Our experts tag-team the latest mock draft, featuring fresh Combine intel

The NCAA national champions have been crowned -- congrats Oklahoma. The Draft Combine is underway in Arizona. And it's time for another mock draft.

Throughout the past two months, in preparation for the MLB Draft on July 11 and 12, MLB Pipeline's Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo have alternated weekly with new mock drafts based on fresh intel. This week, the duo is on site in Phoenix for the Combine, and they're joining forces.

On the most recent edition of the MLB Pipeline Podcast, Callis and Mayo took turns making each club's first pick and giving reasoning based on what they're hearing from clubs. Here is a breakdown of that segment, structured in the form of a draft with each player's rank in parentheses.

1. White Sox: Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA (No. 1)
Mayo: "Very, very good player. Super-high floor. Has played shortstop for a long time. Strong track record at UCLA."

2. Rays: Vahn Lackey, C, Georgia Tech (No. 3)
Callis: "Even though it’s only the second pick, I have trouble predicting because I don’t really know whether the Rays prefer Lackey or Grady Emerson.

"I have more teams [who are drafting] behind the Rays telling me they're fairly convicted that the Rays are taking Lackey. So, I'm going to go Lackey here."

3. Twins: Grady Emerson, SS, Fort Worth Christian (TX) HS (No. 2)
Mayo: “I do think that the Twins could look at Jackson Flora if they wanted to go arm, but I feel pretty good about the top three going in the top three in some order.”

4. Giants: Jacob Lombard, SS, Gulliver Prep (FL) HS (No. 4)
Callis: “Now we’re on to the second-tier guys. It’s Jacob Lombard, Jackson Flora -- clearly the best college pitcher this year -- and Eric Booth Jr.

"It's probably like a 95 percent chance or higher that the Giants are going to take one of those three guys. I've heard Lombard from the start. I'm going to stick with Lombard."

5. Pirates: Jackson Flora, RHP, UC Santa Barbara (No. 5)
Mayo: "It comes down to a choice between Flora and Booth. I opt that the Pirates will continue to try to build pitching, and Flora gives them another guy to come in behind the guys that have already gone to the big leagues and Seth Hernandez, who's on his way up."

6. Royals: Eric Booth Jr., OF, Oak Grove (MS) HS (No. 6)
Callis: "I think the Royals are the most likely to not take a top six player. We’ve heard Gio Rojas with them. We’ve heard Booth, Lombard and Flora. This is as high as I’ve heard Jared Grindlinger. I think there’s a small chance that it could be Drew Burress from Georgia Tech if they went for the high floor versus ceiling pick.

"But I'm just going to play this out by the chalk, and they'll get the one top six player remaining on the board and that is Eric Booth Jr."

7. Orioles: Drew Burress, OF, Georgia Tech (No. 7)
Mayo: "The Orioles like their bats and tend to like the college ones when picking in the first round. Burress, unlike some of the other ones that they've drafted, does not have holes in his swing. Maybe he's not as explosive, but I think there's a better certainty that he's going to hit."

8. Athletics: Ryder Helfrick, C, Arkansas (No. 13)
Callis: "I think it’s going to be a college bat. I think they’re between Helfrick, Texas A&M second baseman Chris Hacopian, Drew Burress and Kentucky shortstop Tyler Bell. Maybe Alabama’s Justin Lebron, who has a high ceiling, but there are questions on the bat. I’m going with Helfrick."

9. Braves: Gio Rojas, LHP, Stoneman Douglas (FL) HS (No. 8)
Mayo: "They’re either going to go with the type that people expect of them -- high school arm -- or college bat.

"I decided to have them go with their type. They took Cam Caminiti a couple years ago, so I have them taking Rojas, who is the top high school arm in the class. To me, he is the kind of player that they may look back and be like, 'He’s the best pitcher in the class.'"

10. Rockies: Derek Curiel, OF, Louisiana State (No. 12)
Callis: "Another team that I think is looking strongly at college hitters, all the guys I just mentioned are candidates. Also, Curiel from LSU and AJ Gracia from Virginia.

"I wouldn't rule out that they could take the second college pitcher."

11. Nationals: Tyler Bell, SS, Kentucky (No. 20)
Mayo: "This feels like a college bat spot. We were hearing Grindlinger's name a lot, almost to the point where I feel like I don't want to believe it because it's been mentioned over and over.

"But I decided to put Bell here. I know that they like him. A lot of teams like him. He was a guy who was playing hurt, but still put up very good numbers in the SEC. And I feel like that matters to a lot of teams."

12. Angels: Chris Hacopian, 2B, Texas A&M (No. 10)
Callis: "He just feels like an Angel. They take these bats that can move so quickly through the Minor Leagues."

13. Cardinals: Jared Grindlinger, LHP/OF, Huntington Beach (CA) HS (No. 18)
Mayo: "I know that they like him. I think they prefer him as a hitter. I’m breaking the mini run here of college hitters with the Cardinals taking the reclassified two-way player."

14. Marlins: Ace Reese, 3B, Mississippi State (No. 21)
Callis: "He has topped 20 homers in each of his two seasons with the Bulldogs in the SEC. I think he’s going to get strong play in this 11-20 range."

15. D-backs: AJ Gracia, OF, Virginia (No. 17)
Mayo: “I’ve mostly heard left-handed pitching or college hitters. So, I decided to go college hitter here with Gracia. Really good bat-to-ball skills. Just a little question about the impact and defensive home.”

16. Rangers: Justin LeBron, SS, Alabama (No. 9)
Callis: “If you told me coming into the year that LeBron would go No. 16 in the Draft as a potential 30-30 shortstop, I’d be shocked. But he didn’t have a strong year in SEC play, so there are questions about the bat."

17. Astros: Liam Peterson, RHP, Florida (No. 14)
Mayo: "We’ve mostly been hearing hitters for the Astros, but so many of the college hitters that they have been interested in are now off the board.

"I think they're going to go Liam Peterson, who pure-stuff-wise belongs higher than this, but performance-and-command-wise, this is about where you start hearing his name more."

18. Reds: Cameron Flukey, RHP, Coastal Carolina (No. 11)
Callis: "I think he was our top-rated college pitcher coming into the year, but he missed two months with a stress fracture in his rib.

"They could go in a lot of different directions ... but I'm going to have them look at this and say, 'Hey how did Flukey get to us at 18?'"

19. Guardians: Trevor Condon, OF, Etowah (GA) HS (No. 22)
Mayo: "I think what he does fits what they do. Condon’s ability to hit while being super super athletic gives them an element that they don’t have as much of."

20. Red Sox: Bo Lowrance, 3B, Christ Church Episcopal (SC) HS (No. 38)
Callis: "High school hitter from South Carolina, who has been impressive at the Combine."

21. Padres: Cole Prosek, 3B/C, Magnolia Heights (MS) HS (No. 33)
Mayo: "The inclination always with the Padres is to give them the highest-upside high school player. ... So, I’m going to stick with high school players. Prosek is versatile. He can really hit."

22. Tigers: Landon Thome, 2B/3B, Nazareth Academy (IL) HS (No. 37)
Callis: "They’ve taken a bunch of left-handed high school bats and done very well with them. So, I’m going to go high school left-handed bat. ... We like him. We’ve ranked him high all year. People love the hitter. People love the kid."

23. Cubs: Daniel Jackson, C, Georgia (No. 39)
Mayo: "I think we both think that he should win the Golden Spikes Award. This is a catcher who had 32 homers and stole 26 bags for a very good Georgia team that made it to Omaha."

24. Mariners: Tegan Kuhns, RHP, Tennessee (No. 24)
Callis: "I feel pretty good about them taking a college pitcher."

25. Brewers: Sawyer Strosnider, OF, Texas Christian (No. 16)
Mayo: "If they like a bat, they're usually just going to take him. I think they have an interest in Strosnider. I think the hope was he would've performed better this year and moved up [the board] because he does have some very interesting and impressive offensive traits. The power is very real, and the Brewers don't shy away from that kind of hitter."

The following organizations are picking in the supplemental first round because they have exceeded the second surcharge threshold of the Competitive Balance Tax, thus moving back 10 spots from their original pick.

27. Mets: Aiden Robbins, OF, Texas (No. 30)
Callis: "He won the Cape Cod League batting title last summer. He hit for a lot more power this spring after transferring to Texas and facing SEC competition."

35. Yankees: Zion Rose, OF, Louisville (No. 31)
Mayo: "Three above-average tools. I think he’s going to really hit."

• Subscribe to the MLB Pipeline Newsletter

36. Phillies: Cade Townsend, RHP, Mississippi (No. 27)
Callis: "Townsend can really spin it and had a nice season as a sophomore for Mississippi."

39. Blue Jays: Logan Reddemann, RHP, UCLA (No. 28)
Mayo: "He very well could go higher, especially if he’s answered questions about the health of his right arm. But I feel like it would be a good fit for the Blue Jays."

40. Dodgers: Will Brick, C, Christian Brothers (TN) HS (No. 51)
Callis: "Hasn’t had quite the offensive season that people hoped for, but he’s a very good defensive catcher."