2024 MLB Mock Draft Final Version: Draft Day Projections & Dart Throws

MLB Mock Draft for every team in the first round

It’s draft day!

Here are some last-minute tweaks after some additional reporting this afternoon. Note the most significant change from our most recent MLB mock draft on Friday is all the way down at pick No. 39, the final selection of the mock at the back of the first supplemental round. The Royals and Nationals completed a trade that sent Hunter Harvey to Kansas City in exchange for Cayden Wallace and the 39th pick—plus the $2,395,000 slot value that will go towards the team’s bonus pool.

The Nationals now have the seventh-largest bonus pool to work with ($13,895,100) and the Royals drop down to eighth-largest ($13,023,300). You can see complete bonus pool information here.

The final mock is largely status quo without any significant recent news. There’s still plenty of questions about who the Guardians are actually taking first overall.

There are a few things worth mentioning:

A number of high school pitchers are sounding pricey as the draft approaches, with big price tags expected for players including RHP William Schmidt, RHP Ryan Sloan and RHP Dax Whitney—all of whom have the talent to go inside the first 40 picks. Schmidt is committed to LSU, Sloan is committed to Wake Forest and Whitney is committed to Oregon State. High school pitchers are the trickiest demographic for mocks, because they are most commonly the players who will be drafted lower and then paid big overslot bonuses. Recent examples include Bubba Chandler in 2021, Brock Porter in 2022 and Thomas White in 2023. I didn’t find homes for any of these three prep pitchers in the final mock because of that but could still see them getting paid first-round money at later picks.
My hunch is there are going to be a few college pitchers who are ranked lower on boards who wind up going in a decent spot after the first-round run of college hitters is exhausted. Names like Drew Beam, Bryce Cunningham and Luke Holman are all getting a bit more attention, and gut-feel pitchers who posted this spring like Ryan Prager and Daniel Eagen could have their names called sooner than the BA Board might suggest.

I’ve included a handful of dart throw names for later selections for every team based both on scouting intel from the season or organizational draft tendencies. I also suggest you take a look at Mock Draft 6.0, which had a lot of fresh intel connecting players to teams.

1. Guardians — JJ Wetherholt, SS, West Virginia

While Cleveland has cast a wide net for 1-1, Charlie Condon, Travis Bazzana and JJ Wetherholt are the top three players on our board and that trio still feels most likely. I’ll stick with Wetherholt once again today. As I wrote Friday, my gut feel is that both Wetherholt and Bazzana are more likely for Cleveland than Condon. If Cleveland views both as equivalent talents and Wetherholt will take a slight discount, the pick makes sense strategically to maximize their bonus pool.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Levi Sterling, RHP Drew Rerick, OF Braylon Payne, SS Adam Haight, SS/3B Sam Antonacci, LHP Ryan Prager, RHP Brian Holiday, C Ryan Campos, RHP LP Langevin, OF Mike Sirota

2. Reds — Charlie Condon, OF, Georgia

Not much has gotten out of Cincinnati’s camp, but I still feel strongly they’ll take a hitter. Condon and Jac Caglianone remain the favorites, with Chase Burns an option if they instead pivot to pitching. Condon is the highest-ranked player on our board and offers more defensive value with less hit tool concerns than Caglianone.

Dart throw names for later picks: SS Colby Shelton, LHP Gage Jump, RHP Levi Sterling

3. Rockies — Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest

With Condon off the board, we’re sticking with Burns here for the sixth consecutive mock. If Condon is available I could easily see him being the pick.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP William Schmidt, RHP Grant Shepardson, RHP Ben Hess, RHP Bryce Cunningham, RHP Luke Holman, RHP Daniel Eagen

4. A’s — Travis Bazzana, 2B, Oregon State

Once again, we see a real path to Bazzana falling to the A’s if he doesn’t go to the Guardians at No. 1 overall. Braden Montgomery and Nick Kurtz remain two underslot options if Oakland hunts a deal.

Dart throw names for later picks: OF Mike Sirota, SS Josh Kuroda-Grauer, SS Kyle DeBarge, 3B Aiden Harris

5. White Sox — Jac Caglianone, 1B/LHP, Florida

I wrote on Friday that the White Sox are linked to more players than any other team inside the top five, perhaps with the exception of Cleveland. I still think this could be a pivot point of the draft. There also seems like there could be some more volatility with Caglianone than expected. Ultimately, his gigantic power upside might be too much to pass up. Konnor Griffin and JJ Wetherholt are two other names that would be unsurprising.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Ben Hess, LHP Tristan Smith, RHP Khal Stephen, RHP Jaxon Jelkin

6. Royals — Bryce Rainer, SS, Harvard-Westlake HS, Studio City, Calif.

If you give me a few more days I might flip flop between Rainer and Smith five more times. As we approach draft time though I now find myself leaning more towards the SoCal shortstop, as that’s what I think is the most likely scenario.

Dart throw names for later picks: LHP David Shields, RHP Dax Whitney, OF Nate George, RHP Eli Lovich, LHP Mason Russell

7. Cardinals — Hagen Smith, LHP, Arkansas

I still think the Cardinals might want to grab Rainer if he’s available but after I flipped again and put him with the Royals I am giving St. Louis the top lefthander in the class”

Dart throw names for later picks: C Jacob Cozart, 1B/C Cole Mathis, C Kevin Bazzell, 3B Sean Keys, RHP Nate Knowles

8. Angels — Braden Montgomery, OF, Texas A&M

This still feels like a good spot for Montgomery. There’s a perception in the industry they will continue to target fast movers, so a Christian Moore, James Tibbs III or Trey Yesavage also makes sense.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Chris Cortez, SS Kyle Debarge, SS Griff O’Ferrall, RHP Bridger Holmes, RHP Michael Massey, OF John Spikerman

9. Pirates — Konnor Griffin, OF/SS, Jackson Prep, Flowood, Miss.

We’re sticking with the tooled up Griffin here at a spot where many expect the Pirates could pluck from the high school demographic.

Dart throw names for later picks: SS Griff O’Ferrall, LHP Jared Spencer, LHP Griffin Herring, RHP Chris Cortez

10. Nationals — Nick Kurtz, 1B, Wake Forest

Washington spent a lot of time on both the top high school hitters in the class, but if the mock pans out this way, neither of those players will reach them. Kurtz remains the best player available on talent.

Dart throw names for later picks: OF Harrison Didawick, OF Jacob Jenkins-Cowart, RHP Carson Wiggins, SS Luke Dickerson

11. Tigers — Cam Caminiti, LHP, Saguaro HS, Scottsdale, Ariz.

As we wrote on Friday, Caminiti has been so aggressively linked to the Tigers in the public space that some in the industry are wondering if it’s purely smoke. But they also aggressively scouted the lefthander throughout the spring, and he remains the choice today.

Dart throw names for later picks: SS Carter Johnson, OF Dante Nori

12. Red Sox — Trey Yesavage, RHP, East Carolina

There’s some chatter that Yesavage could slip a bit more than originally expected—I still think he’s going in a pretty good spot. He’s our best player available at this spot and clearly the No. 3 college arm in the class. Perhaps less confident in Christian Moore here than previously.

Dart throw names for later picks: C Kevin Bazzell, OF Mike Sirota, LHP Payton Tolle

13. Giants — James Tibbs III, OF, Florida State

Tibbs jumps up a spot in today’s update. There’s more buzz linking him and Cam Caminiti as two preferred options here. An underslot deal is possible if the right player doesn’t slide to them. Remember, something to consider for the Giants is that they don’t pick again until the fourth round. Their $7.5 million bonus pool is lower than every team picking around them, so they could be less well-positioned to scoop up someone sliding out of the top 10. If they like someone a bit further down the board—say, New Jersey high school shortstop Luke Dickerson, for example—they’ll need to take him here if they want him.

Dart throw names for later picks: LHP Gage Jump, LHP Carter Holton

14. Cubs — Christian Moore, 2B, Tennessee

Hearing some buzz about Vance Honeycutt and Tommy White for the Cubs as well, but after flipping James Tibbs to the Giants in front of this pick, I’ve got the Cubs with Moore—who could also have a bit more volatility than I was expecting a week ago.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Grant Shepardson, LHP Josh Evans, LHP Eli Lovich, 3B Rafe Perich, 3B Gage Miller, LHP Dasan Hill

15. Mariners — Carson Benge, OF/RHP, Oklahoma State

Benge is getting a lot of play in the top 15 range and I’ve heard him linked to Seattle. He remains the pick today.

Dart throw names for later picks: SS Luke Dickerson, SS JD Dix, RHP Dax Whitney, OF Blake Burkholder, LHP Cade Obermueller, LHP Josh Hartle

16. Marlins — Cam Smith, 3B, Florida State

Essentially all of the college hitters who are tied to Seattle are also tied to the Marlins. Smith, Seaver King, Caleb Lomavita and Ryan Waldschmidt all seem to make a lot of sense.

Dart throw names for later picks: 1B Blake Burke, OF Dylan Dreiling, OF Griffin Burkholder,

17. Brewers — Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Kentucky

Waldschmidt is one of the most polarizing players in the industry. He is getting a ton of first-round noise and is linked with many teams, mostly in the middle of the first round and with any team that has an analytical-bent in the draft room. There’s some Kellon Lindsey buzz to the Brewers as well.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Bryce Navarre, RHP Tegan Kuhns, LHP Mason Russell, RHP LP Langevin, RHP Brady Tygart

18. Rays — Jurrangelo Cijntje, BHP, Mississippi State

We’re sticking with the No. 4 college arm in the class here, although there’s some talk about the Rays looking at Theo Gillen and Kellon Lindsey here as well.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Drew Rerick, RHP Thatcher Hurd, 3B Kale Fountain

19. Mets — Vance Honeycutt, OF, North Carolina

With more and more chatter tying the Mets to Vance Honeycutt I am making that change here, though we’re in the range where my confidence for all these picks is quite low. We’ve written at length about how Honeycutt is one of the most intriguing players of the first round.

Dart throw names for later picks: OF Kavares Tears, RHP Daniel Eagen, RHP Michael Massey

20. Blue Jays — Malcolm Moore, C, Stanford

Aside from the Cubs, Moore is most frequently tabbed with the Blue Jays. I’ve heard Tommy White’s name mentioned more with Toronto in the final days, but I’ve also heard them tied with Vance Honeycutt and Walker Janek. Lots of college hitters.

Dart throw names for later picks: 1B Cole Mathis, C Nathan Flewelling, RHP Bryce Meccage, SS Jalin Flores, OF Mike Sirota

21. Twins — Seaver King, SS, Wake Forest

King has the sort of athleticism, bat-to-ball skills and power that Minnesota might like at an up-the-middle position. He remains our choice here on draft day.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Braylon Doughty, SS Wyatt Sanford, LHP Dasan Hill, C Nathan Flewelling

22. Orioles — Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Kansas State

I previously had Honeycutt with this pick, but now I’ve got him going three picks earlier with the Mets and the Orioles are one of the teams most commonly tied to Culpepper. Brody Brecht is also a name we’ve heard linked to the Orioles in the past.

Dart throw names for later picks: 1B Blake Burke, OF Dakota Jordan, 3B Sean Keys

23. Dodgers — Theo Gillen, SS, Westlake HS, Austin, Tex.

Gillen jumps up a couple spots from Friday’s update. I’m not super confident what order the Dodgers have all the prep players who are tied to them, but I think Gillen just fits on the board better here than in the lower 20s.

Dart throw names for later picks: SS JD Dix, SS Sawyer Farr, 3B Chase Harlan, OF Jace Souza, SS/RHP Conrad Cason, RHP Zach Swanson

24. Braves — Brody Brecht, RHP, Iowa

With the run on college hitters above, Brecht remains the choice, although the Braves’ penchant for utilizing the underslot strategy brings some high school players into play as well.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Levi Sterling, RHP Braylon Doughty, 3B Robert Hipwell, SS/RHP Conrad Cason, OF D’marion Terrell, RHP Carson Wiggins, LHP Boston Bateman

25. Padres — Caleb Lomavita, C, California

We still feel a little strange mocking a college player to the Padres considering their affinity for prep prospects, but Lomavita is more athletic than your typical catcher and makes sense here.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Grant Knipp, C/OF Hunter Carns, OF/1B Jared Thomas, OF Austin Overn, SS Mason Hughes

26. Yankees — Luke Dickerson, SS, Morris Knolls HS, Rockaway, N.J.

We’ve previously mentioned the Yankees are one of the hotter teams on the New Jersey native. We see no reason to change this pick today.

Dart throw names for later picks: LHP Dasan Hill, 1B/OF PJ Morlando, OF Harrison Didawick, OF Zack Stewart

27. Phillies — PJ Morlando, 1B/OF, Summerville (S.C.) HS

Both the Phillies and Astros are tied to Morlando, who is getting a lot of late buzz approaching the draft. He’s a fairly polarizing prospect, but put on a show at the MLB Draft Combine and has one of the better hit/power combinations in the prep class.

Dart throw names for later picks: RHP Ben Hess, RHP Trey Gregory-Alford, RHP Chris Cortez, OF Jace Souza, RHP Duncan Marsten, RHP Greysen Carter, RHP Marcus Morgan

28. Astros — Tyson Lewis, SS, Millard West HS, Omaha, Neb.

We connected Lewis to the Astros on Friday, although Tommy White remains an interesting option since he’s available and Houston is one of the teams most commonly tied to him. As mentioned in the previous pick, Morlando is an option for the Astros as well.

Dart throw names for later picks: 1B/OF PJ Morlando, SS Mikey Ryan, RHP Thatcher Hurd, RHP LP Langevin, RHP Michael Massey

29. D-backs — Kellon Lindsey, SS, Hardee HS, Wauchula, Fla.

Arizona has a history of taking a hitters with bat-to-ball skills, so players with that profile get linked to them consistently, and Lindsey does have strong contact ability as well as 80-grade speed and a shortstop profile.

Dart throw names for later picks: LHP Josh Hartle, LHP Ethan Schiefelbein, SS Kyle DeBarge, OF Casey Cook

30. Rangers — Walker Janek, C, Sam Houston State

I continue to hear questions about Janek sliding, but I also hear him connected to tons of teams throughout the first round—enough so that I think he still goes in a good spot.

Dart throw names for later picks: LHP Boston Bateman, SS Wyatt Sanford, RHP Ryan Johnson, C Cole Messina

31. D-backs — Kash Mayfield, LHP, Elk City (Okla.) HS

32. Orioles — Tommy White, 3B, LSU

33. Twins — Billy Amick, 3B, Tennessee

34. Brewers — Braylon Doughty, RHP, Chaparral HS, Temecula, Calif.

35. D-backs — Bryce Cunningham, RHP, Vanderbilt

36. Guardians — Slade Caldwell, OF, Valley View HS, Jonesboro, Ark.

37. Pirates — Bryce Meccage, RHP, The Pennington (N.J.) HS

38. Rockies — Drew Beam, RHP, Tennessee

39. Nationals — Luke Holman, RHP, LSU