MLB's fifth annual Draft Combine gives teams the opportunity to gather more information on and off the field about several of the top talents in this year's crop. A total of 322 prospects accepted invitations to the event, which opened Tuesday and runs through Saturday at Chase Field in Phoenix. That number includes 174 members of MLB Pipeline's Draft Top 200 and 41 of the first 50 prospects on that list.
After the on-field pro-workout portion of Day 1, the action continued into the evening with the Draft Combine High School Game, which gave high school Draft prospects the opportunity to show their talent against the nation's best. Parker Rhodes impressed by striking out three after starting off with a walk, and Nathan Eisfelder clobbered a 407 ft. homer with a wood bat.
More on the Draft Combine:
How and what to watch
- Wed, 12-8pm ET: Live video stream of on-field workouts on MLB.com.
Who to watch
While some of the players come only to have their medicals done and meet with teams, many participate in on-field events, from batting practice and infield/outfield workouts for position players to bullpen sessions for pitchers. Mississippi prepster JoJo Parker is the highest-ranked player participating in on-field workouts. Jonathan Mayo provides a list of 10 intriguing names in his latest Pipeline newsletter, including high school bats Kayson Cunningham and Gavin Fein (No. 26), and ascendent New York prep righty -- and Marcus' little brother -- Jayden Stroman (No. 129).
Here are the top 15 ranked players on our Top 200 Draft Prospects attending the Combine:
No. 2: Seth Hernandez, RHP, Corona Senior HS (CA)
No. 4: Jamie Arnold, LHP, Florida State
No. 7: Billy Carlson, SS, Corona Senior HS (CA)
No. 8: Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Oklahoma
No. 9: Liam Doyle, LHP, Tennessee
No. 10: JoJo Parker, SS, Purvis HS (MS)
No. 11: Kayson Cunningham, SS, Lady Bird Johnson HS (TX)
No. 13: Steele Hall, SS, Hewitt Trussville HS (AL)
No. 14: Tyler Bremner, RHP, UC Santa Barbara
No. 15: Jace LaViolette, CF, Texas A&M
No. 17: Gavin Kilen, 2B, Tennessee
No. 18: Daniel Pierce, SS, Mill Creek HS (GA)
No. 19: Brendan Summerhill, RF, Arizona
No. 20: Luke Stevenson, C, North Carolina
No. 23: Sean Gamble, CF, IMG Academy (FL)
Previous success stories
A strong performance at the Combine can help prospects boost their stock. At the inaugural event in Cary, N.C., in 2021, Gardner-Webb right-hander Mason Miller threw seven of the eight fastest pitches clocked, averaging 98.2 mph and topping out at 99.1. An Athletics third-round pick that July, he needed just 28 2/3 innings in the Minors before making his big league debut; he's been the A's closer since 2024 and was an All-Star that season.
In 2022 in San Diego, Crowder (Mo.) JC right-hander Jacob Misiorowski was even more electric, averaging 99.8 mph and topping out at 100.7 while unleashing the eight hardest fastballs and also popping a slider at 90.3 mph. Signed for $2.35 million as a Brewers second-rounder, he blossomed into one of the game's top pitching prospects before making a sensational big league debut with Milwaukee on June 12.
In 2023 in Phoenix, prep outfielders Brandon Winokur (Edison HS, Huntington Beach, Calif.) and George Wolkow (Downers Grove, Ill., North HS) put on the most impressive batting-practice displays. Winokur had the highest average exit velocity (108.3 mph) and produced triple-digit EVs on 21 of his 22 swings, including a 437-foot shot, while Wolkow had the best max exit velo (116.2 mph) and smoked five straight pitches 400 feet or more. Both earned above-slot seven-figure bonuses -- Winokur $1.5 million from the Twins as a third-rounder and Wolkow $1 million form the White Sox as a seventh-rounder.
Last year, Colorado prep righty Trey Gregory-Alford jumped 20 spots, from 125 to 105, in our rankings after touching 100 mph at the Combine, then got $1,975,500 as the Angels’ 11th-round pick, setting a record for highest post-fourth round bonus since the bonus pool era began in 2012.
Florida prep infielder Kellon Lindsey was the highest-ranked Draft prospect to participate in on-field workouts last year. He impressed and went to the Dodgers in the first round with pick No. 23, signing for $3.3 million.
Similarly, South Carolina prep outfielder PJ Morlando also benefitted from a great Combine showing last spring, showing off his power in batting practice and then jumping from No. 57 to 43 in our rankings. He signed with the Marlins for $3.4 million as the No. 16 overall pick.
In '24, 224 of the 305 players who participated in the Combine were selected in the MLB Draft (73.4%), including 75 of the first 100 picks. As the Combine continues to grow, the event’s impact is being felt across the game with 55 Combine participants making their Major League debuts as of June 16.
Joe Trezza is a senior content producer for MLB.com.