Never too early to see who the Guardians can pick in the draft!
The Winter Meetings have come and passed, and now that the Draft Lottery results are set in stone, I’d like to make it a yearly trend to show who the Guardians might want to think of in the 2025 MLB Draft.
I made a version of this last year as well, when Cleveland received the first overall pick that ended up being Travis Bazzana. It was very fun to make, as beforehand I was never interested in the amateur realm of baseball.
Then I figured, why not do it again this year, even though the Guardians will be holding the 27th overall pick in the Draft?
So, I opened up my computer and started scouring through MLB Pipeline’s list of top draft prospects, and the three players below are my findings on who the Guardians could have available and who could be a realistic pick at No. 27.
(All tool grades are according to MLB Pipeline)
Kyson Witherspoon — RHP, University of Oklahoma, 20 years old
Tools: Fastball – 60, Slider – 60, Changeup – 45, Control – 45, Overall – 50
I’m going to start off with a pitcher that MLB Pipeline picked for the Guardians in their first mock draft. Witherspoon is a righty with a slim, but effective pitch mix. According to Prospects Live, Kyson can hit mid-upper 90s on his fastball, and complements that well with a plus slider that varies in the mid 80s with tight break. His changeup can hit the upper 80s, but varies in terms of break.
Witherspoon struggles a bit with command over his fastball, oftentimes leaving it up in the zone. He displays a bit of the same issue with his changeup as well, with it not having enough break sometimes. As he matures, however, MLB Pipeline believes that he can probably refine that command to at least be serviceable in the future.
As a little kicker, Witherspoon threw nine innings of 1-run baseball in the Cape Cod League. Though it’s not a reliable sample size whatsoever, the Guardians love their CCL darlings, with their most recent one being the 2023 MVP in Travis Bazzana.
Prospects Live has Kyson as the SEC’s top pitching prospect ahead of the 2025 season, and many think that he can sneak into the first round. I’d like to take a shot on him.
Dean Curley — SS, B/T – R/R, University of Tennessee, 20 years old
Tools: Hit – 50, Power – 50, Run – 50, Arm – 65, Field – 55, Overall – 50
Dean Curley is one of the taller shortstops, and his stature can really play well both at the position and at the plate. At 20 years old, there is a lot of room for Curley to mature physically and refine his power. MLB Pipeline mentions that Curley has “solid to plus” raw power, so I believe that he can grow on that even further down the line. Efficient in pitch recognition and contact, Dean rarely whiffs on fastballs and is able to anticipate the breaking stuff.
Going further, Curley runs the bases instinctively. He stole nine bags in 67 games in 2024 while having average quickness. He doesn’t display all that much range on the field, but his positioning, soft hands and the cannon he has for an arm can definitely make up for that deficit.
Scouts are saying that Dean will probably serve as a 3rd baseman in his pro career, and I can agree with that. Considering his arm and lack of range, I think that the hot corner would be the most realistic spot for him. But I also believe that he can still be serviceable as a shortstop.
Slater de Brun — OF, B/T – L/L, Summit High School (OR.), 17 years old
Tools: Hit – 55, Power – 40, Run – 65, Arm – 45, Field – 60, Overall – 50
Slater de Brun might be my favorite out of these three. Although de Brun may be shorter for an outfielder, he displays a very solid bat that can perform very well in the league. My belief is that MLB Pipeline undervalues de Brun’s power, and that he has around average raw pop to complement his efficient gap-to-gap approach.
de Brun shows exceptional plate discipline and fantastic contact ability to send line drives into the gaps. According to Joe Doyle, Slater is the only high schooler he found out of the summer of 2024 to have a chase rate less than 15%, an in-zone contact rate greater than 85%, and an ISO greater than .235.
Even more-so, Slater is outstanding in the field and on the base paths. His nearly double-plus speed gives him so much upside both in grabbing the extra base and covering ground in the outfield. I think that he will be able to play very well in center or in right, and I also predict him to be a 20+ base stealer every year.
His combination of contact ability, discipline, pop, speed and hands can really make this guy a serious mainstay in the Guardians’ lineup. He’s the type of guy the Guardians would go after as well. He checks almost, if not every box that the Guardians would have for a high-upside player.