The 2022 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft began Sunday night in Los Angeles. The Baltimore Orioles hold the #1 pick for the third time in franchise history. The project will consist of 20 rounds that take place over three days. On Sunday night, there will be rounds one and two, as well as two compensatory rounds and two competition rounds for balance. From there, Rounds 3-10 will be held on Monday afternoon, with the rest of the class leveling out on Tuesday afternoon.
Below, you’ll find how you can watch the MLB Draft, as well as answers to eight burning questions about this year’s event.
How to watch the 2022 MLB Draft first round
- Date: Sunday, July 17 (Rounds 1 and 2) | Time: 7:00 PM ET
- Location: Xbox Plaza; Los Angeles, California
- TV Channel: MLB Network | Live Stream: fuboTV (Try Free)
2022 MLB Draft Order
- Baltimore Orioles
- Arizona Diamondbacks
- Texas Rangers
- Pittsburgh Pirates
- Washington Nationals
- Miami Marlins
- Chicago Cubs
- Minnesota Twins
- Kansas City Royals
- Colorado Rockies
- New York Mets (comp. pick)
- Detroit Tigers
- Los Angeles Angels
- New York Mets
- San Diego Padres
- Cleveland Guardians
- Philadelphia Phillies
- Cincinnati Reds
- Oakland Athletics
- Atlanta Braves
- Seattle Mariners
- St. Louis Cardinals
- Toronto Blue Jays
- Boston Red Sox
- New York Yankees
- Chicago White Sox
- Milwaukee Brewers
- Houston Astros
- Tampa Bay Rays
- San Francisco Giants
Now, eight questions about the draft.
1. Who becomes number 1?
The Orioles, and CEO Mike Elias in particular, love the so-called “portfolio approach.” It happens like this. They will identify a group of players they feel are justified in their selection, then select the one with the lowest signing bonus requirements. These savings are then redistributed to the rest of their class, maximizing their total talent pool.
All of which means the Orioles’ plans aren’t easy to determine in advance. Some of the other teams who spoke to CBS Sports do expect them to fill a high school position, but it’s unclear which one. Our very own Mike Axisa’s latest mock draft had the Orioles going with prep second baseman Termar Johnson.
Johnson, for what it’s worth, was the No. 1 prospect in the class by CBS Sports in the preseason. It slipped to number 4 in our final rankings. In other words, he would be a justified #1 pick if the Orioles go that route.
2. Who are the best players in the class?
Johnson is clearly one of the best prospects available. Who else is footing the bill? CBS Sports’ final top 30 rankings include the following players rounding out the top 10:
- Georgia prep outfielder Drew Jones
- California Polly Brooks Lee
- Oklahoma prep shortstop Jackson Holliday
- Georgia prep quarterback Termar Johnson
- Florida prep outfielder Elijah Green
- Florida JuCo third baseman Cam Collier
- Kevin Parada, Georgia Tech catcher
- Texas Prep shortstop Jett Williams
- Texas Tech second baseman Jace Jung
- Virginia Tech outfielder Gavin Cross
You can check out the rest of the top 30 rankings by clicking here.
3. Are there players with notable bloodlines?
You may have seen the last names “Jones,” “Holiday” and “Collier” and wondered if these players were related to former big leaguers — Andrew, Matt, and Lou, in this case. They really are. What’s more, they aren’t the only three with major league bloodlines working in their favor. Carl Crawford’s son Justin and Kansas City Royals executive Dayton Moore’s son Robert are also members of this class.
You can click here to read more about how Jones, Holliday and Crawford are doing with their All-Star fathers.
4. Is Kumar Rocker in this class?
Rocker, a former Vanderbilt standout and the No. 10 pick in the 2021 draft, is once again draft eligible after failing to sign with the New York Mets last summer. He recently made a string of starts with an independent league team, showing things that make him a first-round pick again. CBS Sports recently detailed how he went from perhaps the most overexposed prospect in the draft last summer to a relative mystery man this past year.
5. How will NIL affect signability?
One of the draft’s invisible hands, so to speak, is the concept of signing — or, broadly speaking, how likely a player is to put pen to paper. Some players will slip on draft night because teams don’t think they can sign; conversely, some will move up because they are willing to take the “slot” value to go at a certain point in the draft.
The NCAA’s recently implemented name, image and likeness policy, which allows players to (rightfully) monetize their talent, has changed the calculus for teams and players in that regard.
“I think it’s a real thing, I think you can relate it to the number of people using the transfer portal to get extra NIL funding,” one veteran scout told CBS Sports recently. “It’s not exclusive to college kids, kids going to college are going to be asking the same questions.”
You can click here to read more about how NIL can affect who signs.
6. Whose stocks are rising and whose are falling?
CBS Sports recently highlighted a number of players moving up or down draft boards heading into Sunday. One of the biggest risers is Oklahoma right fielder Cade Horton. Here’s what we wrote then:
Horton, a draft-eligible sophomore who missed the 2021 season due to Tommy John surgery, rolled into the first round with a phenomenal performance during the College World Series that ended with a career-high 13 strikeouts in the finals. His arsenal is all about power, including a high-spin fastball that can reach the upper 90s and a slider that was clocked in the 90s during the aforementioned start. Horton has limited experience (he pitched just over 50 regular-season innings for the Sooners), and scouts still have doubts about whether he’ll be a long-term starter. Still, some team seems destined to take him in the top 30-35.
Then Horton should be off the board sometime Sunday.
7. Any noticeable tipping injuries?
Oh my God. Tons.
Dylan Lesko, Landon Sims, Connor Prielipp, Peyton Pallette and Reggie Crawford — all of whom were ranked in the top 50 during the preseason — all either required surgery or spent the year rehabbing from one. What is the cause of all these injuries? Some scouts have blamed the pandemic and the lack of “live innings” that have been able to accumulate over the course of the 2020 calendar year.
“There’s no denying that pitching development has taken huge steps forward in the last five years,” a scout told CBS Sports. “The problem is, when you can only do that and nobody can throw live, the risk goes up.”
You can click here to read more about how all the injuries have changed the class.
8. What are the most polarizing perspectives?
CBS Sports recently highlighted a number of players that we consider to be “polarizing,” meaning evaluators differ on where they see that player going. One player we focused on in this piece was Tennessee flamethrower Ben Joyce. Here’s what we wrote:
Joyce will break some patterns and potentially some mock drafts. He has a monster fastball and slider, with 43 of his firsts registering at 100 mph or more during the NCAA Tournament. (He topped out at 105 mph during the regular season.) His heater also features good rise and comes from the lower arm slot, a sought-after combination these days. The teams trying to quantify things – ie. all of them – will have trouble containing their excitement at what Joyce brings to the table. He’s here anyway because there’s never been a consensus on how early is too early to take a reliever, and because teams will have drastically different timetables for when they expect him to reach the majors. Keep in mind that he has only thrown 32 innings over the last two seasons due to his role and his previous Tommy John surgery. A team that thinks he could make it to the majors soon, maybe even this year, might be tempted to draft him sooner than anyone else would entertain.
When will Joyce leave? We’ll find out soon.
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