2025 MLB Draft: Day One Takes
July 14, 2025
Day One of the 2025 MLB Draft is complete, and we fit the first 105 picks in it, spanning three full rounds, including those sandwich rounds in between. There’s room for a lot of takes and opinions, so we decided to welcome in our friends at D1Baseball to help us break down a live day of action in Atlanta.
You can find the complete results to Day One on MLB.com’s Draft Tracker. Day Two of the MLB Draft will start at 10:30/11:30 a.m. CT/ET.
Which team had the best Day One?
+ David Seifert, Director of College Scouting at Prep Baseball & D1Baseball: Chicago White Sox
There were several that I really liked, including the Angels’ blend of present, quick-to-the-big-leagues talent with the future projection of prep Johnny Slawinski, and how can you not like the quantity and quality of the Orioles’ and Red Sox’s Day One picks? But, with just three picks the South Siders nailed it. At No. 10 overall they grabbed Billy Carlson, an elite prep shortstop from SoCal. They stayed local for another high ceiling prep at No. 44 overall with Jaden Fauske, then finished their three-pick day with the high-floor collegiate shortstop Kyle Lodise (Georgia Tech) who could turn into a Greg Gagne/Mike Bordick-type of ML’er.
+ Kendall Rogers, Managing Editor at D1Baseball: Boston Red Sox
Kyson Witherspoon was my No. 2 college arm; Marcus Phillips oozed massive upside; Anthony Eyanson is under-drafted as a third-rounder; and Henry Godbout is icing on the cake.
+ Aaron Fitt, Editor-in-Chief at D1Baseball: Boston Red Sox
No club did a better job mining the college pitching ranks than Boston, which landed three big-time impact arms in Kyson Witherspoon, Marcus Phillips and Anthony Eyanson. Witherspoon was No. 2 on my personal board, so landing him at No. 15 felt like a coup.
+ Mark Etheridge, Senior Writer at D1Baseball: Baltimore Orioles
Baltimore had seven first day picks and the list looks like a college all-star team: Ike Irish, Caden Bodine, and Wehiwa Aloy highlight the haul.
+ Mike Rooney, College Baseball Analyst at D1Baseball: Philadelphia Phillies
The Phils may have selected three future big league starters on Day One, and I love that all three attack hitters in very unique ways. If Gage Wood had made 15 starts this year, he's a top-10 pick.
+ Patrick Ebert, Midwest & Summer Baseball Writer at D1Baseball: Boston Red Sox
Kyson Witherspoon, the Red Sox first pick at No. 15 overall, feels like a player the industry overthought based on his profile and the success he enjoyed at Oklahoma. He and the team's third round pick, Anthony Eyanson, provide excellent value at their respective selections. Sandwiched in between are live-armed Tennessee righthander Marcus Phillips and hard-hitting Virginia middle infielder Henry Godbout, a pair of players that combine polished current skill and toolsets with promising remaining projection.
+ Burke Granger, Midwest Correspondent at D1Baseball: Baltimore Orioles
The O's had the largest bonus pool in draft history, and they used it to load up on college talent on Day One. Ike Irish, Caden Bodine, Wehiwa Aloy, Joseph Dzierwa, JT Quinn and RJ Austin are quite a haul.
+ Shooter Hunt, Vice President of Scouting at Prep Baseball: Seattle Mariners
Having a ready-now, Max Fried-type southpaw like Kade Anderson get to an org that regularly elevates college arms is brilliant! Plus, stocking with a draft soph (Luke Stevenson), who would have been a top-10 pick next year, and one of the best pure prep athletes with big power (Nicky Becker) who would have stepped on campus as a likely first-rounder is outstanding. Then to round it out with another high-level college starter in Griffin Hugus... bravo.
+ Ian Smith, Regional Advisor, Georgia Asst. Scouting Director at Prep Baseball: Seattle Mariners
Having the top arm in the class in Kade Anderson fall into your lap at a discount was a massive start for the Mariners and set the tone for a big Day One. Luke Stevenson provides great value at No. 35 with significant switch-hitting juice and high-level defensive chops. First-round savings will be paramount in signing high-upside, third-round pick Nicky Becker and RHP Griffin Hugus offers a solid floor with potential underslot savings in the fourth round.
+ Andy Sroka, National Managing Editor at Prep Baseball: Colorado Rockies
The Rockies sit at 22-74 at the MLB All-Star break with a farm system lacking impact, star-level talent – it's no man's land, in other words. On Sunday, they owned the No. 4 overall pick in the draft, as well as three other picks inside the first three rounds, and the fifth-largest bonus pool ($12.8 million). The next few drafts are going to be absolutely crucial for the direction of this franchise, and I think they're off to as good of a start as they could hope for following Day One of the '25 Draft.
Surely, after the Draft Lottery, they were disappointed to be picking fourth overall after owning a 22.5 percent chance at the No. 1 overall pick. And yet, they came away with the player they might have taken first overall had the lottery broken their way: Ethan Holliday. The 2025 Prep Baseball Player of the Year is headed to the same organization that selected his father, Matt Holliday, in the 1998 MLB Draft – only 206 picks earlier. But the Rockies also did well with their next three picks, Nos. 45, 74, and 77.
In the second round, they selected RHP J.B. Middleton from Southern Miss, who garners a ton of swings and misses with a malleable mid-90s fastball and a lights-out slider, and there's a very good changeup here, too, giving him a starter's mix that could play even in a park like Coors. Max Belyeu, from Texas, is a first-round-type talent who dealt with a thumb/wrist injury that robbed him of the chance to really flaunt his dynamic left-handed bat in 2025. And with pick No. 77, they took USC's third baseman and closer, Ethan Hedges. He was announced as a third baseman and that's where scouts agree his future is brightest, as an all-around asset who defends his position well and hit .346 with 14 homers this year for the Trojans. It's the type of pick they might be able to save a little bit of pool money on, too, and with 17 more picks to go on Day Two.
Favorite Day One Pick?
+ David Seifert: Athletics, No. 48, OF Devin Taylor (Indiana; LaSalle HS, OH, 2022)
Ranked No. 8 on our final college prospect rankings, Taylor fell all the way to No. 48 to the A's. The franchise gets a fast-tracking big leaguer in the ‘Hit Doctor.’
+ Kendall Rogers: Orioles, No. 31, SS Wehiwa Aloy (Arkansas; Baldwin HS, HI, 2022)
I do think with all the shortstops that went, Aloy was drafted a little low. Love the electric bat/defense if he can improve offspeed swing-and-miss.
+ Aaron Fitt: Braves, No. 60, SS Alex Lodise (Florida State; Bartram Trail HS, FL, 2022)
A first-team All-American with multiple plus tools (raw power, arm strength), Lodise can still play at shortstop and has big-time star potential if he can continue to progress with his approach. What a value at pick No. 60 for the Braves.
+ Mark Etheridge: Athletics, No. 11, LHP Jamie Arnold (Florida State; Jesuit HS, FL, 2022)
Getting Jamie Arnold at No. 11 seems like a steal, considering where he was mocked most of the year.
+ Mike Rooney: Brewers, No. 29, 3B Andrew Fischer (Tennessee; Wall HS, NJ, 2022)
Fischer is the highest floor hitter in this draft and I wouldn't put a 30-home run season past him. It will be interesting to see if any positional versatility can be manufactured here but this is a big league bat, plain and simple.
+ Patrick Ebert: Pirates, No. 6, RHP Seth Hernandez (Corona HS, CA, 2025)
Surprises at the top of the draft led to Seth Hernandez falling in the Pirates lap. Hernandez might be the best high school righthander leading up to draft day since Hunter Greene went second overall in 2017.
+ Burke Granger: Mets, No. 38, 2B/RHP Mitch Voit (Michigan; Whitefish Bay HS, WI, 2022)
Mets used their first pick (No. 38) on Voit and announced him as a two-way player. Voit closed for the Wolverines as a freshman, and was a rotation arm as a sophomore. He's also played all over the field defensively (1B, 2B, 3B, RF).
+ Shooter Hunt: Royals, No. 28, SS Josh Hammond (Wesleyan Christian HS, NC, 2025)
Pairing him with Sean Gamble (No. 23) will push both, and their collective ceilings are impactfully high. Hammond is built in the same mold of Bobby Witt Jr., in the sense that he has tunnel vision for greatness – a no-nonsense, one-lane road to be the best.
+ Ian Smith: Diamondbacks, No. 18, SS Kayson Cunningham (S.A. Johnson HS, TX, 2025)
Landing one of the best hit tools on the prep side at pick No. 18 will always feel like a win. The makeup and work ethic for Cunningham match some of the high-level preps Arizona has drafted in recent years (Slade Caldwell, JD Dix) paired with huge success they've had with this type of profile makes this some of the best value I saw in the first round.
+ Andy Sroka: White Sox, No. 10, SS Billy Carlson (Corona HS, CA, 2025)
The White Sox have not taken too many swings at drafting prep shortstops in recent years, especially not in the first round. Well, Billy Carlson is about as prototypical as it gets for the profile. A SoCal thoroughbred who's performed on all of the brightest stages and in every aspect, even from the mound. The right-handed bat has been nitpicked by evaluators, but all the while he's produced against the toughest competition in the nation and he doesn't swing and miss either. Meanwhile, the defense has the chance to be special at shortstop.
Surprise Pick of Day One?
+ David Seifert: Braves, No. 96, SS Cody Miller (East Tennessee State; Rocky Point HS, NY, 2022)
The only player selected who was not in our final top-150, Miller was selected in the third round, No. 96 overall by Atlanta. He stood out with two home runs at the Nashville Regional and finished the season batting .332 with 18 home runs and 27 stolen bases for East Tennessee State.
+ Kendall Rogers: Guardians, No. 27, OF Jace LaViolette (Texas A&M; Tompkins HS, TX, 2022)
The Guardians absolutely crushed outfield picks on Day One. LaViolette's ceiling is massive if he can improve swing and miss. He’s a steal at No. 27, in my opinion.
+ Aaron Fitt: Athletics, No. 48, OF Devin Taylor (Indiana; LaSalle HS, OH, 2022)
Sure, he's a left fielder with minimal defensive value, but that's one of the best bats in the draft, with plus raw power to boot. Shocked that he fell to pick No. 48.
+ Mark Etheridge: Angels, No. 2, RHP Tyler Bremner (UC Santa Barbara; Scripps Ranch HS, CA, 2022)
Second overall would have made sense in preseason and the talent is there, but it was a surprise selection.
+ Mike Rooney: Angels, No. 2, RHP Tyler Bremner (UC Santa Barbara; Scripps Ranch HS, CA, 2022)
I was surprised to see Bremner go ahead of Kyson Witherspoon, not to mention the trifecta of college southpaws projected to go in the first five picks. Bremner gives the Angels a lot to dream on however, and this is where he would have projected if the draft was last summer.
+ Patrick Ebert: Angels, No. 2, RHP Tyler Bremner (UC Santa Barbara; Scripps Ranch HS, CA, 2022)
Leading up to the draft the narrative led everyone to believe that if Kade Anderson didn't go No. 1 overall the Angels would jump all over him. Instead, the Angels took the arm that made perfect sense for the second overall pick before the season even started.
+ Burke Granger: Dodgers, No. 104, OF Landyn Vidourek (Cincinnati; Badin HS, OH, 2022)
Tooled up, Vidourek improved his stock tremendously this spring. The speedster swiped 39 bags in 40 tries, though he has some swing and miss to contend with. He was banged up in the postseason, but was able to participate in the combine.
+ Shooter Hunt: Tigers, No. 34, C Michael Oliveto (Happauge HS, NY, 2025)
A prep Yale commit?! The rarest of rare, Oliveto's left-handed stick picked up plenty of buzz throughout the spring, but even still, the draw of an Ivy League education loomed large. His selection, especially at pick No. 34, was an eye-opener.
+ Ian Smith: Angels, No. 79, LHP Johnny Slawinski (Johnson City HS, TX, 2025)
The Angels being able to land Slawinski at No. 79 feels like a huge steal, as the lefty could have had a ceiling in the comp rounds. It’s a polished four-pitch mix with a sturdy frame, the Prep Baseball All-American is likely an overslot sign but has potential to be one of the best Day One values.
+ Andy Sroka: Tigers, No. 24, Jordan Yost (Sickles HS, FL, 2025)
The Florida prep shortstop had been catching some real steam this spring, after beginning the year somewhat off the radar. The name was familiar considering he plays for a prominent high school program and he was committed to the Gators, where his brother Hayden plays everyday. Despite all of that, Yost was seen as a pure projection-type prospect that fit more of a third round kind of profile. He's a left-handed-hitting athlete with a quality approach, but physically he'll need quite a bit of time to add weight and strength.
I was surprised to see the Tigers draft a lottery ticket like this one with their first-round pick, but with the best record in baseball and arguably the best farm system too, why not swing for the fences at No. 24?
Who’s the best still on the board?
+ David Seifert: LHP Jack Bauer (Lincoln-Way East HS, IL, 2025)
The Nats should have the pool money to do it. Let's get it done.
+ Kendall Rogers: 1B Jacob Walsh (Oregon; Desert Oasis HS, NV, 2022)
I'm going off the board a little, but it's a massive-framed left-handed hitter with plus-plus power.
+ Aaron Fitt: OF Henry Ford (Virginia; Baylor HS, TN, 2023)
Might be a tricky sign as an eligible sophomore, but there is so much upside in that lefthanded power bat that he's worth making a run at, despite an uneven spring.
+ Mark Etheridge: LHP Jack Bauer (Lincoln-Way East HS, IL, 2025)
It's 103 mph from the left side, which makes him practically a unicorn.
+ Mike Rooney: OF James Quinns-Irons (George Mason; South Lakes HS, VA, 2022)
Level of competition must be accounted for, but give me the 6-foot-5, 230-pound center fielder with 42 extra-base hits, 36 stolen bases, vastly improved contact skills, and a 1.258 OPS.
+ Patrick Ebert: LHP Jack Bauer (Lincoln-Way East HS, IL, 2025)
Long identified as one of the top 2025 grads, athletic 6-foot-3 lefties don't grow on trees, especially ones that touch 103 mph. He may already be a difficult sign at this point as a Mississippi State recruit, but is the type of player scouting departments will try to shift draft capital to be able to pull the trigger.
+ Burke Granger: LHP Brandon Arvidson (Tennessee; Dripping Springs HS, TX, 2022)
He's one of the nastiest pitchers I saw this spring. A 6-foot-5 lefty with a fastball up to 96 mph; 70 Ks in 38.2 innings, a 42.2% K-rate, and a a 50.6% whiff rate (96th percentile) on his slider. There's a lot to like here.
+ Shooter Hunt: OF Ty Peeples (Franklin County HS, GA, 2025)
The White Sox have had an awesome draft with three athletic position players. Why stop there? Peeples and Fauske would be a dynamic pair in the outfield behind Carlson.
+ Ian Smith: OF Korbyn Dickerson (Indiana; Trinity HS, KY, 2022)
Legit plus raw power and ability to give you an above-average glove in center field will give you an easy floor here, but the ceiling has a chance to explode with pro development.
+ Andy Sroka: LHP Jack Bauer (Lincoln-Way East HS, IL, 2025)
I don't really know that they can afford it, considering they are probably going to sign their first three picks for full slot value (presumably), but Jack Bauer makes a ton of sense for the White Sox, just going by track record. In recent years, they've taken quite a few left-handers, and they've targeted prep arms and especially ones they've gained familiarity with locally (Noah Schultz, IL; Christian Oppor, WI). It feels like a match made on South Side heaven that the White Sox get the time to figure out how to maneuver their bonus pool in a way that will allow them to sign the triple-digit lefty, one who grew up not all that far away from their own home ballpark.
Final Day One Thoughts
+ David Seifert: The new Nats' regime showed their hand that the future is not now by selecting Eli Willits and saving upwards of $3 million from the first overall slot, which they can use to acquire more high-valued prospects. Other Day One notes, seven of the first 14 picks were high school shortstop. Four of the first 33 picks were Tennessee Volunteers.
+ Kendall Rogers: There were eight Vols selected total. I also thought the Red Sox and Orioles did some seriously good homework on a vast majority of their picks.
+ Aaron Fitt: Eight Tennessee Volunteers selected on Day One is a testament to the absurd sheer talent on that roster. No other team had more than four draftees Sunday. Overall, SEC had 32 Day One picks; next-closest was ACC with 13.
+ Mark Etheridge: We had 14 prep shortstops go in the top 39 picks. The SEC had nine players, plus 11 signees go in the 40-pick first round.
+ Mike Rooney: The college baseball fan in me was quite panicked seeing all of those high school players taken up top. But upon further notice, 21 prepsters were taken in the top-50 picks and that is very comparable to 18 high school players going in that same range a year ago. Crisis seemingly averted.
+ Patrick Ebert: After an expected, heavy run of prep shortstops, it was interesting to see the picks shift to proven and productive college players towards the end of the first round. Wehiwa Aloy, Brendan Summerhill and Devin Taylor are among some of the more surprising players that fell much further than projected.
+ Burke Granger: I like what the A's did. Jamie Arnold and Devin Taylor entered the draft cycle as arguably the top pitcher and hitter in this class.The Athletics got them at Nos. 11 and 48.
+ Shooter Hunt: We spoke of how much talent the prep shortstop class had well over a year ago, but to see it actually quantified (16 of the top 22, with four others listed as corner infielders) was astounding.
+ Ian Smith: As expected, the middle bats continue to reign supreme and it was quite impressive to see the run of prep middle infielders in the first 50 picks. Despite only having two and three picks respectively on Day One, extremely bullish on the White Sox and Athletics for the value they found.
+ Andy Sroka: Despite the surprise at No. 1 overall, this draft always felt like it could go in a lot of different directions, even in the top-10 or top-5, even. If anything, my thoughts at the end of Day One have me surprised at the lack of off-the-wall picks we're used to seeing pop up in the MLB Draft annually. I'll be interested to see if some of these prominent undrafted high schoolers can still be paid enough to lure them away from school, like Jack Bauer (IL), Briggs McKenzie (NC), and Miguel Sime (NY), among others.