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Draft  | Mock Draft  | 4/15/2022

MLB Mock Draft

Brian Sakowski      Vincent Cervino     
Photo: Perfect Game
MLB Draft Board: Top 400

This is our first in-season mock draft of the 2022 cycle, and given how far out we are from the draft itself, there's really no tying of players to teams with any certainty. These are something in the way of educated guesses, with where players are on our board playing a role, as well as perceived fit in terms of known preferences for some teams. 



We'll have several more of these throughout the next few months, with the "this is how we think it's actually going to go" mock happening just before the draft, of course. Make sure to stay tuned to PG for industry-leading MLB Draft coverage, per usual. 


1. Baltimore Orioles | Brooks Lee, SS, Cal Poly
This could reasonably be anyone’s guess at this point, as we’re literal months away from the draft yet. Baltimore is known to prefer cutting at this pick and could have that option with a college bat. We have Lee slotted here for now because it makes sense, but 0% certainty with any of these. 
 

2. Arizona Diamondbacks | Andruw Jones, OF, Wesleyan HS (GA)
Either 1 or 2 on most boards at this juncture, Jones has rare tools and supreme upside as a defender in CF as well as right-handed power bat. Arizona will take all the premium upside in their system as they can get, and Jones joins with ’21 1st rounder Jordan Lawlar in this hypothetical. 
 

3. Texas Rangers | Elijah Green, OF, IMG Academy (Fla.)
The top player on our board, Green posits the best pure upside we’ve seen in awhile from a high school player. His outcome variance is large but the top end projection is a perennial all-star, and the Rangers do love themselves some upside. 
 

4. Pittsburgh Pirates | Jace Jung, 2B, Texas Tech
You never draft for need in the MLB Draft so the Pirates taking Henry Davis 1:1 last year shouldn’t preclude Parada discussions here. We opted for Jung in this projection, who should pretty quickly become a middle order bat in the big leagues while holding his own defensively. 
 

5. Washington Nationals | Kevin Parada, C, Georgia Tech
The discussion surrounding Parada is going to be “can he catch?” for the rest of the season, but even if he can’t, he looks like a future All-Star as a hitter who should absolutely hit enough to provide big value, even if he plays somewhere other than catcher. 
 

6. Miami Marlins | Termarr Johnson, SS, Mays HS (GA)
Termarr should be in play pretty much anywhere in the top-10 and finds a home in this projection at 6 with Miami. The Marlins drafted Kahlil Watson a year ago, and could you imagine a more fun middle infield duo than Watson and Johnson? That has the upside of the best keystone duo in the world. 
 

7. Chicago Cubs | Dylan Lesko, RHP, Buford HS (GA)
Lesko is the top prep arm in the class and, in speaking with scouting veterans, might be the best prep arm since Josh Beckett with his combination of stuff, polish, and consistency. He makes sense for the Cubs here. 
 

8. Minnesota Twins | Jordan Beck, OF, Tennessee
Beck has made a loud entrance to the top half of the first round conversation with his tremendous right-handed power, backed up by high-end exit velocities and overall batted ball data. He fits the Twins here. 
 

9.  Kansas City Royals | Jackson Holliday, SS, Stillwater HS (OK)
Holliday entered the spring pretty comfortably in the first round but has continued climbing, and now belongs in the top-10 discussion. His ceiling is even higher than this, as a true shortstop who can really swing it left-handed with projection for power and elite makeup. 
 

10. Colorado Rockies | Cam Collier, 3B, Chipola JC 
Collier is the age of a junior in high school, performing well at a premier JUCO in a talent-rich conference. The left-handed hitting tools, approach, and power all project extremely well, and he’s got a chance to defend 3B at an above-average level. 
 

11. New York Mets | Brandon Barriera, LHP, American Heritage HS (FL)
It’ll be interesting to see which prep lefty is off the board first, we’re going with Barriera here. The Mets have picks 11 and 14 due to not signing Kumar Rocker last year, so they can get creative. Barriera has peaked at 99 mph this spring and flashes 3 plus pitches at times. 
 

12. Detroit Tigers | Daniel Susac, C, Arizona
The Tigers are in a good spot with their big league club and ascending minor league talent, but do need to replenish the bats now that Torkelson/Greene are either in the show or close. Susac has a chance to catch but most of the allure here is in the bat, and he projects to hit and hit for power. 
 

13. Los Angeles Angels | Gavin Cross, OF, Virginia Tech
The Angels went arms-heavy in 2021 so common logic would say they might go after a bat in ’22. VaTech’s Gavin Cross is a good fit here with potential above-average hit and power tools to go along with solid defensive value in the outfield. 
 

14. New York Mets | Jacob Berry, 1B, LSU
Having taken Barriera at 11 in this simulation, we wanted to give the Mets a more safer college bat to pair with the flamethrowing lefty. Berry is pretty position-less at this point but rakes from both sides of the plate and has solid-to-above average power in there as well. He should move through the system quickly. 
 

15. San Diego Padres | Brock Porter, RHP, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s Prep (MI)
The Pads have proven to be unafraid to attack upside prep talent early in the draft, and that’s what Porter is. A plus athlete who has touched triple digits with a 70-grade changeup and flashes of a potentially 55-grade slider this spring, Porter fits in the mid-first round. 
 

16. Cleveland Guardians | Cooper Hjerpe, LHP, Oregon State
Hjerpe is our SP1 amongst college pitchers right now and he fits what Cleveland likes in arms, with elite fastball metrics, unique spin profile, and the projection to build velocity on. Hjerpe has been dominant this spring and the upside matches his performance. 
 

17. Philadelphia Phillies | Blade Tidwell, RHP, Tennessee
Tidwell is rounding into form on his way back from an early season injury, slowly building up his innings in midweeks/relief for now but looking healthy. He’s got a plus fastball and plus breaker to his credit and has a bat-missing profile in general, with the potential of a mid-rotation starter at the big league level. 
 

18. Cincinnati Reds | Chase DeLauter, OF, James Madison
DeLauter entered the spring a trendy favorite for 1:1 on the strength of his left-handed power and the ability to play center field. He’s fallen down the board a bit this spring, due in part to inconsistent swing mechanics, but the upside here is an above-average everyday regular. 
 

19. Oakland Athletics | Zach Neto, SS, Campbell
Neto is a talented shortstop who can defend there long term while also possessing some of the best contact ability in the class. His power has come on this spring and he’s maintained his bat-to-ball skills, putting him squarely in the first round range. 
 

20. Atlanta Braves | Hunter Barco, LHP, Florida
Barco has performed on Friday nights in the toughest conference in the country, and does so with a good 3-pitch mix that fills the zone and presents a difficult look for hitters. We believe there’s some more in the tank there, and Atlanta can develop pitching. 
 

21. Seattle Mariners | Drew Gilbert, OF, Tennessee
The Mariners are anyone’s guess most years, and we’re too far down the board anyways to try and tie players to teams this early. Gilbert fits in this range given our evaluation, and he’s performing in a big way with lots of hard contact, lots of extra bases, and more walks than strikeouts. 
 

22. St. Louis Cardinals | Walter Ford, RHP, Pace HS (FL)
Ford is a reclassifier from the ’23 class who reaches upper-90s with his fastball and has flashed a 70-grade breaking ball at times. There’s lots of upside in this young arm, and St. Louis has proven to be unafraid at swinging for upside. 
 

23. Toronto Blue Jays | Roman Anthony, OF, Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS (FL)
Anthony has been a known name on the circuit for years and has long enticed with his left-handed power/athleticism combination, and he’s taken a big step forward this spring in terms of his contact consistency. He’s flying up boards. 
 

24. Boston Red Sox | Sterlin Thompson, OF, Florida
Thompson has long been an interesting left-handed hitting power prospect, and he’s found a defensive home in right field. The power continues to develop, as does his approach, and he’s viewed as a potential first rounder right now with some upside for more. 
 

25. New York Yankees | Tucker Toman, 3B, Hammond HS (SC)
Toman has always impressed with the bat during his PG career and has taken a step forward this spring in terms of his power output and defensive traits. He’s a switch-hitter with above-average hit tool projection to go along with good power and a chance to stay at the hot corner. 
 

26. Chicago White Sox | Sal Stewart, 3B, Westminster Christian Academy (FL)
Stewart has long been someone who can really hit, showing that ability for years in PG events. The power started to come on in a big way last summer and even more so this spring, with huge offensive upside along with a chance to stay at third base. 
 

27. Milwaukee Brewers | Dylan Beavers, OF, Cal
Beavers gets dinged for his unorthodox swing mechanics but has excellent left-handed power that he’s gotten to, against premium arms, this spring. He’s a great athlete who has a chance to stay in center field long term and is an above-average runner. 
 

28. Houston Astros | Landon Sims, RHP, Mississippi State
Sims entered the spring as a favorite to go in the 1st round following an absolutely dominant freshman season last year, and started hot before getting hurt and needing TJ. At his best, he’s mid-90s with a ton of bat-miss up in the zone and a plus sweeper. He still belongs in this range, even with the injury. 
 

29. Tampa Bay Rays | Noah Schultz, LHP, Oswego East HS (IL)
Schultz has long been in the same tier as Ferris and Barriera as far as prep lefties, and on value deserves to be way higher than this but, as we all know, projecting where prep arms get taken is a fool’s errand. Schultz has been up to 98 mph this spring as a 6-foot-9 lefty from a low slot with a 3000 rpm breaker. 
 

30. San Francisco Giants | Gabriel Hughes, RHP, Gonzaga
Hughes has really risen up boards this spring as an athletic right-hander with good strikes, mid- to upper-90s heat, and a hard, bat-missing slider. He’s performed extremely well and his ceiling may be higher than this. 
 

31. Colorado Rockies | Robert Moore, 2B, Arkansas
Moore is a switch-hitter who has developed power since being at Arkansas, while showing good ability to get on base and play a plus defensive second base. He could potentially even be trotted out at shortstop, and has the makings of a dynamic middle infield performer.

32. Cincinnati Reds | Cole Phillips, RHP, Boerne HS (TX)
Phillips was the story of the spring for awhile as a popup prep arm touching triple digits with flashes of a good breaker. He ended up getting hurt and needing Tommy John surgery, but the makings of a very high-octane arm are here. 
 

33. Baltimore Orioles | Jackson Ferris, LHP, IMG Academy (FL)
Ferris belongs ahead of this in terms of value, but we’re working in the hypothetical world where Baltimore floats him here after saving at 1. Ferris has the makings of a plus fastball/plus breaker with command and has shown a solid changeup this spring as well, with big time upside. 
 
34. Arizona Diamondbacks | Spencer Jones, OF, Vanderbilt
Jones is a trendy name as a riser right now and could see himself more mid-1st by the end of spring, with huge left-handed power and consistently improving hit tool and approach. He’s shown to be a good defender in right field as well, and certainly is in the convo for mid-1st. 
 
35. Kansas City Royals | Connor Prielipp, LHP, Alabama
Prielipp’s range is anyone’s guess right now, but before he got hurt he looked like a potential top-10 pick. He’s due back this spring/early summer at some point and should pitch in front of teams, so we’ll see, but right now this feels like a suitable range for him. 


36. Pittsburgh Pirates | Henry Bolte, OF, Palo Alto HS (CA)
Bolte is loaded with tools and has consistently impressed this spring, and may go ahead of this placement. He’s a good fit in this hypothetical paired with Jung at 4, and brings significant upside both as a bat and defender in center field long term. 
37. Cleveland Guardians | Eric Brown, SS, Coastal Carolina
Brown is an interesting study with a unique set up and swing mechanics, but he’s always on time and on the barrel with good batted ball data and projection for continued power gains. He’s a great athlete who projects to stay in the middle of the diamond also. 
 

38. Colorado Rockies | Andrew Dutkanych IV, RHP, Brebeuf Jesuit HS (IN)
Dutkanych’s ability is that of a top-20 pick, though, again, who knows where to project prep arms. He makes sense as an overpay in this slot, and looks fantastic this spring, with the projection of a 70 slider with a plus heater and curveball as well. 
 
 
39. San Diego Padres | Connor Staine, RHP, UCF
Staine has been tremendous this spring, still having not given up an earned run as of this writing. He’s been dominant with ruthless strike-throwing and a fastball into the mid-90s with good data, a bat-missing slider, and an overall full mix. 
 
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