The Mets and White Sox helped start the pitching trend early, grabbing standout college hurlers Matt Harvey and Chris sale as the seventh and 13th picks, respectively. Harvey was 7-2 with a 2.79 ERA in his final year at North Carolina, while Sale was superb in his junior year, leading the NCAA Division I in strikeouts while going 11-0 with two saves.
Pick |
Team |
Player |
Pos. |
School |
1. | Nationals | Bryce Harper | OF | College of Southern Nevada |
2. | Pirates | Jameson Taillon | RHP | The Woodlands HS (Texas) |
3. | Orioles | Manny Machado | SS | Brito Miami Private School (Fla.) |
4. | Royals | Christian Colon | SS | Cal State Fullerton |
5. | Indians | Drew Pomeranz | LHP | Ole Miss |
6. | D-backs | Barret Loux | RHP | Texas A&M |
7. | Mets | Matt Harvey | RHP | North Carolina |
8. | Astros | Delino DeShields Jr. | OF | Woodward Academy (Ga.) |
9. | Padres | Karsten Whitson | RHP | Chipley High School (Fla.) |
10. | A's | Michael Choice | OF | Univerisity of Texas-Arlington |
11. | Blue Jays | Deck McGuire | RHP | Georgia Tech |
12. | Reds | Yasmani Grandal | C | Miami |
13. | White Sox | Chris Sale | LHP | Florida Gulf Coast University |
14. | Brewers | Dylan Covey | RHP | Maranatha High School (Calif.) |
15. | Rangers | Jake Skole | OF | Blessed Trinity High School (Ga.) |
16. | Cubs | Hayden Simpson | RHP | Southern Arkansas University |
17. | Rays | Josh Sale | OF | Bishop Blanchet High School (Wash.) |
18. | Angels | Kaleb Cowart | 3B | Cook High School (Ga.) |
19. | Astros | Mike Foltynewicz | RHP | Minooka Community High School (Ill.) |
20. | Red Sox | Kolbrin Vitek | 2B | Ball State |
21. | Twins | Alex Wimmers | RHP | Ohio State |
22. | Rangers | Kellin Deglan | C | R.E. Mountain SS (B.C.) |
23. | Marlins | Christian Yelich | 1B | Westlake High School (Calif.) |
24. | Giants | Gary Brown | OF | Cal State-Fullerton |
25. | Cardinals | Zack Cox | 3B | Arkansas |
26. | Rockies | Kyle Parker | OF | Clemson |
27. | Phillies | Jessie Biddle | LHP | Germantown Friends School (Pa.) |
28. | Dodgers | Zach Lee | RHP | McKinney High School (Texas) |
29. | Angels | Cameron Bedrosian | RHP | East Coweta HS (Ind.) |
30. | Angels | Chevy Clarke | OF | Marietta (Ga.) |
The Orioles rounded out the streak, grabbing Oklahoma high schooler Dylan Bundy with the fourth pick. Bundy struck out 164 in his senior season at Owasso High School, going 11-1 with a 1.58 ERA.
Pick |
Team |
Player |
Pos. |
School |
1. | Pirates | Gerrit Cole | RHP | UCLA |
2. | Mariners | Danny Hultzen | LHP | Virginia |
3. | D-Backs | Trevor Bauer | UCLA | UCLA |
4. | Orioles | Dylan Bundy | RHP | Owasso HS (Okla.) |
5. | Royals | Bubba Starling | OF | Gardner Edgerton HS (Kan.) |
6. | Nationals | Anthony Rendon | 3B | Rice |
7. | D-Backs | Archie Bradley | RHP | Broken Arrow Sr. HS (Okla.) |
8. | Reds | Francisco Lindor | SS | Montverde Academy (Fla.) |
9. | Cubs | Javier Baez | SS | Arlington Country Day School (Fla.) |
10. | Padres | Cory Spangenberg | 2B | Indian River State |
11. | Astros | George Springer | OF | Connecticut |
12. | Brewers | Taylor Jungmann | RHP | University of Texas |
13. | Mets | Brandon Nimmo | OF | Cheyenne East HS (Wyo.) |
14. | Marlins | Jose Fernandez | RHP | Braulio Alonso HS (Fla.) |
15. | Brewers | Jed Bradley | LHP | Georgia Tech |
16. | Dodgers | Chris Reed | LHP | Stanford |
17. | Angels | C.J. Cron | 1B | Utah |
18. | A's | Sonny Gray | RHP | Vanderbilt |
19. | Red Sox | Matt Barnes | RHP | Connecticut |
20. | Rockies | Tyler Anderson | LHP | Oregon |
21. | Blue Jays | Tyler Beede | RHP | Lawrence Academy (Mass.) |
22. | Cardinals | Kolten Wong | 2B | Hawaii |
23. | Nationals | Alex Meyer | RHP | Kentucky |
24. | Rays | Taylor Guerrieri | RHP | Spring Valley HS (S.C.) |
25. | Padres | Joe Ross | RHP | Bishop O'Dowd School (Calif.) |
26. | Red Sox | Blake Swihart | C | V Sue Cleveland HS (N.M.) |
27. | Reds | Robert Stephenson | RHP | Alhambra HS (Calif.) |
28. | Braves | Sean Gilmartin | LHP | Florida State |
29. | Giants | Joe Panik | SS | St. Johns |
30. | Twins | Levi Michael | SS | North Calolina |
Carlos Correa was taken No. 1 overall by the Astros, who signed the 18-year-old Puerto Rican just two days after selecting him. Correa was an unlikely first pick, but he impressed Astros' officials in late workouts with his size and power, and he signed for $2.4 million less than the $7.2 million allotted value for the top pick, allowing the Astros to use that saved money on later picks that were considered harder to sign. Correa became the first player from Puerto Rico taken first overall.
With the No. 2 pick, the Twins took high school outfielder Byron Buxton, who hit .513 with 17 doubles and 38 stolen bases during his senior season at Appling County High School in Georgia.
Mike Zunino went No. 3 to the Mariners and was the last of the top three to be signed, inking a deal on July 2. The son of Reds scout Greg Zunino, Mike helped lead his Florida Gators team to three consecutive College World Series appearances in 2010-12.
The quick-signing theme continued throughout the first round, with only one first rounder out of 30 failing to sign by the deadline. Overall spending on first-round picks dropped from $233.6 million in 2011 to $203.7 million.
Pick |
Team |
Player |
Pos. |
School |
1. | Astros | Carlos Correa | SS | Puerto Rico BB Academy (P.R.) |
2. | Twins | Byron Buxton | OF | Appling County HS (Ga.) |
3. | Mariners | Mike Zunino | C | Florida |
4. | Orioles | Kevin Gausman | RHP | LSU |
5. | Royals | Kyle Zimmer | RHP | University of San Francisco |
6. | Cubs | Albert Almora | OF | Mater Academy Charter School (Fla.) |
7. | Padres | Max Fried | LHP | Harvard-Westlake HS (Calif.) |
8. | Pirates | Mark Appel | RHP | Stanford |
9. | Marlins | Andrew Heaney | LHP | Oklahoma State |
10. | Rockies | David Dahl | OF | Oak Mountain HS (Ala.) |
11. | A's | Addison Russell | SS | Pace HS (Fla.) |
12. | Mets | Gavin Cecchini | SS | Barbe HS (La.) |
13. | White Sox | Courtney Hawkins | OF | Carroll HS (Texas) |
14. | Reds | Nick Travieso | RHP | Archbishop McCarthy HS (Fla.) |
15. | Indians | Tyler Naquin | OF | Texas A&M |
16. | Nationals | Lucas Giolito | RHP | Harvard-Westlake HS (Calif.) |
17. | Blue Jays | D.J. Davis | OF | Stone County HS (Miss.) |
18. | Dodgers | Corey Seager | SS | Northwest Cabarrus HS (N.C.) |
19. | Cardinals | Michael Wacha | RHP | Texas A&M |
20. | Giants | Chris Stratton | RHP | Mississippi State |
21. | Braves | Lucas Sims | RHP | Brookwood HS (Ga.) |
22. | Blue Jays | Marcus Stroman | RHP | Duke |
23. | Cardinals | James Ramsey | OF | Florida State |
24. | Red Sox | Deven Marrero | SS | Arizona State |
25. | Rays | Richie Shaffer | 3B | Clemson |
26. | D-Backs | Stryker Trahan | C | Acadiana HS (La.) |
27. | Brewers | Clint Coulter | C | Union HS (Wash.) |
28. | Brewers | Victor Roache | OF | Georgia Southern |
29. | Rangers | Lewis Brinson | OF | Coral Springs HS (Fla.) |
30. | Yankees | Ty Hensley | RHP | Edmond Santa Fe HS (Okla.) |
Appel, the top pick in a pitching-heavy Draft, embodied a few trends in the 2013 first round. Fifteen pitchers were selected, and six college pitchers were taken in the top 20 picks. Three prep pitchers went in the top 10 selections, led by fourth overall pick Kohl Stewart, but only three more prep arms went by the end of the round.
But the Draft wasn't all arms. Nine of the top 15 picks, in fact, were spent on position players. Eight college position players and nine prep players went in the first round, providing an interesting mix of talent.
Picking second, the Cubs made University of San Diego third baseman Kris Bryant the top position player selected. He won the Golden Spikes Award as a junior after leading the nation in home runs (31), runs scored (80), walks and slugging percentage (.820).
Oklahoma right-hander Jon Gray went third overall to the Rockies and the Indians selected Loganville (Ga.) High School outfielder Clint Frazier to round out the top five.
All but one first rounder signed and the average bonus for first-round picks was up in 2013. Bryant led the way with his $6.708 million bonus, and the average bonus for the 32 players who signed was $2.64 million, up from last year's average of $2.40 million. While spending on first-round selections increased, teams still came in well under the combined assigned values for the 32 picks who agreed to terms. Teams combined to save $3.746 million compared to the assigned values
Pick |
Team |
Player |
Pos. |
School |
1. | Astros | Mark Appel | RHP | Stanford |
2. | Cubs | Kris Bryant | 3B | University of San Diego |
3. | Rockies | Jon Gray | RHP | Oklahoma |
4. | Twins | Kohl Stewart | RHP | St. Pius X (Texas) |
5. | Indians | Clint Frazier | OF | Loganville HS (Ga.) |
6. | Marlins | Colin Moran | 3B | North Carolina |
7. | Red Sox | Trey Ball | LHP | New Castle HS (Ind.) |
8. | Royals | Hunter Dozier | SS | Stephen F. Austin State |
9. | Pirates | Austin Meadows | OF | Grayson HS (Ga.) |
10. | Blue Jays | Phil Bickford | RHP | Oaks Christian HS (Calif.) |
11. | Mets | Dominic Smith | 1B | JSerra HS (Calif.) |
12. | Mariners | D.J. Peterson | 3B | New Mexico |
13. | Padres | Hunter Renfroe | OF | Mississippi State |
14. | Pirates | Reese McGuire | C | Kentwood HS (Wash.) |
15. | D-backs | Braden Shipley | RHP | Nevada |
16. | Phillies | J.P. Crawford | SS | Lakewood HS (Calif.) |
17. | White Sox | Tim Anderson | SS | East Central CC (Miss.) |
18. | Dodgers | Chris Anderson | RHP | Jacksonville |
19. | Cardinals | Marco Gonzales | LHP | Gonzaga |
20. | Tigers | Jonathon Crawford | RHP | Florida |
21. | Rays | Nick Ciuffo | C | Lexington HS (S.C.) |
22. | Orioles | Hunter Harvey | RHP | Bandys HS (N.C.) |
23. | Rangers | Alex Gonzalez | RHP | Oral Roberts |
24. | As | Billy McKinney | OF | Plano HS (Texas) |
25. | Giants | Christian Arroyo | SS | Hernando HS (Fla.) |
26. | Yankees | Eric Jagielo | 3B | Notre Dame |
27. | Reds | Phil Ervin | OF | Samford |
28. | Cardinals | Rob Kaminsky | LHP | Saint Joseph Regional HS (N.J.) |
29. | Rays | Ryne Stanek | RHP | Arkansas |
30. | Rangers | Travis Demeritte | SS | Winder-Barrow HS (Ga.) |
31. | Braves | Jason Hursh | RHP | Oklahoma State |
32. | Yankees | Aaron Judge | OF | Fresno State |
33. | Yankees | Ian Clarkin | LHP | Madison HS (Calif.) |
The 2014 Draft saw the Astros become the first team in league history to select first overall for three straight seasons. They chose San Diego high school left-hander Brady Aiken with the pick, making him the first high school pitcher to be taken first overall since 1991, and the first prep southpaw taken atop the Draft in 23 years.
With Aiken off the board, the Marlins then selected another prep pitcher, Shepherd (Texas) High right-hander Tyler Kolek, with the second overall pick, while the White Sox made North Carolina State left-hander Carlos Rodon the top college pick in the Draft when they selected him third overall.
Overall, 20 of the 34 picks in the first round were used on pitchers, with 10 coming from the prep ranks and 10 from college.
Though the Draft was once again pitching-heavy, there were six position players selected in the top 13 picks and a total of 14 position players selected in the first round.
The first bat of the Draft was not taken until the fourth pick, when the Cubs selected catcher Kyle Schwarber out of the University of Indiana. Schwarber, a finalist for the Johnny Bench Award as the best catcher in the country in 2014, hit .358 with 14 home runs and 66 runs scored as a junior for the Hoosiers.
The Twins selected Olympia (Fla.) High shortstop Nick Gordon, the son of former Major League pitcher Tom "Flash" Gordon and brother of Marlins second baseman Dee Gordon, with the fifth overall pick, while Miami grabbed another highly touted prep player in Rancho Bernardo (Calif.) High outfielder Alex Jackson sixth overall.
The Draft had not seen four prep players taken in the top six picks since 2002, when future stars B.J. Upton and Zack Greinke were part of an impressive first-round haul.
All but one first-rounder (Aiken) signed, and the average bonus for first-round picks was down slightly compared to 2013. Rodon led the way with his $6.582 million bonus, and Kolek received $6 million from the Marlins, while the average bonus for the 33 players who signed was a little more than $2.612 million, a slight decrease from the average of $2.64 million in 2013.
Pick |
Team |
Player |
Pos. |
School |
1. | Astros | Brady Aiken | LHP | Cathedral Catholic HS (Calif.) |
2. | Marlins | Tyler Kolek | RHP | Shepherd HS (Tex.) |
3. | White Sox | Carlos Rodon | LHP | North Carolina State |
4. | Cubs | Kyle Schwarber | C | Indiana |
5. | Twins | Nick Gordon | SS | Olympia HS (Fla.) |
6. | Mariners | Alex Jackson | OF | Rancho Bernardo HS (Calif.) |
7. | Phillies | Aaron Nola | RHP | LSU |
8. | Rockies | Kyle Freeland | LHP | Evansville |
9. | Blue Jays | Jeff Hoffman | RHP | East Carolina |
10. | Mets | Michael Conforto | OF | Oregon State |
11. | Blue Jays | Max Pentecost | C | Winder Barrow HS (Ga.) |
12. | Brewers | Kodi Medeiros | LHP | Waiakea HS (Haw.) |
13. | Padres | Trea Turner | SS | North Carolina State |
14. | Giants | Tyler Beede | RHP | Vanderbilt |
15. | Angels | Sean Newcomb | LHP | Hartford University |
16. | D-backs | Touki Toussaint | RHP | Coral Springs Christian Academy HS (Fla.) |
17. | Royals | Brandon Finnegan | LHP | TCU |
18. | Nationals | Erick Fedde | RHP | UNLV |
19. | Reds | Nick Howard | RHP | Virginia |
20. | Rays | Casey Gillaspie | 1B | Wichita State |
21. | Indians | Bradley Zimmer | OF | San Francisco |
22. | Dodgers | Grant Holmes | RHP | Conway HS (S.C.) |
23. | Tigers | Derek Hill | OF | Elk Grove Hs (Calif.) |
24. | Pirates | Cole Tucker | SS | Mountain Pointe HS (Ariz.) |
25. | A's | Matt Chapman | 3B | Cal State Fullerton |
26. | Red Sox | Michael Chavis | SS | Notre Dame |
27. | Cardinals | Luke Weaver | RHP | Florida State |
28. | Royals | Foster Griffin | LHP | The First Academy HS (Fla.) |
29. | Reds | Alex Blandino | SS | Stanford |
30. | Rangers | Luis Ortiz | RHP | Sanger HS (Calif.) |
31. | Indians | Justus Sheffield | LHP | Tullahoma HS (Tenn.) |
32. | Braves | Braxton Davidson | OF | T C Roberson Hs (N.C.) |
33. | Red Sox | Michael Kopech | RHP | Mount Pleasant HS (Tex.) |
34. | Cardinals | Jack Flaherty | RHP | Harvard-Westlake HS (Calif.) |
The Arizona Diamondbacks opened the 2015 Draft by selecting Vanderbilt shortstop Dansby Swanson with the No. 1 overall pick, the first of a record-tying eight shortstops taken in the first round.
Swanson was the first college shortstop taken atop the Draft since Bill Almon from Brown University in 1974, and the selection of eight shortstops in the Draft's first round tied the record achieved twice previously (1971 and 2002).
The Astros, who had the No. 2 pick due to being unable to sign 2014 No. 1 overall pick Brady Aiken, selected Alex Bregman out of Louisiana State University, and the Rockies took Orlando-area prep shortstop Brendan Rodgers third overall, marking the first time in the 51-year history of the Draft that shortstops had been taken with each of the first three picks.
The first non-shortstop off the board was UC-Santa Barbara right-hander Dillon Tate, who was chosen No. 4 overall by the Rangers, becoming the highest-drafted alumnus of MLB's Urban Youth Academy.
Swanson, Bregman and Tate were among seven collegians taken within the first 10 picks, the most in the top 10 since 2008. The trio was joined by left-hander Tyler Jay (No. 6, Twins), Arkansas outfielder Andrew Benintendi (No. 7, Red Sox), Vanderbilt righty Carson Fulmer (No. 8, White Sox) and Cincinnati outfielder Ian Happ (No. 9, Cubs).
The Astros, the first team in history to have two top-five selections in the same Draft, took prep outfielder Kyle Tucker, the brother of Astros big league outfielder Preston Tucker, from Plant High School in Tampa, Fla., at No. 5.
Of the 36 players selected in the first round, a total of 19 players were chosen from college, while 16 came from the high school ranks. Aiken, who went 17th overall to the Indians, was selected out of IMG Academy in Florida.
All but one first-rounder -- Louisville right-hander Kyle Funkhouser (No. 35, Dodgers) signed, and the average bonus for first-round picks was up compared to previous years. Swanson was the lone pick to command a bonus of more than $6 million ($6.5 million, to be exact), while Bregman ($5.9 million) and Rodgers ($5.5 million) were the only other players to receive more than $5 million. The average bonus for the 35 players who signed was $2,774,945 million, a sizeable increase from the 2014 average of $2.612 million.
Pick |
Team |
Player |
Pos. |
School |
1. | D-backs | Dansby Swanson | LHP | Vanderbilt |
2. | Astros | Alex Bregman | RHP | LSU |
3. | Rockies | Brendan Rodgers | SS | Lake Mary HS (Fla.) |
4. | Rangers | Dillon Tate | RHP | Cal Santa Barbara |
5. | Astros | Kyle Tucker | OF | H.B. Plant HS (Fla.) |
6. | Twins | Tyler Jay | LHP | Illinois |
7. | Red Sox | Andrew Benintendi | OF | Arkansas |
8. | White Sox | Carson Fulmer | RHP | Vanderbilt |
9. | Cubs | Ian Happ | RHP | Cincinnati |
10. | Phillies | Cornelius Randolph | SS | Griffin HS (Ga.) |
11. | Reds | Tyler Stephenson | C | Kennesaw Mountain HS (Ga.) |
12. | Marlins | Josh Naylor | 1B | St Joan of Arc Catholic HS (Ontario) |
13. | Rays | Garrett Whitley | OF | Niskayuna HS (N.Y.) |
14. | Braves | Kolby Allard | LHP | San Clemente HS (Calif.) |
15. | Brewers | Trent Clark | OF | Richland HS (Tex.) |
16. | Yankees | James Kaprielian | RHP | UCLA |
17. | Indians | Brady Aiken | LHP | IMG Academy |
18. | Giants | Phil Bickford | RHP | College of Southern Nevada |
19. | Pirates | Kevin Newman | SS | Arizona |
20. | A's | Richie Martin | SS | Florida |
21. | Royals | Ashe Russell | RHP | Cathedral HS (Ind.) |
22. | Tigers | Beau Burrows | RHP | Weatherford HS (Tex.) |
23. | Cardinals | Nick Plummer | OF | Brother Rice HS (Mich.) |
24. | Dodgers | Walker Buehler | RHP | Vanderbilt |
25. | Orioles | D.J. Stewart | OF | Florida State |
26. | Angels | Taylor Ward | C | Fresno State |
27. | Rockies | Mike Nikorak | RHP | Stroudsburg HS (Pa.) |
28. | Braves | Mike Soroka | RHP | Bishop Carroll HS (Alberta) |
29. | Blue Jays | Jonathan Harris | RHP | Missouri State |
30. | Yankees | Kyle Holder | SS | San Diego |
31. | Giants | Christopher Shaw | C | Boston College |
32. | Pirates | Ke'Bryan Hayes | SS | Concordia Lutheran Hs (Tex.) |
33. | Royals | Nolan Watson | RHP | Lawrence North HS (Ind.) |
34. | Tigers | Christin Stewart | OF | Tennessee |
35. | Dodgers | Kyle Funkhouser | RHP | Louisville |
36. | Orioles | Ryan Mountcastle | SS | Hagert HS (Fla.) |