The 2022 college baseball season is officially over. With sunny skies signifying the start of summer, the MLB draft is quickly approaching.
The draft usually takes place in June, but this year it will be held from July 17-19. Like last season, it will be 20 rounds.
Four Ducks were selected in the 2021 draft. Aaron Zavala was the first pick in the second round following his monstrous campaign which saw him earn a Dick Howser award nomination. Robert Ahlstrom was selected in the seventh round, Cullen Kafka in the ninth round and Hunter Breault in the 20th.
Sluggers Kenyon Yovan and Gabe Matthews also went on to affiliated baseball careers, signing undrafted free agent contracts with the Los Angeles Angels. The Ducks had to say goodbye to this core group of players.
Oregon will have to bid farewell to another core group of players this year. The two biggest names are Josh Kasevich and Anthony Hall, and they have a slew of other players who could be selected later in the draft or go the Yovan/Matthews route of signing contracts after the fact.
Kasevich is the most highly touted Oregon draft prospect from scouts’ perspectives, and MLB ranks him as the No. 64 draft prospect in the country. While Kasevich didn’t have nearly the season Zavala did in 2021, he’s praised for his elite contact skills and smooth defense at shortstop.
Kasevich walked 24 times this year compared to just 16 strikeouts. He hit a respectable seven home runs, and some scouts believe he has the potential to tap into more power in the future. He’s a solid line drive hitter who needs to elevate the ball more to take that next step, but the tools are there.
While Kasevich is unlikely to be taken as high as Zavala was, he’s expected to be picked near the third round.
Ranked right behind Kasevich at No. 65 is right-handed pitcher Jackson Cox, a high school commit who’s unlikely to ever put on a Duck uniform. If he somehow slips through and elects to go to college, he would be a huge addition.
The Ducks have two other high school commits who could be drafted — shortstops Dominic Hellman and Omari Daniel. Neither is as highly regarded as Cox, so it will be interesting to see if they wind up at Oregon or not. Daniel won’t be attending Oregon until 2024.
Hall, meanwhile, brings a different skillset than Kasevich, with more power and less defensive prowess. He’s still shown the ability to play a solid right field over the past two seasons, and he played a little bit of center in 2021. Some scouts are skeptical about his instincts in the outfield, but he has the athleticism. He also has a strong arm, which suits right field well.
This year Hall had the breakout season he showed signs of in 2021, setting an Oregon record with a .640 slugging percentage. Over 60 games, he hit .333 with a .402 OBP and 14 home runs. He arguably has a higher ceiling than Kasevich with a strong, smooth swing that has serious power potential.
MLB ranks Hall as the No. 142 draft prospect in the country. He could go as high as the second or third round, but he’s more likely to fall to the fourth or fifth. He was drafted in the 35th round by the Atlanta Braves out of high school.
After Hall, there’s a bit of a gap. However, there are still plenty of Ducks to keep an eye on.
Brennan Milone, who was taken in the 28th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers out of high school, had a breakout season in his own right, hitting .337/.405/.545. Prospects Live ranked him No. 412 in their top 500 draft prospects this May, so he has a solid chance to be taken early on day three (rounds 11-20). There’s even a small chance he could be a day two pick with the campaign he had.
Milone had fewer hits than walks before transferring to Oregon. He became an entirely different player this year as a Duck, with a more aggressive but much more successful approach. His walk rate went down, but his strikeout rate, batting average and slugging percentage drastically improved. He’s carried that success into the Cape Cod Baseball League this summer.
Kasevich, Hall and Milone are technically sophomores in eligibility, so a return to Oregon is still an option for each of them, though not likely.
Right-hander Andrew Mosiello is ranked shortly after Milone at No. 416. Mosiello had a disappointing 2022 season, partly due to back spasms. It’s still very possible a team could take a gamble on him late in the draft, similar to Breault being picked in the 20th round last year. He could also end up back at Oregon in the hopes of increasing his stock with a better collegiate season.
Drew Cowley and Tanner Smith will likely garner professional interest as well, despite not making the top 500 draft prospects. Cowley put up an absurd .424/.506/.616 line in 176 plate appearances this year, though he missed a month due to a broken hamate bone. He batted .339/.420/.453 through four college seasons.
Cowley’s lack of home run power gives him a limited ceiling, but it’s hard to imagine a team not taking notice of his on-base skills. If not drafted, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a team take him as a free agent.
The same goes for Smith. His numbers aren’t as flashy as Cowley’s, but he’s been a cornerstone player for Oregon since 2019. He put up an .859 OPS in 2022 and an .860 OPS over his four years. His best season was 2021 when he put up a .417 OBP and a .950 OPS.
Cowley and Smith, both 2022 graduates, each have a season of eligibility left, but it’s unlikely they’ll exercise it.
That leaves two interesting cases: Kolby Somers and Adam Maier.
Despite a few memorable hiccups, Somers was the best closer in the Pac-12 over the past two seasons. He was drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 38th round back in 2017 and had an up-and-down but ultimately successful Oregon career.
The fact that Breault was drafted last year likely helps Somers’ chances, considering Breault didn’t put up spectacular numbers and was more of a “pure stuff” selection. Somers doesn’t throw particularly hard, but he can still dominate with his sharp slider and keep hitters off balance.
Maier, on the other hand, is expected to return to Oregon after an injury-shortened 2022. He transferred to Oregon in the fall after an impressive showing in the CCBL. He was deemed the No. 2 transfer in the country, and he likely would’ve been up there with Kasevich and Hall if it weren’t for the elbow injury that knocked him out after three starts.
Maier has yet to pitch a full collegiate season, with COVID-19 wiping out most of his first two. It’s been an absurdly unlucky road for the talented right-hander. A team will probably try to scoop him up in the later rounds, but it’s expected he’ll bet on himself and try to boost his value in a Duck uniform next year.
