It is mock draft season, and since I don’t have a pick in any of the first 7 rounds, I thought I’d go ahead and do a mock draft that is 100% legit- for the first time ever. There’s no propaganda here, because honestly I have no chance of any of these players and there’s really no way I will be moving into the early rounds to draft someone. Now, the other side of that coin is that I have done very little in-depth scouting of any player who I think will be going in the first three rounds, so take all of this with a rather large grain of salt. But it is a fun exercise for me, and hopefully you enjoy reading it.
Oh, and for the record, I wrote this before seeing that Rem had written a mock draft as well, so it’ll be fun to do a side-by-side comparison.
1. Danimals– Kade Anderson– LHP- Sea
I’m going on a bit of a limb here, because everyone that I’ve heard has Imai going first overall. However, I think that Anderson has the advantage here. First, he doesn’t have to adjust to the different size baseball that a NPB pitcher will, which I fear will lead Imai into arm problems. Second, I think Anderson has the higher ceiling and honestly a higher floor given that he’s a southpaw. Anderson also has a better park to pitch in with a team that has shown to be good at developing pitchers. Anderson is also 6 years younger. Personally, and I could be wrong, but I think Kade is the only pitcher in the first round who has legit staff ace potential.
2. GI Zo’s– Tatsuya Imai– RHP- Hou
It’s no secret that Zobrack loves him players from the Orient (yeah, racist, I know, laugh a little) and he’ll be happy to get Imai at second overall. Imai may immediately settle in as a very solid CPL starter- maybe even better. I don’t see him being an ace, but if he does what he is projected to do, he’s a great addition to the Zo’s and what they’ve been doing recently in trying to build a team that will be competitive in the not-too-distant future. I do worry about injury with him, so hopefully he stays healthy for the Zo’s.
3. GI Zo’s– Kazuma Okamoto– 3B- Tor
Remember what I said about Zobrack and his yellow fever? It holds true here as well. As does the idea of him adding talent that will help him to be competitive soon. Okamoto apparently has struggled against righties, but the AL East has a lot of lefty starters, so he may eat them up. Can he handle premium velocity though? We’ll see. But if Zobrack makes these two picks he potentially has immediately improved him major league team significantly.
4. The Big Units– Liam Doyle- LHP StL
Last year the Units took a college player with a high ceiling that was likely going to help them very soon when they drafted Kurtz third overall. They’ll repeat that this year by taking Doyle who some (not me) prefer over Kade Anderson. The Cardinals will be bad this year, so does that mean they’ll let Doyle up this year? Or hold onto his prospect eligibility for another year? Either way, he’s another long-term staple to help the Units Build a strong foundation.
5. Bloop and a Blast– Dax Kilby– SS- NyY
The biggest helium guy since the MLB draft? Likely, given that the Yankees took him 39th overall and he debuted hotter than anyone. The fact that he is a Yankee farmhand buys him a very long leash of prospect value, but there seems to be some legitimate talent here. In the short draft history that we have from Ross, he likes those high-high upside guys and Kilby seems to be right up his alley.
6. Bloop and a Blast– JoJo Parker-SS- Tor
Back-to-back for Ross, and back-to-back prep shortstops. I may like Parker more than Kilby simply because his ceiling is a little more unknown, and I like to gamble. Paker never had a hitting coach and still managed to go 8th overall to the defending AL Champs. What is the kid going to do once he gets professional tutelage? The future is tantalizing. He was old for a high school prospect (almost 19 on draft day), so that tarnishes the shine a little bit. But pairing two high ceiling shortstops and plugging them into his littles can only make Ross very excited.
7. Nellamaniacs– Eli Willits– SS- Was
From one of the oldest high schoolers to the youngest, and also the first overall pick in the MLB draft. Willits is a player that I think is getting overlooked because he landed in Washington and because Washington also traded for Fien. If Eli had ended up with the Dodgers or the Yankees I think the prospect world would be way more interested in him. But it’s fair to have concerns about how the Nationals will develop him. My hope is that his pedigree (his dad is former Angels great Reggie) can offset any bad development the Nats put on him. Willits will immediately become the crown jewel in the Nellamaniacs farm.
8. Baby Seals- Manuetaka Murakami– 1B- ChW
Fred likes to draft safe, and while there are players available here with higher ceilings, Murakami will provide immediate impact at the major league level with the opportunity to be an average or better first baseman. Fred does have Olson and Manzardo already, but the thing not to overlook is that Murakami qualifies at third this year and that is a pretty large hole on the Baby Seals. Murakami going here makes a ton of sense.
9. Banocolates– Seth Hernandez SP- Pit
I know history says that Jeff is going to draft a hitter, but I’m banking that he goes with the guy left on the board who has arguably the highest ceiling. A pitcher who also happened to be drafted by an organization that has been successful recently in developing starting pitching. Banocolates had tremendous success last year due largely to really strong pitching and I think a pitcher of Hernandez’s ceiling will be too juicy to pass up. Unless I’m mistaken, Hernandez was the only pitcher from this class to be given a future grade of 65 by Baseball America.
10. Fajita Eaters– Aiva Arquette– SS- Mia
Rem is a slave to the BA grade, and David’s brother has a tasty 60 AV next to his name. Not a bad get at 10th overall. And unless they’re still banking on Wander Franco, the Eaters don’t really have a legit shortstop of the future. Rumors are that once Sebastian Walcott is ready he may push Seager over to third. If that happens, Rem’s left with Elly at shortstop and not much else. Arquette isn’t just arguably the best player left on the board here, but he also happens to fill what could be a rather large hole on the Eaters’ roster. Even though he’s now injured, it’s only a 6 week injury and it won’t scare Rem off.
11. GI Zo’s– Jamie Arnold- LHP- Oak
For the first time in the history of the CPL there will be three left-handed starters taken in the first round (look it up). Arnold is the last of the three to go, and who knows, he may turn out to be the best…but not until he gets out of pitching in Sacramento. And yes, we still say “Oak” around here. Zobrack continues his trend of MLB ready (or very close to) draft picks who can help the Zo’s by the end of 2027. And realistically, if the 3 guys he’s grabbed here so far come close to their ceiling, then the Zo’s have their top of rotation set for years to come, along with their anchor at the hot corner. Pair them with the other high-level prospects in the organization, and the four picks they have coming up in the second round, and it really is looking up for the Zo’s!
12. Pro Bowlers– Luis Hernandez– SS- SF
Bowlers has a difficult decision to make here. Hernandez has, for months, been the consensus top J15 talent, but over the last few weeks I’ve heard some of the talking heads recently pumping up other players instead- such as Johenssy Colome, Francisco Renteria, Wandy Asigen, or Angeibel Gomez. But Bowlers will grab Hernandez because he seems to have the highest floor- along with perhaps the highest ceiling- of all the J15s. Given how widely documented the low quality of this draft class is, it would not surprise me if we look back in 5 years and see that Hernandez is the best pick in the first round. I know all J15s are major lottery tickets, but San Francisco has seemingly done well with Josuar Gonzalez so far, so maybe they know what they’re doing. Pat has a history of success with the 16 year old IFAs (remember when he wouldn’t trade me Juan Soto the prospect?) and he’ll love getting Hernandez this late in the first.
13. Danimals– Ethan Conrad– OF- ChC
After grabbing the top college arm, Dan swings around toward the end of the round to grab a top college bat. High end/high floor outfielders are rare in this draft, so while he may not be the sexist possibility here, Dan will snatch him up. Plus, he has one more pick left in the first round to take a shot on a wildcard so he’ll go safe rather than sexy here. I think he’ll leave this first round with at least 2 picks who are sure-fire MLBers who can help sooner rather than later. In this draft, that may prove to be the smartest course of action. And besides, with Dan’s well-documented history of good fortune with the players who end up on the Danimals, Conrad may just wind up a first ballot Hall of Famer.
14. GI Zo’s– Xavier Neyens- SS- Hou
This may be a bit of a surprise, but after taking three safe players at #2, #3, and #11 I’m thinking that the Zo’s go for the jackpot with this pick. Neyens may have the highest ceiling of any high school hitter in the draft—including Ethan Holliday. Neyens is someone that I sense is getting more and more love recently after being seemingly largely ignored early in the offseason. No, he is not a shortstop long term, but 30 homer third base prospects are hard to find. And given that Neyens was drafted 21st overall (before Dax Kilby) it’s not ridiculous that he gets drafted here.
15. Danimals– Johenssy Colome– SS- Oak
The best J15 in this year’s draft? Maybe. The highest ceiling of anyone in this draft? Perhaps. A long-term third baseman who could go 30/30? Not out of the question. And given that he’ll be drafted by Dan means that the answer to those three questions is almost certainly yes. With this pick Danimals will leave the 2026 first round with Kade Anderson, Ethan Conrad, and Johenssy. A good balance of strong safety and Powerball potential. The rich just get richer, amiright?
16. Bloop and a Blast– Wandy Asigen– SS-NyM
The last time the CPL had more than two J15 players go in the first round was back in 2020, but that streak will end this year when Ross- who has a knack for taking players that I really like- finishes the first round out by grabbing Asigen. He seems to be the J15 who has moved up draft boards more than any other since signing, and there are those who like him just as much as Luis Hernandez. Bloop finishes their first round leaving with some real young guys with incredible upside in Dax, JoJo, and Asigen.
No, it’s not a mistake that I left Ethan Holliday out of the first round. I don’t think anyone will chance it with him and that he’ll likely fall to the second round. Holliday came into last year as the favorite to go 1.1, but he fell to 4th overall. At first look you’d think it’s sexy that he will get to hit in Colorado, but then you realize that the only first round high school hitter the Rockies have developed in the last 20 years is Trevor Story. Pair that with his 40% strikeout rate after his debut last year, along with the disappointment that his older brother has been, and I think it’s likely that Holliday goes at the top of the second round.
I won’t do write ups for these, but here’s how I think the second round will go.
17. Bloop and a Blast– Angeibel Gomez- OF- KC
18. G.I. Zo’s– Ethan Frey– OF- Hou
19. G.I. Zo’s– Ethan Holliday– SS- Col
20. The Big Units– Ike Irish– C- Bal
21. G.I. Zo’s- Gavin Fien– SS- Was
22. Tom Cat’s– Jace LaViolette– OF- Cle
23. Nellamaniacs– Josh Hammond– SS- KC
24. Baby Seals– Kyson Witherspoon– RHP- Bos
25. Banocolates– Andrew Fischer– 3B- Mil
26. Fajita Eaters– Tyler Bremner– RHP- LaA
27. Ball Busters– Kayson Cunningham– SS- Ari
28. G.I. Zo’s– Francisco Renteria– SS- Phi
29. Motley Shue– Sean Gamble– OF- KC
30. Banocolates– Kruz Schoolcraft– LHP- SD
31. Danimals– Cody Ponce– SP- Tor
32. Tom Cat’s– Billy Carson– SS- ChW
Share this post
Comments