ANAHEIM -- While the Angels went with all pitchers with their four selections on Day 1 of the 2025 MLB Draft, they took a more varied approach with their 17 picks on Day 2 on Monday.
They still went heavy on pitching with 14 pitchers, including four lefties, but also took three outfielders, two third baseman, a shortstop and a second baseman. The first position player they took to break the streak was Louisville third baseman Jake Munroe with the 109th overall pick in the fourth round to start the day.
Of their 21 total selections, nine came from the high school ranks, including a pair of highly regarded prep lefties with 12th-rounder Talon Haley and 13th-rounder Xavier Mitchell. Haley has a particularly interesting backstory, as he beat cancer and had Tommy John surgery twice, but displayed some of the best stuff among high school pitchers this season.
“We're excited,” said scouting director Tim McIlvaine. “We took a lot of high school kids in this one, which was exciting for us. I always tell you guys, we’re looking at high school guys, and this time, it fell this way.”
More on Angels' 2025 Draft:
Here’s a deeper look at the club’s Day 2 selections:
Jake Munroe, 3B
- Round 4 (No. 109 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: University of Louisville
- Calling Card: The 6-foot-2, 230-pound slugger slashed .346/.451/.593 with 13 homers, 13 doubles and 61 RBIs in his first and only year at Louisville after two years at John A. Logan College. Munroe also came up clutch, getting named to the College World Series All-Tournament Team after going 6-for-17 with a homer.
CJ Gray, RHP
- Round 5 (No. 140 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: A.L. Brown High School (Kannapolis, N.C.)
- Calling Card: Gray, ranked as the No. 178 Draft prospect by MLB Pipeline, is considered one of the more electric and athletic pitchers available in the Draft as he had scholarship offers to play quarterback at several mid-majors. But he’s picking baseball and has a power sinker that reaches 96 mph to go with a slider and a surprisingly strong changeup. The 6-foot-2, 205-pounder is committed to North Carolina State.
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Day 2 (Rounds 4-20): Round-by-round analysis
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- Best hauls | Biggest steals
- Pipeline Podcast analyzes Draft
- Picks with famous relatives | Quickest to the bigs
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- Complete coverage
More on the top picks:
1. WSH: Willits | 2. LAA: Bremner | 3. SEA: Anderson | 4. TEX: Holliday | 5. STL: Doyle
6. PIT: Hernandez | 7. MIA: Arquette | 8. TOR: Parker | 9. CIN: Hall | 10. CWS: Carlson
Luke Lacourse, RHP
- Round 6 (No. 169 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: Bay City Western High School (Auburn, Mich.)
- Calling Card: Lacourse has a big arm for a prep pitcher, as he has a fastball that reaches 94 mph and a slider that possesses elite spin rate, but he needs to work on a changeup. The 6-foot-4, 220-pounder was named Michigan’s Mr. Baseball and is committed to Michigan State. He went 31-7 with a 1.67 ERA and 340 strikeouts in 239 1/3 innings during his four-year varsity career.
Lucas Mahlstedt, RHP
- Round 7 (No. 199 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: Clemson University
- Calling Card: The 6-foot-3, 175-pound sidearmer served as the closer as a senior with Clemson last year, registering a 3.38 ERA with 61 strikeouts in 48 innings and 15 saves. As a senior, he’s likely to sign for much under his slot value. He was a physics major who was named the ACC Baseball Scholar Athlete of the Year and to the Academic All-America Team.
Isaiah Jackson, OF
- Round 8 (No. 229 overall)
- Bats/throws: L/R
- School: Arizona State University
- Calling Card: Jackson, ranked as the No. 214 Draft prospect, is the younger brother of pitcher Andre Jackson, who pitched in the Majors from 2021-23. At 6-foot-3, 220 pounds, Isaiah Jackson has plenty of power, and hit .310/.402/.630 with 18 homers, 14 stolen bases and 68 RBIs in 60 games with Arizona State this past season as a junior. The 23-year-old is also considered a plus-defender who can stick in center field.
- Quote: “We wanted to get some center fielders in the mix. He’s not a burner, but can cover a lot of ground. He's a college guy who I think has some upside, which is rare.” -- McIlvaine
Slate Alford, 3B
- Round 9 (No. 259 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: University of Georgia
- Calling Card: Alford had a big senior year at Georgia, batting .331/.440/.649 with 19 homers, 16 doubles and 63 RBIs in 60 games. The 6-foot-3, 212-pounder has four years of SEC experience and the Angels will be able to sign him for under slot as a senior. Alford, 22, lost 24 pounds before last season to improve his speed.
Nick Rodriguez, 2B
- Round 10 (No. 289 overall)
- Bats/throws: L/R
- School: Missouri State University
- Calling Card: Rodriguez, 22, is another power hitter who hit .368/.444/.702 with 18 homers, 22 doubles and 56 RBIs in 55 games this past season. The 5-foot-10, 185-pounder was the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year and an All-America First-Team selection. He’s another senior sign to save money for other picks.
Alton Davis II, LHP
- Round 11 (No. 319 overall)
- Bats/throws: L/L
- School: University of Georgia
- Calling Card: Davis is a lanky 6-foot-5, 178-pound lefty who had an up and down season with Georgia, going 5-0 with an 8.14 ERA and 27 strikeouts and 12 walks in 21 innings. The 21-year-old Alabama native was a member of USA Baseball's Prospect Development Pipeline.
Talon Haley, LHP
- Round 12 (No. 349 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/L
- School: Lewisburg High School (Miss.)
- Calling Card: Haley is one of the more intriguing players in the Draft, as the 19-year-old overcame both non-Hodgkin lymphoma, becoming cancer-free in December 2022, and Tommy John surgery twice, including before high school. The 6-foot-2, 200-pounder is likely to command a sizable bonus with a commitment to Vanderbilt, which is why the Angels took three seniors in the first 10 rounds.
- Quote: “It's a crazy story. The fight that he's shown with that, we think that the competitiveness to beat cancer is a lot of what drives him on the mound as well.” -- McIlvaine
Xavier Mitchell, LHP
- Round 13 (No. 379 overall)
- Bats/throws: L/L
- School: Prestonwood Christian (Plano, Texas)
- Calling Card: Mitchell is a 6-foot-3, 165-pound lefty who pitched for the U.S. 18-and-under national team last summer to establish himself as one of the best prep lefties. But the 19-year-old was shut down with shoulder fatigue this season. He’s committed to Texas and would also likely command a decent bonus.
- Quote: “We saw him early, before he had to be shut down. He's really a terrific kid. And he really wants to get going.” -- McIlvaine
TJ Ford, OF
- Round 14 (No. 409 overall)
- Bats/throws: S/R
- School: Trinity Christian School (Ga.)
- Calling Card: Ford is an athletic 5-foot-9, 154-pound outfielder with room to grow, who also has experience in the middle infield. He hit .376 with 17 extra-base hits and 44 RBIs in 22 games as a senior. The 19-year-old is committed to the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
- Quote: “We have that 20 to 80 scale, and as a runner, he's probably as close to an 80 as you can be. I wanted to get somebody like that that has that sort of tool [and] who is dynamic.” -- McIlvaine
Mikey Cascino, RHP
- Round 15 (No. 439 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: A3 Academy (Fla.)
- Calling Card: Cascino, 18, is a 6-foot-2, 195-pounder who has touched the mid-90s with his fastball and has a solid changeup. The University of South Florida commit threw a no-hitter with 17 strikeouts in a game this season.
- Quote: “We really like his fastball. Came to one of our workouts where we were working on a couple different guys, and he stood out.” -- McIlvaine
Gage Harrelson, OF
- Round 16 (No. 469 overall)
- Bats/throws: L/L
- School: Florida State University
- Calling Card: After mostly taking power-orientated players, they shifted gears by taking Harrelson, who hit .339/.444/.462 with 15 steals in 58 games as a junior. The 6-foot-3, 177-pounder has more of a slasher approach at the plate. The 19-year-old also has plus-speed and is expected to stick in center.
Cole Raymond, RHP
- Round 17 (No. 499 overall)
- Bats/throws: L/R
- School: Avon Old Farms School (Conn.)
- Calling Card: Raymond, 18, certainly has the size at 6-foot-4 and 185 pounds and has a fastball that has reached 95 mph to go along with a slider and changeup. He’s committed to Georgia Tech.
Angelo Smith, RHP
- Round 18 (No. 529 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: University of Central Florida
- Calling Card: Smith, 21, pitched at the junior college level for two years before faring well in his lone season at Central Florida, posting a 2.83 ERA with 24 strikeouts and seven walks in 28 2/3 innings. The 6-foot, 185-pounder’s fastball gets up to 96 mph to go along with an effective cutter, changeup and slider.
Ivan Tatis, SS
- Round 19 (No. 559 overall)
- Bats/throws: R/R
- School: Georgia Premier Academy (Ga.)
- Calling Card: Tatis is a 5-foot-11, 175-pounder with solid bat-to-ball skills who was born in the Dominican Republic. The 19-year-old is committed to Florida Southwestern State College.
- Quote: “Our scout in the area, Chris McAlpin, has known him for a couple years. He's been talking about him for a year and we were able to take him.” -- McIlvaine
Sam Tookoian, RHP
- Round 20 (No. 559 overall)
- Bats/throws: L/R
- School: University of Mississippi
- Calling Card: Tookoian, 22, saw limited action with Ole Miss last year, striking out nine over three innings but allowing two runs. The 6-foot-5, 240-pounder has plenty of size but has thrown just 43 innings over the last three years.