It is draft day, the most wonderful time of the year, so here is my final -- ahem, "final" -- projection of first-round selections, but one I present with the caveat that multiple general managers told me Sunday that nothing would really be final until at least Monday afternoon, when teams and advisers would try to hammer out deals for players starting at the top. If there are deals already in place, I don't think any have leaked out, even to other teams. Monday might still be very busy.
I guess this is mock 4.1 rather than 5.0, but I've heard enough susurrations today to want to put something out that better reflects the current rumor mill, including what's going on in the top 10. For more details on some of these teams and players, see Sunday night's mock and my Big Board ranking.
1. Detroit Tigers: Casey Mize, RHP, Auburn
2. San Francisco Giants: Joey Bart, C, Georgia Tech
3. Philadelphia Phillies: Alec Bohm, 3B, Wichita State
4. Chicago White Sox: Brady Singer, RHP, Florida
5. Cincinnati Reds: Nick Madrigal, 2B, Oregon State. One rumor Sunday evening had the Reds exploring deals with prep arms, including Carter Stewart, Matthew Liberatore and Grayson Rodriguez.
6. New York Mets: Jarred Kelenic, OF, Waukesha (Wisconsin) West High School
7. San Diego Padres: Ryan Weathers, LHP, Loretto (Tennessee) HS
8. Atlanta Braves: Carter Stewart, RHP, Eau Gallie HS, Melbourne, Florida
9. Oakland Athletics: Travis Swaggerty, CF, South Alabama
10. Pittsburgh Pirates: Matthew Liberatore, LHP, Mountain Ridge HS, Peoria, Arizona
11. Baltimore Orioles: Cole Winn, RHP, Orange (California) Lutheran HS
12. Toronto Blue Jays: Jonathan India, 3B, Florida
13. Miami Marlins: Triston Casas, 1B, American Heritage HS, Plantation, Florida
14. Seattle Mariners: Logan Gilbert, RHP, Stetson
15. Texas Rangers: Nolan Gorman, 3B, Sandra Day O'Connor HS, Glendale, Arizona
16. Tampa Bay Rays: Brice Turang, SS, Santiago HS, Corona, California One thing that keeps coming up with Turang is whether he'd sign in the back of the first round, since he's committed to LSU and was hyped as a potential 1-1 guy before this draft cycle started. The Rays or Royals could take him and go well over slot with their extra picks in the comp round.
17. Los Angeles Angels: Jordyn Adams, OF, Green Hope HS, Cary, North Carolina
18. Kansas City Royals: Jordan Groshans, 3B, Magnolia (Texas) HS I've mentioned a few times now that the Royals are in on Mason Denaburg and basically every other player in the draft. This could be a franchise-altering night for the Royals, who built their 2015 world champs through the draft as well.
19. St. Louis Cardinals: Grayson Rodriguez, RHP, Nacogdoches (Texas) HS
20. Minnesota Twins: Ryan Rolison, LHP, Ole Miss I have heard the Twins with NorCal prep player Osiris Johnson in the second round at pick 59, around where I have him on my Big Board.
21. Milwaukee Brewers: Noah Naylor, INF, St. Joan of Arc HS, Mississauga, Ontario
22. Colorado Rockies: Jackson Kowar, RHP, Florida
23. New York Yankees: J.T. Ginn, RHP, Brandon (Mississippi) HS
24. Chicago Cubs: Connor Scott, OF, Plant HS, Tampa, Florida
25. Arizona Diamondbacks: Jake McCarthy, OF, Virginia
26. Boston Red Sox: Shane McClanahan, LHP, South Florida
27. Washington Nationals: Mason Denaburg, RHP, Merritt Island (Florida) HS. I feel like this is going to be Denaburg or Cole Wilcox.
28. Houston Astros: Anthony Seigler, C, Cartersville (Georgia) HS
29. Cleveland Indians: Daniel Lynch, LHP, Virginia
30. Los Angeles Dodgers: Cole Wilcox, RHP, Heritage HS, Chickamauga, Georgia