getting bites at the apple with a number of players who have a chance at cutting it in the majors. However, Philadelphia also missed on its second and third rounders and only has High as a sure thing. Still, a strong draft.
Pittsburgh Pirates:
First Round: (14) Jayden Parker—LF—UNSIGNED
Second Round: (11) Andes Reyna—CF—UNSIGNED
Third Round: (12) Andre Stinson—P—UNSIGNED
Best Player: (14) Marc Troy—P
Best Deep Cut: Marc Troy—P
Total ML WAR: 0
Review: The Pirates didn’t sign the players they drafted in 2022, not getting much talent from the draft. They picked Parker, but got intel that he wanted to play football so they didn’t sign him. He left to be a professional football player, and the comp pick turned into Bert Medrano, who looks like a possible mid-rotation arm.
Andres Reyna, however, is a speedy outfielder with a good bat and power to boot. He went to college and graduated in 2026 from Long Beach State, so he doesn’t have a long track record, but a starting Center Fielder is a possibility. Sal Miranda was the player snagged the next year as a comp pick, and Miranda looks like a fringy reliever. A possible starting outfielder is always a better call than a possible sixth reliever.
Andre Stinson got off to a slow start to his career, but is a solid starter with the Mets, who might be a dynamite reliever if New York used him that way. Pittsburgh passed on signing him to grab Kevin Ramsey, who has already had two torn labrums.
The Pirates picks they did make have all been minor league fodder. Carlos Preciado, a 10th rounder, and Marc Troy, a 14th rounder, are the only ones with any upside as both could be fifth starters.
Grade: F: The Pirates got a number four starter out of the draft, maybe a couple of fifth starters and passed on some good talent. They didn’t get much depth in the draft either with few Quad-A types picked.
San Diego Padres:
First Round: (17) Greg Kelly—2B
Supplemental Round: (3) Kane Guyatt—P—Compensation for not signing Zach Davies
Second Round: (13) Pick traded to Kansas City along with Jake Lamb and Manuel Margot for Steven Duggar. Pick became Arturo Rivera
Third Round: (16) Pick traded to Kansas City along with Dylan Cozens and Michael Reed for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 million. Pick became Javier Guerra.
Third Round: Andy Bartron—P—Compensation for not signing Chris Littleton
Best Player: Greg Kelly
Best Deep Cut: (14) Sean Perry—P
Total ML WAR: 3.8
Review: One of the youngest players in the draft, Greg Kelly had a great rookie year and has a bright future ahead of him. Kelly had a special first season defensively with a double-digit Zone Rating at Second Base. His offense lagged behind, but he was 22-years-old in a tough park and still hit 19 home runs and 32 doubles. He has a fast bat, sneaky power, and could be an offensive monster. If he can’t put it together, he’s an average hitter with great defense. He’s been well worth the 17th pick.
The Padres let Zach Davies walk in Free Agency and got a comp pick as a result, drafting and signing Kane Guyatt. Davies had a strong run in Atlanta, leading the league in Pitching WAR one season. His contract wasn’t unreasonable, and San Diego probably should have held on to him with the career minor leaguer Kane Guyatt an underwhelming return.
San Diego’s Second Round pick was traded in a disastrous deal. The Padres gave up Jake Lamb, Manuel Margot, and the pick that became Arturo Rivera for Stevan Duggar. They got off of Lamb’s contract, and Margot struggled in Kansas City as well, but they cost of saving money was Arturo Rivera. Rivera was the 2026 Rookie of the Year and looks like a perennial All-Star and could have been a Padre. They did get Stevan Duggar, who was worth about 1 WAR for San Diego and was waived the following season.
The Padres gave away their third rounder with Michael Reed and Dylan Cozens for Rogelio Herrera and $1.4 Million. The pick became Javier Guerra, a mid-minors Catcher. Reed was terrible for the Padres and never played in the majors again, while Cozens also never played in the majors after the deal. Herrera never pitched above rookie ball. The best asset in the deal was likely the $1.4 million cash.
They drafted Andy Bartron in the third round with a compensation pick. Bartron got hurt and lost his passion for baseball almost immediately. Actually signing Chris Littleton, who at least is playing in the Korean minors, would have been better.
Most of San Diego’s picks after the first three rounds have retired already, and those who are left are career minor leaguers.
Grade: C-: San Diego got Greg Kelly out of the deal, which was the most important thing, but their other moves are pretty bleak. Not signing Davies or getting bad compensation for Davies looks bad in hindsight, as does the Rivera trade. They didn’t get any value from their mid-round and later picks to supplement their value. Kelly may be good enough to override the complete lack of other value, but the Padres could have done better.
San Francisco Giants:
First Round: (22) Aaron Allen—1B
Second Round: (7) Octavio Lopez—P
Second Round: (13) Arturo Rivera—1B (Pick acquired from Kansas City along with third rounder [Javier Guerra*], Jake Lamb, and Mike Osborn for Anderson A. Tejada)
Second Round: (28) Willie Roldan—P (Pick acquired along with fourth rounder [Ricardo Ponce] from Houston for Melvin Adon
Third Round: (8) Kevin Gebhard—P
Third Round: (16) *
Third Rounder: (29) Antonio Espinosa—P (Pick acquired from Tampa Bay with Brandon Waddell, Ignacio Soto for Nick Kingham)
Notes: Traded Rodolfo Martinez to Tampa Bay for fourth rounder (Mark Kastner), Joe Sliger, and Shamar Motin.
Best Player: Arturo Rivera
Best Deep Cut: (17) Matt Isom—2B
Total ML WAR: 14.0
Review: The Giants were incredibly active during the draft, a reason they had a success one. Their first round pick was used on Aaron Allen, a slow-developing slugger with big power in the minors. The pressure is on Allen as other quality players were taken after him, including First Baseman Vinny Escudero. Allen does project to be a Starting First Baseman, but his future is still ahead of him.
San Francisco had three picks in the second round, the result of two trades. Their own pick was used on Octavio Lopez, one of the league’s better relievers. Lopez was taken in a spot of the draft where Tomito Kawamoto, and Tim Johnson were taken, so while the pick is still good, it’s not an A.
The Giants got their next second rounder and a third rounder in a trade with Kansas City. The Giants gave up Anderson A. Tejada, a player reliably getting 400 at bats a season to produce a career OBP of.292. They received Jake Lamb’s $15 million in dead money, Mike Osborn, who would languish in the low minors before a star turn in The Netherlands, minor league backup Catcher Javier Guerra, and finally, one of the best sluggers in the National League, Arturo Rivera. $15 million is a steep price, but a fair one for an All-Star.
The Giants got their other second rounder from Houston, trading Melvin Adon for picks that would become Willie Roldan and Ricardo Ponce. Adon had a couple of decent seasons for Houston before bouncing around the PBA, while a UCL injury has removed some of the potential for Roldan to be more than a Quad-A arm, and Ponce looks like a future backup infielder. A fair trade.
San Francisco drafted Kevin Gebhard with their own third rounder, a good Triple-A arm who doesn’t look like he’ll take the next leap to the PBA. They acquired another third rounder in a deal where they gave up Nick Kingham. The righty had a few nice years after the trade, putting up 2.7 or 2.8 WAR a season from 2023 to 2025. They got back Brandon Waddell, who had more WAR than Kingham each of those seasons at a higher salary, plus future swing man Ignacio Soto, and a busted pick in Antonio Espinosa. The Giants used their higher payroll to get the better player in the deal.
The Giants used their own fourth rounder on Eliott Cohen, who has already retired, but they got an extra one in a deal with the Rays. They got the pick that became Mark Kastner in the deal, though Kastner looks like a Triple-A arm. They also got Shamar Motin and Joe Sliger—prospects at the time who won’t play in the PBA. They sent out Rodolfo Martinez, who would go on to have serviceable ERA for Tampa Bay despite having negative WAR.
The Giants drafted a seventh rounder in the deal, Corey Taylor, who is constantly being claimed and waived as a young, fringy reliever with upside. Their ninth rounder, Andy McCarthy, pitched last year for Boston and had a solid 3.97 ERA as a rookie. None of the Giants later picks will amount to anything—in fact, they only signed four players after the 15th round.
Grade: A: San Francisco used its draft assets to obtain two starting-caliber First Basemen, one of the game’s better relievers, an upgraded Starting Pitcher, a handful of fringy starters, a prospective backup infielder, and two more PBA-caliber arms. They didn’t give up anything regrettable in the deals they made to acquire the extra picks, and for the most part, made the right selections at their places in the draft. A lot will ride on Anthony Allen to determine how successful the draft will ultimately be considering the Giants had a number of bites at the apple.
Seattle Mariners:
First Round: (1) Pick traded to Kansas City with Ken Stockwell, Blake Hunt, Joey Wentz, and C.J. Hinojosa for Luis Arraez, Mitch Nay, Jeifry Nunez, and Hayato Sakamoto. Pick became Pat French.
Second Round: (1) Pick traded to Chicago Cubs along with third rounder (Chris Schoepflin*), Eric Dusing, and Mike Floyd for Chris Sale. Pick became Brian Mach.
Third Round: *
Best Player: (27) Jamie Nelson—P
Best Deep Cut: Jamie Nelson—P
Total ML WAR: 0.2
Review: Seattle made a pair of gambits, trading away their early draft picks to get talent.
Their first rounder was traded with a host of talented players for Luis Arraez, Mitch Nay, Jeifry Nunez, and Hayato Sakamoto. Arraez had negative WAR as a bit player for Seattle. Mitch Nay was worth roughly -1.0 WAR for four teams after the deal. Hayato Sakamoto was dead money taken on for two more seasons before he retired. Jeifry Nunez is the one player acquired who has been a plus player for Seattle, leading the lead in Wins one year, and Strikeouts one year. He’s been an All-Star and has been an All-Star worthy pitcher parts of his tenure.
Trading away Pat French for Nunez is an interesting thought experiment. French hasn’t done much yet, but still has front-line potential he hasn’t shown. Nunez, however, has proven he’s a solid starter who can perform at an All-Star level. However, Seattle ALSO traded away an All-Star catcher in Blake Hunt, a playoff hero and solid starting arm in Joey Wentz, a decent swingman in Ken Stockwell, and a serviceable backup infielder and Triple-A depth piece in C.J. Hinojosa. Those extra players Seattle gave up make them a clear loser of the trade.
Their second round pick trade turned out to be even worse. They acquired Chris Sale who was spectacular in 2022, leading the league in both Strikeouts and WHIP and then immediately fell apart. He was worth -3.7 WAR his last two years, meaning his overall WAR total post trade was roughly 3.0. For that production, Seattle gave away a pick that became Brian Mach, a pick that became Chris Schoepflin, Eric Dusing, and Mike Floyd. Mach was a replacement-level Left Fielder in 130 Games last year, but Schoepflin looks like a starting Second Baseman, Mike Floyd has been a Platinum Stick winner, and Eric Dusing has evolved into a terrific reliever. Sale did have a special 2022, but the Mariners lost that trade.
Seattle didn’t sign their fourth rounder and their fifth rounder has retired. Their sixth-eighth rounders all look like Triple-A fodder, with most picks after looking worse. Jamie Nelson, plucked in the 27th round, does look like a Starting Pitcher in the PBA, with a good curveball and changeup.
Grade: D-: Seattle got one great year from Chris Sale as they were building their team to the AL West powerhouse they are today. Jeifry Nunez has also helped Seattle’s run this decade as well. That keeps the grade from being an F. They gave up so much though that they can’t be above a D-.
St. Louis Cardinals:
First Round: (5) Erik Benoit—SS—Compensation for not signing Chris Cammett
First Round: Pick forfeited as a result of signing Addison Russell
Second Round: (16) Nick Chesley—C
Third Round: (21) Chad Carlson—P
Best Player: Erik Benoit
Best Deep Cut: (11) Munenori Fujimoto—RF
Total ML WAR: 8.5
Review: St. Louis used a rolled over pick to draft Basket Case Benoit. Benoit has good position flexibility, a terrific bat, and is still young and improving his power. He’s a premier infielder, and considering his age, a very good selection for where he was taken. Chris Cammett could be a front-line starter, but is already 26 and racing the development clock. Rolling the pick did result in a year removed from developing a good player and getting it in St. Louis’ system, but the punishment won’t be too severe.
Their own first rounder was lost to sign Addison Russell, and St. Louis won 97 games in 2023 and made the playoffs. He was injured in 2022, and barely played in 2027, meaning he only provided 15.5 WAR over six years and at $252 paid out over the contract, so it wasn’t the most efficient contract. St. Louis won 83 Games in 2021 and was trying to be competitive so maybe only a slight demerit for giving up the pick to sign Big Vesty.
Their Second Rounder was used on Catcher Nick Chesley, who had a good rookie year in 2026, and an underwhelming season in 2027. He projects as a second division starter or good backup, and rates similarly to other second-round Catcher Nate Sprague.
Third rounder Chad Carlson throws hard but never developed his control and is low-minor leaguer as a result. Fourth round starter Pat Brooks got hurt in 2024 limiting his development, but was replacement level for a couple of cups of coffee. There haven’t been too many stellar arms in the fourth round to make the pick look too bad, and a replacement level arm after round three isn’t something to sneeze at.
Rob Erickson was grabbed in the fifth round and is a low minors Left Fielder, but sixth rounder Brad Golden looks like a Triple-A reliever, who may be able to make the majors with some luck. Eighth rounder Corey Fields doesn’t have much of a bat, but his speed and defense have made him a star in High-A. He likely won’t get past Double-A. Ninth rounder Anthony Redd has speed, a good glove, and a good eye. He’s held his own in Triple-A as a ninth rounder. Tenth Rounder Steve Shea, to continue the trend, plays great defense, runs fast, and likely isn’t a PBA player, but has held his own in Triple-A.
Grade B-: St. Louis made a good selection in Benoit, has a lot of upper minors depth, and made a decent selection with Chesley. The Russell signing is a C- move, and they didn’t get anything out of Carlson. Overall, it’s a solid draft.
Tampa Bay Rays:
First Round: (27) Chris Muchmore—RF
Supplemental Round: (10) Santiago Olvera—P—Compensation for not signing Steven Matz
Supplemental Round: (11) Josh Swanson—P—Compensation for not signing Chris Archer
Second Round: Pick traded to Houston along with Wyatt Cross, Leonardo Sanchez, and Rodolfo Sanchez for Jose Altuve. Pick forfeited as a result of signing Zach Greinke
Second Round: (30) Pick traded to Houston for Christian Yelich—Compensation for not signing Humberto Argueta. Pick became Joe Dyck
Third Round: (29) Pick traded to San Francisco along with Brandon Waddell and Ignacio Soto for Nick Kingham. Pick became Antonio Espinoza
Third Round: (35) Justin Hall—Compensation for not signing Ismael Carnero
Notes: Traded fourth rounder (Mark Kastner), Shamar Motin, and Joe Sliger for Rodolfo Martinez
Best Player: Chris Muchmore
Best Deep Cut: (28) Bobby Burns—P
Total ML WAR: 1.6
Review: There are a lot of moving parts to the Rays draft. Their first round pick was Chris Muchmore, a serviceable fourth outfielder who was overstretched as a starter for Texas last year. It takes until the fifth round and Tony Sierra to find an outfielder taken after Muchmore who has done anything in the majors, though Eric Walker is a Catcher with a lot of upside taken two spots later.
In the supplemental rounds, Tampa Bay let Steven Matz and Chris Archer go, getting Santiago Olvera and Josh Swanson as supplemental picks. Olvera and Swanson look like Triple-A arms, while Matz continued a fine career in Chicago and LA, and Archer put up about 7 WAR and a Diamondbacks championship over the rest of his career. Maybe Tampa Bay couldn’t afford the two arms and needed to move on, but there were some pitchers taken later in the Supplemental and early second rounds—Jeremy Myers, Octavio Lopez, Dale Messina, Tim Johnson—that would have served Tampa Bay better.
Tampa Bay traded their second rounder, Wyatt Cross, Leonardo Sanchez, and Rodolfo Sanchez for Jose Altuve. The pick disappeared with Houston signing Zach Grienke, though a pick deep in the second round wouldn’t have netted Tampa Bay much. Altuve produced negative WAR for the Rays, and while the Sanchezes never amounted to much, Wyatt Cross turned into a Gold Glover and a starting Catcher. Tampa should have not made the trade for that reason.
The Rays made another trade with Houston, swapping what would eventually turn into Joe Dyck for Christian Yelich. Tampa had the pick available as a result of not signing Humberto Argueta the year prior. Argueta’s been on a slow burn through the Yankees system, not really impressing along the way, so not signing him wasn’t a bad decision. Yelich won a Platinum Stick award for the Rays in 2022 and helped the team make the ALCS, while Dyck emerged in 2027 as one of the best relievers in baseball. One very good year of Christian Yelich as a contender versus Joe Dyck is an interesting call where a case can be made either way.
Tampa Bay wasn’t done trading draft picks though, swapping a pick that became Antonio Espinoza, Brandon Waddell, and Ignacio Soto for Nick Kingham. Kingham was worth 0.7 WAR in roughly a season with the team, while Waddell went on to have four very good seasons before injuries hampered the tail end of his career. Espinoza is a career minor leaguer, while Soto has a chance to make it as a backend starter.
They also drafted Justin Hall, a Center Fielder who had -0.8 WAR in full season ball before retiring. The pick was a comp pick for not signing Ismael Carnero, an arm that could be a 26th man.
They then sent their fourth rounder, a pick that became Mark Kastner, plus Shamar Motin and Joe Sliger to San Francisco for Rodolfo Martinez. None of the assets given up amounted to anything, but Martinez was worth -1.4 WAR for the Rays!
The only player drafted after Muchmore who looks like they have a chance to have more than a cup of coffee is 28th rounder Bobby Burns. The righty has a good delivery that allows his fastball to play up, plus a sinker that plays. The changeup is still developing and limits Burns to a reliever, but he struck out 13 in 12.1 innings for the Rays last year.
Grade: F: Tampa Bay didn’t clearly win any trade where they offloaded a pick, they didn’t get much for the compensation picks they received, and they didn’t get an impact player with their first round pick. The third-round comp pick they made wasn’t as good as the player they didn’t sign with their 2021 third rounder. There wasn’t a disastrous decision, but a lot of little misses add up to an F.
Texas Rangers:
First Round: Pick traded to Atlanta along with second round pick*, Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, and Kevin Flippo for Ozzie Albies. Pick forfeited to sign Zach Davies. 2nd Round Pick forfeited to sign Eduardo Rodriguez.
Supplemental Round: (8) Dan O’Rourke—P—Compensation for not signing Danny Salazar
Supplemental Round: (9) Aaron Wallace—P—Compensation for not signing Giancarlo Stanton
Second Round: *
Third Round: (33) Pick traded to Houston along with Will Coronado, Jorge Cotto, Jared Jackson, Alfredo Contreras, Michell Miliano and Cole Hamels for Carlos Correa. Pick became Jerrod Rodgers
Best Player: Aaron Wallace
Best Deep Cut: (21) Chris Ely—P
Total ML WAR: 7.6
Review: Texas traded its first and second round picks, Luis Ramirez, Ryder Green, and Kevin Flippo to Atlanta for Ozzie Albies. Albies has won three Platinum Sticks and three Gold Gloves for Texas. The draft picks were given up for the Braves to sign free agents. Ramirez hasn’t hit enough to be more than a 26th man, Ryder Green is a Quad-A player, and Kevin Flippo is a backend pitcher. Texas didn’t give up much and got a superstar.
The Rangers lost Danny Salazar and Giancarlo Stanton in the offseason and got a pair of supplemental picks as a result. Salazar only had one more successful season, and Stanton was replacement level the rest of his career. Texas made the right decision to let each of them go. Dan O’Rourke has been one of the AL’s best relief arms the last three seasons, and Aaron Wallace had a strong rookie season last year.
Texas gave up its third round pick in a deal for Carlos Correa. The Shortstop has won three Platinum Stick awards in Texas and has been worth 22 WAR. They gave up Jorge Cotto in the deal, and Cotto has won 20 games and is only just 25. Texas also gave up a number of picks and prospects that turned into fringy relievers or fifth starters, but they also jettisoned Cole Hamels’ dead money. Even with losing Cotto, Texas remained a force throughout the decade and has to be thrilled with what Correa provided.
Texas’ only other top 10 draft picks they made were on fourth rounder Jack Covault, seventh rounder Tom Robertson, and ninth rounder Davis Daniel. They’ve all retired. In fact, the Rangers don’t have many drafted players from the draft other than their supplemental picks that are even still active. One of their few active picks is Top 100 prospect Chris Ely. The 21st rounder underwent a huge velocity spike in the minors, making his sinker play up as a result. He looks like a future mid-rotation arm.
Grade: A+: Texas didn’t make many draft picks, but they used their picks flawlessly, whether using their own selections or making trades. getting a spectacular infield, a great reliever, and two future top flight starters. It’s hard to argue with anything they did.
Toronto Blue Jays:
First Round: (12) David Kouns—P
First Round: (15) Matt Aceto—3B—Compensation for not signing Joe Knight
First Round: (29) Eric Walker—C—Compensation for not signing Wing-fung Qu
Second Round: (10) Frank Becker—3B
Second Round: (15) Devon Roedahl—P—Compensation for not signing Phil Wittwer
Third Round: (11) Chris Gentry—P
Third Round: (19) Sergio Ramirez—P—Compensation for not signing Ben McGraw
Third Round: (23) Chris Littleton—CF—Compensation for not signing Jeff Smart
Best Player: Matt Aceto
Best Deep Cut: (28) Jimmy Caliendo—P
Total ML WAR: 14.9
Review: Most of Toronto’s value in the draft came from not signing picks in earlier drafts. For the most part, the decision paid off.
The Blue Jays selected David Kouns with their original pick, a slap-hitter with great speed, defense, and bat-to-ball skills. He doesn’t get on base though and has no power, rendering him a Triple-A backup right now. There’s potential for more, but right now it’s a bad pick. They grabbed Matt Aceto a few picks later, with a pick obtained by not signing Joe Knight. Aceto leads the class in WAR to date and is an All-Star, while Knight mat be a reliever. Rolling the pick paid major dividends.
Their final first round pick was rolled over for two seasons, with Toronto passing on players from the 2020 and 2021 drafts who haven’t done much, to grab Eric Walker. The Catcher has been blocked by Gary Sanchez, but looks like a First Division player. He once had three homers and nine RBIs in a game.
Their own second rounder was used on Frank Becker, a speedster who puts the bat on the ball, but doesn’t have much else as a skillset. Arturo Rivera was picked up a few picks later. They rolled over a Second Rounder to get Devon Roedahl, who pitched six career games in the majors, instead of holding on to Phill Wittwer, a career minor-leaguer.
Chris Gentry was their third round pick, a Triple-A starter, and fringy major league swingman. Not much came out of the third round for pitchers, so a swingman isn’t a bad outcome. Their other third rounders won’t ever play in the PBA, and were only available to Toronto because they didn’t sign other third rounders in prior years who also won’t play in the majors.
Toronto’s fourth, sixth, and ninth rounders have already retired, and their eighth rounder won’t ever escape the mid-minors. Their fifth rounder, pitcher Ismael Carnero, and seventh rounder, Second Baseman J.J. Vahling, look like Triple-A depth pieces which aren’t unexpected outcomes for where they were picked.
Toronto got a couple of fringy arms deep in the draft. With their 26th rounder they selected Chris Rose, a finesse lefty with a curve and change that play well in Triple-A, and a Jimmy Caliendo, a homer-prone righty, with a big fastball and curveball that might play as a 13th member of a pitching staff. Those are successful late-round picks.
Grade: B: Toronto’s most important thing was grabbing a strong player in the draft with Matt Aceto. With Eric Walker, they got two starting-caliber players, and they generally didn’t lose value by rolling over picks. Almost all their other players are fringy, however, and they had a lot of extra picks to get more value. With what they had available, it was a very good, but not a great draft.
Washington Nationals:
First Round: (26) Billy Guerin—P—UNSIGNED
Supplemental Round: (7) Etienne Toet—P—Compensation for not signing Max Scherzer
Second Round: (26) Bob Gonzalez—P
Third Round: (34) Jonathan Barton—P—UNSIGNED
Best Player: Etienne Toet
Best Deep Cut: (11) Cody Bernard—CF
Total ML WAR: -0.3
Review: Washington drafted Billy Guerin the first round, didn’t sign him, and got a comp pick for it. Guerin wasn’t drafted and signed by another team until five seasons later, and while he may become a decent pitcher, he has lost a lot of development time. The comp pick got rolled over, and was forfeited to sign Gerrit Cole to a $3 million contract a season later. Cole helped the Nationals win 96 games in 2023, but only pitched for one year. His signing wasn’t a bad one, but wasn’t a great one.
A.J. Toet was picked up in the Supplemental Round after Washington let Scherzer go in Free Agency. Scherzer was essentially done and Washington got a free draft pick for not signing him. They grabbed Toet, and watched him turn into a Quad-A player. The next two players taken were Dan O’Rourke and Aaron Wallace, so Washington definitely picked the wrong guy. Still, getting anyone back for Scherzer was a win.
Bob Gonzalez was their second-round selection, a pitcher without much control or movement who has topped out in Triple-A. Jonathan Barton was their third rounder, and he was drafted a year later in the 29th round. Washington was wise to move on from him, and got Devon Armiger, a big-armed reliever, as compensation.
The Nationals didn’t sign their fourth and fifth rounders, making underwhelming Triple-A reliever Travis Snow, the only other player they selected in the first ten rounds who they signed and is still active
Grade: D: Washington walked away from the draft with a season of Gerrit Cole, a good arm in Devin Armiger, a mediocre arm in A.J. Toet, and nothing else. It’s not a whole lot with what they had to offer.
Total WAR From the class by team
Atlanta Braves 19.6
Toronto Blue Jays 15.1
San Francisco Giants 14
Detroit Tigers 13.2
Baltimore Orioles 11.8
Kansas City Royals 9.7
Cincinnati Reds 9
St. Louis Cardinals 8.5
Milwaukee Brewers 8.1
Texas Rangers 7.5
Boston Red Sox 6.1
Chicago White Sox 5.9
Colorado Rockies 5.3
San Diego Padres 3.9
New York Mets 2.9
Houston Astros 2.7
Minnesota Twins 2.7
Cleveland Indians 2
Philadelphia Phillies 1.9
Tampa Bay Rays 1.7
Chicago Cubs 1
Arizona Diamondbacks 0.7
Miami Marlins 0.3
Seattle Mariners 0.3
Los Angeles Angels 0
New York Yankees 0
Pittsburgh Pirates 0
Washington Nationals -0.3
Los Angeles Dodgers -0.5