2019 MLB Mock Draft: Final Edition
Baltimore Orioles: Adley Rutschman, C, Oregon State
Adley Rutschman is probably the safest, easiest, and most logical pick the Orioles can make here. He’s an offensive producer, a defensive asset, and the variable that will transform the Orioles young future pitching staff from promising to potentially devastating. It takes a lot of effort to be the consensus number one prospect the entire season, but Rutschman deserves to be the top pick in the draft.
Kansas City Royals: Bobby Witt Jr., SS, Colleyville Heritage HS, Texas
Give Witt credit, for someone who’s had a microscope on him since freshman year of high school, he’s managed to avoid the dreaded prospect fatigue that inevitably ruins the draft stock of far too many top prep prospects. His pedigree and feel for the game make him one of the most sought after prep shortstops since Alex Rodriguez.
Chicago White Sox: CJ Abrams, SS, Blessed Trinity HS, Georgia
Abrams may not have Bobby Witt’s floor, but he does have a higher ceiling than Witt. He’s the fastest kid in the class, is capable of playing a professional centerfield, and would be the type of player the White Sox could draft to break their six year streak of drafting high floor college players. Scouts have called him a more powerful Dee Gordon, which bodes well for him.
Miami Marlins: JJ Bleday, OF, Vanderbilt
Bleday’s power surge in his junior year makes him an ideal candidate to patrol Marlins Park’s cavernous outfield, and with Derek Jeter going to see him play during the SEC tournament, it’s clear he’s a high priority for Miami. The alternative here is Andrew Vaughn, but picking him would likely knock the Marlins out of the Spencer Torkleson sweepstakes next year.
Detroit Tigers: Andrew Vaughn, 1B, California
The Tigers are in a prime spot to grab a power bat, and one of Greene or Vaughn will likely be here when they’re on the clock. Though Vaughn hasn’t replicated his Golden Spikes numbers from last year because teams have been pitching around him, he’s still a dangerous quick rising bat that could make an impact especially since Miguel Cabrera’s likely retiring as soon as he’s major league ready.
San Diego Padres: Riley Greene, OF, Hagerty HS
With a deep enough farm system as is, the Padres are in the enviable “We can take anyone” position. Greene makes sense as he’s a top bat, and his power greatly translates to PETCO Park. Plus he’s far enough away that the Padres will have plenty of time to figure out if they want to keep him or package him in a trade for more major league assets.
Cincinnati Reds: Nick Lodolo, LHP, TCU
This is arguably the worst class of college pitching in years, and yet performances at the end of the season for the Tier 1 arms show that at least one could be chosen in the top 10. The one that makes the most sense here is Nick Lodolo, who put together a strong second half of the season. The Reds love pitching and having someone who can be a quick riser will help them accelerate their already accelerated contention window.
Texas Rangers: Brett Baty, 3B, Lake Travis HS, Texas
The Rangers are going to make an under slot deal at this pick, the question is who. While pitching is a possible target here, I could see Texas putting together a package deal to nab two high school teammates a-la Toronto last year with Jordan Groshans and Adam Kloffenstein. Brett Baty is the top prep hitter this year and his power would make him the ideal candidate to step into the big hole that Adrian Beltre left.
Atlanta Braves: Hunter Bishop, OF, Arizona State
Bishop’s really exploded onto the scene this year as a top college hitter, and while he hasn't been able to overtake JJ Bleday as the top prep outfielder, being the second best outfielder and a top 10 pick is a nice consolation prize. Bishop’s selection will break the long streak of Braves high school arm selections, and he’d be a nice heir to Nick Markakis.
San Francisco Giants: Zack Thompson, LHP, Kentucky
Thompson’s injury history has drawn concerns, but when he’s healthy, he’s dialed in. His solid junior season puts him in play to be a top 10 pick, and a team like San Francisco, which is perpetually on the precipice of throwing expensive bandaids on to prolong a contention window and tearing it all down in a rebuild, could use Thompson to usher in the next generation of talented young hurlers that has helped the Giants compete in the NL West.
Toronto Blue Jays: Corbin Carroll, OF, Lakeside HS, Washington
Toronto could go college pitching here, but Carroll’s grittiness and potential to be more than just an undersized centerfielder makes him more attractive to the Blue Jays, who could find themselves missing Kevin Pillar. The concerns that he is another Mickey Moniak have been noted, but considering Moniak has managed to correct his trajectory this year, Carroll critics should be silenced in short order.
New York Mets: Alek Manoah, RHP, West Virginia
I’m not keen on giving the Mets a pitcher here, but the brass is leaning on taking college pitching. If Manoah manages to fall to 12th overall, all bets are off. Manoah’s build and emergence as a dominating starter with the only blemish this year being outdueled by Nick Lodolo makes him the type of pitcher that Mickey Callaway and Dave Eiland can make into an outstanding major league number 2 or 3 starter in their rotation.
Minnesota Twins: Shea Langeliers, C, Baylor
The adage is “You don’t draft for need”, but Langeliers represents something the Twins are definitely gonna need to address: the catcher position in the future since Jason Castro’s getting older. Langeliers would be the top ranked catcher in the class if it weren’t for Adley Rutschman, but he’s still capable of at least being an above average backstop and his veteran mentality is going to help the incoming pitching staff.
Philadelphia Phillies: Jackson Rutledge, RHP, San Jacinto College North
A trend I’ve noticed in Philadelphia is their embracing of helium players and Rutledge is the type of player that screams helium. His judo season, not to mention his already established build makes him a legitimate candidate to be an ace or number starter in a rotation like Philly’s, and his blistering velocity puts him anywhere from top 10 to top 15.
Los Angeles Angels: Bryson Stott, SS, UNLV
The Angels like athletes, and Stott is the type of versatile player they would eagerly snatch up if available. There have been a lot of comparisons to Brandon Crawford, but Stott is more than capable of moving to another position in deference to a better fielder. In today’s demand for do-it-all utility types, Stott could be the Angels answer to Ben Zobrist, Scott Kingery, or Jeff McNeil.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Matt Allan, RHP, Seminole HS, Florida
Allan’s gonna be pricy as the likely first high school righthander off the board, and Arizona’s absurdly high bonus pool makes them the likely earliest landing spot for him. He’s got the pitcher’s body and the velocity to be a big league high end starter, if Arizona is willing to pony up the money for him, he’d be a solid candidate to be their best future homegrown starter.
Washington Nationals: Josh Jung, 3B, Texas Tech
Another team whose strategy is well known, Washington likes kids that have seen their stock drop. Josh Jung isn’t injured, but the expectation was that this spring he would be atop the NCAA’s home run leaderboard. That clearly hasn’t happened, but his defensive versatility makes him an intriguing power bat. Considering the Nats will have some decisions to make on who to keep and who to let walk, Jung represents a solid safety net that can step in in a couple years.
Pittsburgh Pirates: George Kirby, RHP, Elon
The Chris Archer trade ought to give Pirates fans Dave Littlefield levels of PTSD, but thankfully they’re right in the goldilocks zone for drafting college pitchers. George Kirby may not come from a program with a strong track record, but he’s arguably one of the most polished pitchers in the class and is capable of going deep into games without sacrificing velocity.
St. Louis Cardinals: Quinn Priester, RHP, Cary Grove HS, Illinois
Priester is the type of young hurler the Cardinals love to hoard. He could fill out a little more, but he makes a solid case in a weak class to be one of the first prep pitchers off the board. He’s a prep version of George Kirby with the ability to pitch hard late into games.
Seattle Mariners: Kody Hoese, 3B, Tulane
Any one of the college middle infielders that isn’t Bryson Stott could land here, but the Mariners could go for the other big college bopper in Kody Hoese, His power and ability to stick at the hot corner makes him the Rece Hinds pick that I made in earlier mocks.
Atlanta Braves: Brennan Malone, RHP, IMG Academy, Florida
Malone could command a high asking price, and knowing Atlanta’s propensity to take high school arms even though they have been drafting them for years bodes well for Malone to go to a team that take make mechanical tweaks to improve his consistency and command.
Tampa Bay Rays: Maurice Hampton, OF, Memphis University HS, Tennessee
Hampton is this year’s toolsy two-sport star, and there’s no doubt that Tampa Bay, who has the money, could easily buy out his committment. He’s raw, but Tampa Bay has been known as of late to get the best out of their young talent.
Colorado Rockies: Greg Jones, OF/SS, UNC Wilmington
Jones was an early candidate for the first round, and has since rocketed back after an outstanding conference tournament. He definitely won’t stick at shortstop, but his speed will allow him to cover the cavernous expanse that is Coors Field’s outfield.
Cleveland Indians: Michael Busch, 1B/2B/OF, North Carolina
Busch has been probably my most consistent pick in this mock in the fact that he can hit and doesn’t have a pro position. The Daniel Murphy type positionlessness can be overlooked if he can be another strong bat in a future Indians lineup.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Gunnar Henderson, SS, Morgan Academy, Alabama
Henderson really shot up draft boards this spring, and the fact that his tools rank above average to plus across the board bode well for him. Like most high school shortstops, he’ll likely be shifted to another position in pro ball, and third base seems to be his best bet. This would make him an ideal candidate to succeed Justin Turner.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Seth Johnson, RHP, Campbell
I spoke with Seth’s JuCo teammate Vinny Bailey yesterday, and he mentioned the D-Backs are in on him. This is entirely plausible, especially if they are planning on going over slot to grab Allan with their first pick. Johnson is more projectability than track record at this point, but when he reaches his true potential there’s no doubt he could be a rotation stalwart.
Chicago Cubs: Will Wilson, 2B, North Carolina State
The Cubs don’t have a ton of money to throw around so this could be a safe draft for them. Wilson does have the bat to be a solid middle of the lineup hitter, but he’s definitely a pro second baseman after playing college shortstop. He and Nico Hoerner would make a solid double play combo in the future.
Milwaukee Brewers: Daniel Espino, RHP, Georgia Premier Academy.
There’s no doubt that Espino, once thought to be a top 10 pick, is a first round pick, the question is where he’ll go. Could he go top 20, or is it possible he slips lower? Milwaukee has shown they are willing to take the best possible players, and Espino is similar to Brice Turang in regards to the value in relation to the pick.
Oakland Athletics: Kameron Misner, OF, Missouri
Misner was supposed to be picked where JJ Bleday is currently going, but a bad conference season has all but sunken him to the bottom of the first round. The A’s really need a do-over after Kyler Murray stiffed them for football, and Misner’s potentially loud bat is going to work well for that lineup in a couple years.
New York Yankees: Jack Leiter, RHP, Delbarton HS, New Jersey
This is probably the most unrealistic scenario in the draft, but what if the Yankees were to make a package deal to get Jack Leiter? Leiter appears to only want to go to the Yankees or Mets, otherwise he’s going straight to Vanderbilt, but the Yankees do have the money and the picks to allow him to stay in round 1. We’ll dive back into this one shortly.
Los Angeles Dodgers: Noah Song, RHP, Navy
Even if Song does honor his service commitment, there are plenty of teams that are more than willing to be patient with him. The Dodgers have plenty of pitching and as such can afford to let him go. Song definitely deserves to be a professional baseball player, in fact he is a finalist for the Golden Spikes award. If Song does opt to return his school money, his signing bucket will make it a drop in the bucket.
Houston Astros: Davis Wendzel, UTIL, Baylor
Wendzel has really intrigued me with his versatility, and it is possible he could be moved behind the plate. He’s got a tremendous stick, and could be a Brian McCann type bopper for the Astros in the future.
COMPENSATORY PICKS:
Arizona Diamondbacks: Braden Shewmake, INF, Texas A&M
Shewmake can play anywhere on the diamond and his grittiness and hustle make him all that more attractive. His pedigree also will earn him some points.
Arizona Diamondbacks: Keoni Cavaco, 3B, Eastlake HS, California
Cavaco’s calling card is his toolsiness, and while his contact does need refinement there’s no doubt that he could be a Jose Ramirez type in pro ball.
CB PICKS:
Miami Marlins: Logan Davidson, SS, Clemson
Davidson does need to show he can hit with wood, but if he falls here, it wouldn’t be out of the question to see the Marlins pounce.
Tampa Bay Rays: John Doxakis, LHP, Texas A&M
Doxakis is the type of high floor easy sign pick that allows the Rays to pick a high ceiling guy later on, but he’s got tremendous stuff with a Sale-like delivery. He’d easily slide in as a back end starter.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Brady McConnell, IF/OF, Florida
McConnell made up for a terrible high school senior season and meh freshman college season by breaking out this year. He’s got a chance to make it into the first round proper, but his asking price to not go back to Florida has to be high. Pittsburgh could add him and potentially convert him to a centerfielder.
New York Yankees: Anthony Volpe, SS, Delbarton HS, New Jersey
The Yankees are probably the best bet to sign Volpe and Jack Leiter, but it would mean they’d have to make some serious concessions from rounds 2–10 to accomodate their money demands, still Volpe and Leiter would obviously love to play together at the pro level.
Minnesota Twins: Isaiah Campbell, RHP, Arkansas
There’s a pretty good chance that the Twins will be raiding Arkansas for arms, especially if Wes Johnson has his way. Campbell’s been a solid starter for the Razorbacks and would be a solid midrotation piece.
Tampa Bay Rays: Tyler Callihan, 3B, Providence HS, Florida
Callihan to catcher is dead, but the Rays could grab a strong corner bat that could give them power they haven’t seen consistently.
Texas Rangers: Jimmy Lewis, RHP, Lake Travis HS, Texas
If the Rangers draft Brett Baty at 8, they’ll be saving money for Lewis here. Lewis is both established and projectable, and the big righty could easily be swayed from LSU if paired with his high school teammate.
