Branch Rickey was the pioneer of scouting and one of the best to ever do it. But even he misjudged from time to time. The same applies to today’s scouting industry – everyone misses.

Paul Goldschmidt (Texas State) and Brian Dozier (Southern Miss) were both well undervalued as eighth-rounders in 2009. In 2018 Tarik Skubal (Seattle) was coming off surgery and was selected in the ninth round. That same year Cal Raleigh (Florida State) was chosen in the third round, but his career WAR currently ranks fourth of ALL players selected in that draft – Skubal is fifth. And most recently, Seth Halvorsen (Tennessee) already looks like a steal in the seventh round of 2023. Needless to say, the list of those exceeding expectations from their draft position grows every year, and 2025 will be no different.

For our All-Undervalued Team we’ve used a variety of industry sources and compared those opinions to our current prospect rankings. If there was a significant gap, that prospect is eligible for selection to our team.

2025 MLB Draft: All-Undervalued Team

RHPs: Ethan Young (ECU), Aiden Jimenez (Arkansas), Sawyer Hawks (Vanderbilt), Zane Taylor (UNC Wilmington). Young, the Pirates’ bullpen ace, performed brilliantly this spring and his value far exceeds that of the typical college reliever. He repeats a starter-type delivery with good arm action to go along with four pitches. His arsenal is led by a fastball that averaged 94.9 mph and a putaway slider with a 95th percentile whiff rate of 49.4%. He’s certain to be drafted and sent out as a starting pitcher in pro ball. The son of a former Major Leaguer, Jimenez was the only pitcher to appear on both the Heat Sheet and Control Artists. He combines velocity (FB averaged 93.5 mph) and control (66.5% strike rate) as well as anyone. Jimenez also has an out pitch in his slider that generated a 97th percentile chase rate. Hawks, a 2024 preseason top three round prospect, sustained an arm injury during his junior season at Vandy. Fully healthy in 2025, he found his mojo, added velo to his heater and perfected his change-of-pace. The results were an outstanding season out of the bullpen, finishing with a 1.60 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 45 innings. At 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, Hawks has a repeatable delivery, good arm action and three distinct pitches led by his mid-90s fastball and a firm, sinking changeup. Like Young and Jimenez above, Hawks will likely be sent out as a starter at the pro level. Taylor was a starter throughout his collegiate career, making 57 starts over 59 appearances over four seasons with the Seahawks. He’s been overlooked similarly to fellow Carolinian Zebby Matthews (Western Carolina) who landed in the eighth round to the Twins in 2022. Front office analysts likely didn’t “miss” on Taylor who struck out 105 while posting a 1.98 ERA in 95 innings this spring as a senior, but at 5-foot-11 and from a mid-major he hadn’t received much juice before impressing at the MLB Draft Combine last week. No matter, he’s a four-pitch, strike-throwing talent who touches 97 with his fastball (averaged 93.6) and slices a nasty mid-80s cutter.

LHPs: Luke Dotson (Mississippi State), Brandon Arvidson (Tennessee). The sophomore-eligible Dotson was somewhat hidden in the Bulldogs’ bullpen, pitching just 23 innings over 18 appearances. His metrics are outstanding, led by a 100th percentile strikeout rate of 34.7% and his stuff is very good as well with a 92-94 mph fastball and a 100th percentile whiff changeup. Already on the portal transfer to Texas, he’ll likely receive more in NIL than the draft would pay him, but he’s another undervalued prospect with Major League potential. Six-foot-5 Arvidson isn’t listed in any of the industry’s top prospect rankings, but with 70 strikeouts in 38 innings, good for a 100th percentile strikeout rate of 42.2% – Liam Doyle’s strikeout rate is 42.6% – he’s certainly deserving of higher-level draft love.

Catchers: Matt Klein (Louisville), Adonys Guzman (Arizona). Klein could be John Jaso 2.0 and was recently featured in Tale of the Tape- Top College Catchers. Guzman was going under the radar as a 6th-to-10th round prospect, but likely popped into the top five rounds thanks to his stellar play at the CWS. He possesses average raw power (109.7 max EV) and better than average arm strength.

1B: Jacob Walsh (Oregon). Few are able to make an adjustment like the one Walsh managed this season. The 6-foot-4, 225-pound lefthanded slugger turned a 26.2% strikeout rate as a junior into an 18.1 rate this spring. Combining his much improved bat-to-ball with his 80-grade raw power (119 max EV) and you could have Ryan Howard 2.0 coming soon to a MLB ballpark near you.

2B: Nick Monistere (Southern Miss). There certainly doesn’t seem to be a ton of love for an infield prospect who batted .323 and belted 21 home runs in the ultra-competitive Sun Belt Conference. Stats are just stats, but Monistere also has top five round tools that are led by his 55-grade raw power which produced a max EV of 111.7 mph this season.

SS: Colby Shelton (Florida), Jake Ogden (Miami), Tyriq Kemp (Baylor). Shelton is already a day one prospect (rounds 1-3), but more so projected to the third round. I’d personally begin to consider him early in the second. A lefthanded hitter with near plus-plus raw power, he has Paul DeJong in-his-prime upside. More on Shelton here in our Tale of Tape- Top Middle Infielders. Ogden transferred from UNC Greensboro to Miami for the 2025 season and continued to hit, as he’s done throughout his career. He doesn’t walk much, but he also doesn’t strike out too often and has some pop in his stick with a 111.6 max EV this season. He’s also a solid defender who should stay in position as a pro. Standing 5-foot-7 and 160 pounds, Kemp has the least power of the three, but he’s a personal favorite who I saw early this season and wrote about in Week Three of College Crosscheck. He’s built similar to long-time big leaguer Tony Kemp, but there’s no relation as Tyriq is a native of the Netherlands. He broke into college baseball at Western Oklahoma State JC and then took his talents to Waco where he batted .363 with 14 doubles, seven home runs and just a 11.7% strikeout rate this season. The 22 year-old talent is also a strong defender who would be on my short list of middle infielders for selection during rounds five to ten.

3B: Jake Munroe (Louisville), Anthony Depino (Rhode Island). Below average exit velocities suppressed Munroe’s draft value during the regular season, but an all-star performance at the CWS has likely boosted him where he belongs into the top five to six rounds. Listed with only a 107.6 max EV, I’ve witnessed more mph’s during my in-person looks this spring. Critics also point to his less than average defense at the hot corner as another reason for his value suppression. However, my gut tells me that Munroe is an overachiever who will continue to improve at third base. More on Munroe here in Former Juco Hitters Building Draft Buzz. Another overachiever worthy of consideration in a higher round than where the industry currently values is Depino. Have you seen this guy swing it? He may not be facing Cy Young every weekend in the A-10, but oh my, the 5-foot-11, 230-pound Depino takes man hacks that produces consistent, hard contact. His max EV this season was 114.7 mph which grades as plus on the pro scale. With that juice, he hammered 20 home runs and drove in 61 for the Rams while also controlling the strike zone with a 14% strikeout rate and a 19% walk rate.

Outfielders: Nathan Humphreys (DBU), Aaron Walton (Arizona), Kade Snell (Alabama). Senior Patriot Humphreys impressed in the Cape during the summer of 2023, but scuffled as a junior while playing through injury in 2024 for DBU. He possesses a well-rounded toolset and he performed at a high level when he returned to full health this spring – .353/.457/.679 with 17 home runs and 21 stolen bases. Walton has steadily moved up prospect lists this spring, but his power/speed package combined with his physical size (6-foot-3/215 pounds) and ability to remain in the middle of the diamond is a game changer. It’s worthy of more than the 3rd-to-4th round value that the industry currently places. The draft is certainly about acquiring future major leaguers, and it’s also about procuring assets. Walton’s tools and abilities are easily worth $1M+. More on Walton in our Tale of the Tape: Top Outfielders. Snell is an easy selection to the undervalued squad. Soon to be 23 years of age, his bat-to-ball skills are high-level, he rarely chases and when combined with his average raw power (111.6 max EV) there’s a big league bat in some capacity to be had with his selection. He slashed .363/.464/.575 with a miniscule 6.9% strikeout rate (98th percentile) for the Crimson Tide this season.