2024 MLB Draft Tracker

After an exciting first half by the Minnesota Twins, that included a few historic streaks and the Twins having the best offense in baseball since their slow start, it is officially time for the All-Star Break and the 2024 MLB Draft! The Twins will have a busy first day in the draft, with four total day one selections.

The 2024 MLB Draft begins today at 6 P.M. CT in Arlington for All-Star Week. The first round, free agent compensation round, competitive balance A picks, second round, and competitive balance B picks will all take place on the first day. Rounds 3-10 will be on Monday at noon, and rounds 11-20 will be on Tuesday at noon. Both ESPN and MLB Network will cover the first day, while days two and three will take place exclusively on MLB.com. You can find everything you need to know about the draft here, in our draft preview.

Follow along on this post for the next few days. We’ll track all of the first-round picks and break down each of the Twins picks that they make along the way.

2024 MLB Draft First Round Picks

1. Cleveland Guardians: Travis Bazzana, 2B, Oregon State
2. Cincinnati Reds: Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest
3. Colorado Rockies: Charlie Condon, OF/1B/3B, Georgia
4. Oakland Athletics: Nick Kurtz, 1B, Wake Forest
5. Chicago White Sox: Hagen Smith, LHP, Arkansas
6. Kansas City Royals: Jac Caglianone, 1B/LHP, Florida
7. St. Louis Cardinals: JJ Wetherholt, SS, West Virginia
8. Los Angeles Angels: Christian Moore, 2B, Tennessee
9. Pittsburgh Pirates: Konnor Griffin, SS, Jackson Prep (MS)
10. Washington Nationals: Seaver King, SS/OF, Wake Forest
11. Detroit Tigers: Bryce Rainer, SS, Harvard-Westlake HS (CA)
12. Boston Red Sox: Braden Montgomery, OF, Texas A&M
13. San Francisco Giants: James Tibbs III, OF, Florida State
14. Chicago Cubs: Cam Smith, 3B, Florida State
15. Seattle Mariners: Jurrangelo Cijntje, Switch Pitcher, Mississippi State
16. Miami Marlins: PJ Morlando, OF, Summerville HS (SC)
17. Milwaukee Brewers: Braylon Payne, Elkins HS (TX)
18. Tampa Bay Rays: Theo Gillen, OF, Westlake HS (TX)
19. New York Mets: Carson Benge, OF, Oklahoma State
20. Toronto Blue Jays: Trey Yesavage, RHP, East Carolina
21. Minnesota Twins: Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Kansas State
22. Baltimore Orioles: Vance Honeycutt, OF, North Carolina
23. Los Angeles Dodgers: Kellon Lindsey, SS, Hardee HS (CA)
24. Atlanta Braves: Cam Caminiti, LHP, Saguaro HS, (AZ)
25. San Diego Padres: Kash Mayfield, LHP, Elk City HS (OK)
26. New York Yankees: Ben Hess, RHP, Alabama
27. Philadelphia Phillies: Dante Nori, OF, Northville HS (MI)
28. Houston Astros: Walker Janek, C, Sam Houston State
29. Arizona Diamondbacks: Slade Caldwell, OF, Valley View HS (AR)
30. Texas Rangers: Malcolm Moore, C, Stanford
31. Arizona Diamondbacks (PPI: Corbin Carroll): Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Kentucky
32. Baltimore Orioles (PPI: Gunnar Henderson): Griff O’Ferrall, SS, Virginia
33. Minnesota Twins (QO: Sonny Gray): Kyle DeBarge, SS, Louisiana-Lafayette
34. Milwaukee Brewers (CB A): Blake Burke, 1B, Tennessee
35. Arizona Diamondbacks (CB A): JD Dix, SS, Whitefish Bay HS (WI)
36. Cleveland Guardians (CB A): Braylon Doughty, RHP, Chaparral HS (CA)
37. Pittsburgh Pirates (CB A): Levi Sterling, RHP, Notre Dame HS (CA)
38. Colorado Rockies (CB A): Brody Brecht, RHP, Iowa
39. Washington Nationals (trade with Royals): Caleb Lomavita, C, California

2024 Minnesota Twins Draft Pick Tracker

Round 1, Pick No. 21: Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Kansas State

Culpepper is a 6’0, 185 lb right-handed hitting and throwing junior shortstop from Kansas State. The Twins’ 21st pick comes with a slot value of $3.93M and most public rankings had Culpepper ranked somewhere in the 30s, which could suggest the Twins might look to cut a somewhat below-slot deal here to chase some upside later (perhaps high school pitching).

Below are what some of the public evaluators have to say about the Twins’ 2024 first-rounder and here is a recent profile on Culpepper from MLB.com’s Anthony Castrovince:

FanGraphs Scouting Report (#36 ranked prospect):

Culpepper is a compact little shortstop who generates impressive pop for his size, mostly via lower body athleticism. He slashed .314/.402/.531 during his Kansas State career, and there’s impressive consistency of hard contact here. With a swing so simple it’s difficult to describe, Culpepper rotates with verve anyway. His airborne contact has an opposite field tendency, and there’s good north/south plate coverage here, but he swings inside a lot of sliders. Chase is a problem, and Culpepper often fails to track pitches to anywhere near the contact point. He has the range and raw arm strength to develop at shortstop, but isn’t great there at present. His hands and internal clock tend to leave him a beat too late pretty often. Culpepper is more likely a multi-positional utilityman than an everyday shortstop

MLB Pipeline Scouting Report (#31 ranked prospect):

Culpepper might go from an unheralded Tennessee high schooler to Kansas State’s first-ever first-round position player. Bothered by a hamate injury for much of his sophomore season, he starred at the Big 12 Conference tournament and was the top hitter (.471/.526/.853) on the U.S. collegiate national team during the summer. He moved from third base to shortstop as a junior, batting .474 in the NCAA tournament (including hitting for the cycle against Louisiana Tech) as the Wildcats reached the super regionals. A right-handed hitter, Culpepper has a disciplined approach that prioritizes making consistent contact and using the entire field. He has well-above-average bat speed and enough strength to produce average power, yet he has a flat swing and rarely drives the ball in the air. He slugged just .318 with wood bats in the Cape Cod League last summer and may top out at 12-15 homers per season. Culpepper handled shortstop on the Cape and in fall practice better than scouts expected, though he probably lacks the lateral quickness to play there regularly in the big leagues. He has at least plus arm strength and is a potential Gold Glover at third base, though that position would demand more power production than shortstop. He’s an average runner and an opportunistic basestealer.

Round 1, Comp, Pick No. 33: Kyle DeBarge, SS, Louisiana-Lafayette

DeBarge is a 5’9, 170 lb right-handed hitting and throwing junior infielder that the Twins selected with the compensation pick they received when Sonny Gray signed with the St. Louis Cardinals last winter. The slot value of this pick is $2.77M.

FanGraphs Scouting Report (#45 ranked prospect)

Little sportscar of an athlete with plus contact ability. Hit 21 bombs as a junior, most of them ambushed pull shots. Unlikely to carry that kind of power into pro ball. Plus runner, agile low-to-the-ground athlete with enough arm for shortstop despite his size. Makes some acrobatic plays, needs big effort to make some plays that bigger athletes make more easily. Plus-plus plate contact rate despite high-effort swing, though it’s more a byproduct of Debarge’s compact stature than impeccable feel for sweet spot contact. Athleticism lets him swing with surprising force for a hitter his size, but a lot of the contact is on the ground. Profiles as an athletic utilityman in the Jon Berti mold.

MLB Pipeline Scouting Report (#67 ranked prospect)

A standout catcher at powerhouse Barbe HS (Lake Charles, La.), DeBarge was too small to draw pro interest out of high school. He moved to shortstop after arriving at Louisiana-Lafayette and is a better prospect than recent Ragin’ Cajuns standouts at the position: 2015 third-rounder Blake Trahan and 2020 fifth-rounder Hayden Cantrelle. He plays bigger than his 5-foot-9, 170-pound frame and earned Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year accolades this spring. An elite contact hitter, DeBarge recognizes pitches extremely well and rarely chases out of the strike zone or swings and misses. His right-handed stroke is quick, compact and flat, designed to put the ball in play so easily that it does cut into his walk totals. He has some sneaky power to his pull side but doesn’t drive the ball in the air consistently and slugged just .297 with wood bats in the Cape Cod League last summer. DeBarge has the tools and instincts to impact games in a number of ways. He has plus speed and uses it aggressively on the bases. His quick hands, strong arm and fine internal clock allow him to play a solid shortstop and he also looked good at third base on the Cape.

Round 2, Pick No. 60: Billy Amick, 3B, Tennessee

I mentioned Amick as a potential first-round target for the Twins in my pre-draft primer, so getting him here is a steal. The Twins will likely use the savings on their first two picks and go over-slot for Amick. MLB Pipeline is much higher on him than FanGraphs, to say the least.

FanGraphs Scouting Report (#84 ranked prospect)

Transfer from Clemson. Flub-prone third base defender with mixed arm accuracy. Range and hands both below average at third. Hit .306/.387/.639 with an 18% K% as a junior, which was worse than his sophomore line. Physical righty bat with plus raw power. Pulls mistakes at the top of the strike zone. Posted a 70% contact rate and 81% in-zone contact rate in 2024; only a handful of qualified big league third basemen have had rates that low the last 10 years and they were facing big league pitching. Amick doesn’t track pitches especially well and his pull-heavy style leaves him vulnerable on the outer third. He chases a lot, too, in the 33-35% range. I’m lower here than consensus by a pretty good bit; this is a high-risk corner infield hitter with a ton of hit tool risk.

MLB Pipeline Scouting Report (#32 ranked prospect)

Amick has a quality right-handed swing and repeatedly barrels balls despite frequently chasing pitches out of the strike zone. His aggressive approach yields hard contact to all fields but does cut into his walk totals. His bat speed and strength create plus raw power that plays all over the ballpark and should translate into 20-25 homers per season. Amick has gotten the chance to man the hot corner for the Volunteers and looks like he’ll be able to stay there in pro ball. Equipped with below-average speed and quickness along with average arm strength, he’s a fringy to average third baseman who has looked more comfortable as he has gained more experience. He does have the work ethic to continue to improve but also may wind up at first base.

Round 2, CB Round B, Pick No. 69: Dasan Hill, LHP, Grapevine (TX)

And here we have the opposite split, with FanGraphs much higher on Hill than MLB Pipeline. Prep players always have college risk with them, but Hill seems pretty likely to go pro as his current commitment is to a small Texas college, Dallas Baptist. Expect the Twins to go over-slot in this pick as well. Assuming all four players sign, the Twins got a good mix of talent and upside between all of their day one selections.

FanGraphs Scouting Report (#24 ranked prospect)

Hill is maybe the most projectable player in the entire draft class regardless of position or demographic, at 6-foot-5, 175 pounds. He was peaking in the 88-90 mph range last summer but held 92-97 for five or six innings at a time this spring, and he still has a ton of room for strength and more velocity. His feel for location is also uncommonly good for a pitcher his size and age, and it applies to Hill’s fastball and breaking balls. He can locate his breaking ball for strikes and chase; both versions are average to a tick above. An upper-70s changeup is his fourth pitch right now but it might be his best at maturity. He has precocious feel for creating action and for location. Hill is among the best high school pitching prospects in the draft, with impact, mid-rotation ceiling.

MLB Pipeline Scouting Report (#52 ranked prospect)

After parking around 89-90 mph and topping out at 93 with his fastball last summer, Hill has grown 3 inches, added 15 pounds and started dealing in the low 90s while reaching 96. His best pitch is a high-spin slider in the low 80s that he backfoots well against right-handers. He also has a solid upper-70s curveball with more depth and a low-80s changeup with sink and similar promise. Hill not only possesses four viable offerings but he also has the ability to throw them all for strikes. He still has room to add plenty of muscle to his lanky frame, so his repertoire could continue to get stronger. The biggest knock on him is a lack of history with quality stuff, though his upside at least as a No. 3 starter is hard to deny.

Round 3, Pick No. 96: Khadim Diaw, C, LMU (CA)

There’s the catcher I was expecting on Day 1. TBD if he can stay there, but the Twins have a penchant for improving defense behind the plate. You don’t need to look further than Ryan Jeffers’ pre-draft eval for more evidence of that. Diaw is not ranked by FanGraphs.

MLB Pipeline Scouting Report (#163 ranked prospect)

A right-handed hitter, Diaw has the chance to be a solid offensive performer. He rarely swings and misses with an aggressive, early-count approach. His swing can be a little slow to start with a lengthy path, but he’s pretty efficient through the zone once he gets his bat going. It’s more of a hit-over-power approach, but he has the chance to hit a lot of doubles with a swing geared to drive the ball to right-center field in the future. He can run into some home runs, especially to his pull side, and some scouts think there’s more raw pop to tap into. Diaw is athletic and runs well, showing some defensive versatility that intrigues evaluators. He hasn’t been behind the dish a ton, but he is agile and has plus arm strength that could play there. He’s seen time in all three outfield positions, and while he’s best suited for a corner, he’s capable in center.

Round 4, Pick No. 126: Jaime Ferrer, OF, Florida State

I can’t find a scouting report for Ferrer on any well known outlet. He is not ranked by MLB Pipeline or FanGraphs, but Baseball America has him as their #360 prospect. He hit .317/.418/.665 with 22 HR while splitting time in the outfield corners for FSU last season. The Twins clearly like something in his profile to take him this high.

Round 5, Pick No. 159: Caden Kendle, OF, UC Irvine

Another high performing college bat, Kendle never posted an OPS below .969 after becoming a starter his sophomore year. The right-handed outfielder was drafted by the Cardinals in the 10th round last season, but ultimately chose to return to boost his draft stock, which seemingly worked, though Baseball America actually dropped his ranking. He came in at #237 in 2023, but fell to #404 this season.

Round 6, Pick No. 188: Derek Bender, C, Coastal Carolina

MLB Pipeline Scouting Report (#189 ranked prospect)

Bender played sparingly as a backup catcher as a Coastal Carolina freshman in 2022 before setting a Chanticleers record with 83 RBI last spring and then tearing up the Cape Cod League. He won MVP honors at the Cape all-star game and a championship with the Bourne Braves while finishing second in the batting race (.374) and first in steals (18 in 31 games). He hasn’t driven the ball as consistently as a junior while spending most of the season at DH.

Bender’s right-handed swing is designed to crank home runs to his pull side, though some scouts wonder how much power he’ll produce against better pitching. He generates his pop more with strength than bat speed and frequently chases pitches out of the strike zone. He does make a lot of hard contact and showed improved plate discipline while on the Cape and again this spring.

Despite his shocking summer success as a basestealer, Bender is a below-average runner and not particularly athletic. He barely sees time behind the plate because teammate Caden Bodine is a superior catcher, and it may be a stretch for Bender to hack it in pro ball as a below-average receiver with an average arm. He plays a serviceable first base.

The Other Twins Pick

Past this point, we’re running thin on publicly available scouting reports, but I’ll link to any I find. Still plenty of diamonds in the rough going forward though. The Twins currently have 13 player on their roster selected in the 7th round or later, including Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, Chris Paddack, David Festa, Edouard Julien, Louie Varland, and Zebby Matthews.

• Round 7, Pick No. 218: Eli Jones, RHP, South Carolina
• Round 8, Pick No. 248: Jakob Hall, RHP, Oral Roberts
• Round 9, Pick No. 278: Jason Doktorczyk, RHP, Nevada
• Round 10, Pick No. 308: Peyton Carr, 3B, High Point (NC)
• Round 11, Pick No. 338: Michael Carpenter, LHP, Madison College (WI, JUCO)
• Round 12, Pick No. 368: Christian Becerra, RHP, Cal
• Round 13, Pick No. 398: Xavier Kolhosser, RHP, St. Johns
• Round 14, Pick No. 428: Jacob Kisting, RHP, Bradley
• Round 15, Pick No. 458: Cole Peschl, RHP, Campbell (NC)
• Round 16, Pick No. 488: Aidan Haugh, RHP, UNC
• Round 17, Pick No. 518: Jay Thomason, 3B, Air Force
• Round 18, Pick No. 548: Michael Ross, RHP, Samford
• Round 19, Pick No. 578: Logan Whitaker, RHP, NC State
• Round 20, Pick No. 608: Merit Jones, RHP, Utah