The mock drafts had the Washington Nationals using the first overall pick on LSU left-handed pitcher Kade Anderson.
But the Nationals shocked nearly everyone by selecting 17-year-old Eli Willits, who is the son of former major league outfielder Reggie Willits. Ei is a shortstop in Oklahoma and it’s likely the Nats will sign him below the slot value of 11-million dollars.
In the Major League Baseball Draft, picks in the first ten rounds of the draft receive a slot value and teams will sign under the slot value so they can pay bigger bonuses to later draft picks. Teams only have so much money they can spend on draft picks.
The Los Angeles Angels had the second overall pick, but they took UC Santa Barbara right-hander Tyler Bremner.
The Seattle Mariners, who were the big winners of the draft lottery, moving from 17 to number three, couldn’t wait to tell MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred they are taking Anderson with the third overall pick.
“He was pretty dominant this year,” said Mariners Vice President of Amateur Scouting Scott Hunter. “To excel, and to achieve what he did in just one full year of college baseball is pretty impressive.”
Anderson was the Most Outstanding Player of the 2025 College World Series. He was 12-1 during his sophomore season with a 3.18 ERA and he led the nation in strikeouts with 180 in 119 innings. The lefty celebrated the moment with his family in Madisonville.
“I’m just super blessed, I’ve had so many cherishable memories over the last month or two and this is just another one of those things that I will look back on and I will be so grateful for,” said Anderson.
Anderson said he only met with one team while waiting on the draft in his hometown in Louisiana and ironically that was Seattle. The former St Paul’s High star said he hit it off with Seattle Assistant General Manager Andy McKay during their face-to-face meeting.
He said the conversation was like the many conversations he had with LSU pitching coach Nate Yeskie.
Anderson joins an organization known for developing its first-round draft picks that are pitchers. Logan Gilbert and George Kirby are two former first round picks currently in the Mariners starting rotation.
And Anderson will reportedly receive a signing bonus of 8.8 million dollars.
Some mock drafts also had LSU right-handed pitcher Anthony Eyanson going in the first round.
But right-hander Chase Shores went before Eyanson. The Los Angeles Angels took Shores in the second round with the 47th overall selection.
Shores shot up the draft boards by unleashing a 100 mile per hour fastball out of the bullpen and got the final out in the College World Series.
Shores joins an organization not afraid to move its top prospects quickly through the minor league system.
Christian Moore helped Tennessee win a national championship in 2024 and this year he’s already playing with the Angels.
In a social media post on “X,” LSU baseball coach Jay Johnson said Shores will be one of the fastest to the Big Leagues out of this draft class.
Eyanson finally heard his name called in the third round as he was taken by the Boston Red Sox with the 87th overall pick.
Eyanson was a critical piece to LSU winning an 8th national championship. The All-SEC performer from California went 12-2 with a 3.00 ERA and struck out 152 in 108 innings.
Boston believes it got a steal in round three by taking Eyanson, who was ranked among the Top 50 best prospects in the draft.
The Red Sox also went pitching heavy on Sunday night, selecting Oklahoma’s Kyson Witherspoon in the first round and Tennessee’s Marcus Phillips in the compensatory round, which is right after the first round.
LSU’s designated hitter Ethan Frey was also selected in the third round, taken with the 95th overall pick by the Houston Astros.
Johnson was hoping Frey would return for his senior season but that’s not happening. Frey will reportedly receive a signing bonus close to a million dollars.
It could be a couple of years before Frey makes it to the Big Leagues, but the chance to do it for the Astros has to be appealing. Houston is less than a three-hour drive from his hometown of Rosepine.
Four LSU baseball signees were also taken on Sunday and will likely not end up at LSU. Outfielder Dean Moss from IMG Academy in Florida went to Tampa Bay in the second round. Infielder Quentin Young in the second round to the Twins. Outfielder Jaden Fauskie from suburban Chicago was selected by the White Sox. And infielder Brady Ebel went to the Brewers with the 32nd overall pick.
Ebel could have been LSU’s starting third baseman next season, but he’ll likely sign with Milwaukee.
There were some positives when it comes to LSU signees. Left-hander Briggs McKenzie out of North Carolina was not selected on Sunday night. He’s ranked by MLB.com as the 67th best prospect. Right-hander Marcos Paz was also not taken. The right-hander from Texas had Tommy John surgery last July, but before the surgery, he was expected to be a first-round pick.
The MLB draft continues Monday with rounds 4-through-20, starting at 10:30 AM.
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