Jamie Cameron

In episode 41 of Destination: The Show, Jeremy and Jamie talk through the Twins releasing Keoni Cavaco, their first round pick from the 2019 MLB draft. They talk through the risks of the pick, and how MLB teams evaluate their draft classes. The guys go on to talk through the College World Series and some of the prospects on show, before digging into (and complaining about) the MLB Draft Combine. They preview the first base demographic of the forthcoming 2024 MLB Draft, including an intriguing sleeper pick who has some of the best batted ball data in college baseball. Finally, the guys talk through some listener questions. 3:11 Housekeeping Notes 5:00 Keoni Cavaco 17:28 College World Series 25:53 Draft Combine 46:34 First Basemen previews 1:04:47 Listener Questions You can support the show by downloading it from wherever you get your podcasts, including iTunes and Spotify. If you enjoy the content, consider leaving us a five-star rating and review in addition to sharing or retweeting DTS-related content. You can follow us on Twitter @DTS_POD1, @Jeremynygaard, @J_D_Cameron, and @TheodoreTollef1. You can also find full episodes and clips of our shows on our YouTube page @DestinationTheShow.

We’re starting to see a trickle of credible steam surrounding draft picks and fits. We’ll have at least three more mocks in the coming weeks, including a dueling installment next time up. Given how chaotic this draft should be after pick 11 or so, we’ve opted to switch things up significantly. 1. Cleveland Guardians - Travis Bazzana, 2B, Oregon State There's been steam connecting the Guardians to Bazzana in recent weeks. Whether accurate or not, he’s closed the gap between himself and Charlie Condon. Their composite rankings are 1.88 and 1.55 respectively. At this point, it’s close to a toss-up as to whom the industry prefers at the top. 2. Cincinnati Reds - Charlie Condon, 3B, Georgia The Reds lucked out in the lottery, big-time. They’ll land one of the two best players (if they so choose) and have the financial flexibility to tap into prep talent further down the board. Condon won’t be on the board long if the Guardians pass. 3. Colorado Rockies - Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest There are some decent pieces in the Rockies system, but they need talented arms if they are ever going to reemerge into relevance. Burns could be a game-changer for their rotation. 4. Oakland Athletics - Jac Caglianone, 1B, Florida Caglianone’s future is as a hitter. He’s improved his chase rates and bat-to-ball skills in 2024, to go with the 80-grade raw power that easily makes up for the first base-only profile on defense. 5. Chicago White Sox - Bryce Rainer, SS, Harvard Westlake HS, CA The White Sox are in no hurry. They’ll likely strengthen their farm significantly before the trade deadline. They’ve been connected to Rainer and Konnor Griffin, the top two prep players on the board. Here we’ll go with Rainer, a polished, left-handed hitting shortstop. Braden Montgomery also makes plenty of sense here. 6. Kansas City Royals - Braden Montgomery, OF, Texas A&M This is a great spot to be picking, despite getting some raw luck in the lottery (again). Montgomery has had a special 2024 season. Through regional play, he’s slugged .730 and hit 26 home runs. He’s better from the left side, and a plus arm makes him one of the best outfield prospects in the class. This would be a great get for KC. Rainer and Griffin could fit here, too, if the Royals are scared off by the broken ankle that ended his college career prematurely. 7. St. Louis Cardinals - Nick Kurtz, 1B, Wake Forest The Cardinals have roared back into relevance in the NL Central in 2024, after looking down and out. They have a difficult choice here. It’s hard to pass on Hagen Smith, but in Kurtz, they have one of the best hit/power combos in the draft class. His 22 bombs and a 1.294 OPS after a slow start will play. 8. Los Angeles Angels - Hagen Smith, LHP, Arkansas We know the Angels' type. They target players who can move and debut quickly at the MLB level, despite little evidence that that strategy is working well. Smith could go as high as three, but his floor is likely around here, after a dominant season in the SEC (164 strikeouts in 84 innings at the time of writing). 9. Pittsburgh Pirates - J.J. Wetherholt, SS, West Virginia Wetherholt was 1:1 coming into 2024. Lingering soft-tissue injuries have cost him playing time and exposure at shortstop (having previously played second base). If he can remain healthy, he could be the steal of the top half of the first round, with the best hit tool in the class. 10. Washington Nationals - Konnor Griffin, OF, Jackson Prep HS, MS Griffin is one of the best athletes in this class and could go several spots higher. The Nationals tend to like high-upside prep players, and Griffin has that in abundance. It’s a high-risk, high-reward play. 11. Detroit Tigers - Trey Yesavage, RHP, East Carolina The Tigers have a relatively new team at the helm for their draft and came away with a promising 2023 haul, led by Max Clark and Kevin McGonigle. They’ve had less success developing college pitching in recent years, but Yesavage has firmly established himself as SP3. 12. Boston Red Sox - Seaver King, SS, Wake Forest King has one of the wider ranges of outcomes for any first-round college player. It’s athleticism, bat speed, and impact in abundance, but it’s still pretty raw. He’s one of the higher-upside plays in the class on the college side. 13. San Francisco Giants - Cam Caminiti, LHP, Saguaro HS, AZ Caminiti, to his credit, has maintained his draft stock throughout the process. It’s either him or Kash Mayfield atop the list of prep lefties. We’ll go with Caminiti here, despite some lingering concerns about his ability to spin the baseball. 14. Chicago Cubs - James Tibbs, OF, Florida State This might be the most mocked pick this cycle. Tibbs to the Cubs makes tons of sense. It’s a pretty safe bat. If he’s off the board, Seaver King, Cam Smith, and Christian Moore all make sense). 25 home runs and a 1.267 OPS highlight an incredible season for Tibbs through regionals. If he was more athletic, he’d be a top-eight pick. 15. Seattle Mariners - Kash Mayfield, LHP, Elk City HS, OK The Mariners leaned into a strong prep position player class in 2023, with plenty of flexibility courtesy of abundant picks (and money). Their system could use an infusion on the pitching side. Mayfield has one of the best deliveries in the draft class (college or prep), and would be my pick as the top high-school southpaw. 16. Miami Marlins - Cam Smith, 3B, Florida State The Marlins need bats. Smith is a great option who had an outstanding 2024 season, anchoring the Florida State offense along with James Tibbs. It’s a solid defensive profile and an offensive skillset full of impact. 17. Milwaukee Brewers - Brody Brecht, RHP, Iowa The Brewers are ‘up there’ with the Mariners with the quality and consistency of their pitching development. Brecht might have the best one-two punch in the class between his fastball and slider. If he’s a first-rounder, he’ll also set a record (high) for walk rate for a college pitcher. He improved in the second half of the season. If anyone can harness the immense ceiling here, it’s Milwaukee. 18. Tampa Bay Rays - Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Kentucky Waldschmidt is one of my favorite prospects in the 2024 cycle. He’s done everything for Kentucky offensively on one of the best teams in the SEC. There’s solid tools across the board. He’s a sure first-round profile, for me. 19. New York Mets - Vance Honeycutt, OF, North Carolina Honeycutt has the best tools of any collegiate position player: elite center-field defense, plus speed, and the chance for plus power. There are legitimate swing-and-miss worries, though, and a strikeout rate north of 25% is an orange flag. 20. Toronto Blue Jays - Christian Moore, 2B, Tennessee Moore is 35th on the consensus board right now. That’s way too low. A 1.229 OPS and 29 home runs through regional play in the SEC is a first-round profile. Any number of teams should be thrilled to get him in this range. 21. Minnesota Twins - Slade Caldwell, OF, Valley View HS, AR Caldwell is one of only three surefire prep players who will go in the first round, for me. While it might seem antithetical to the Twins' typical approach (lean into the strength of the draft), Caldwell would be a top-10 pick if he was even six feet tall (he’s 5-foot-9). It’s plus speed in center field and a great approach at the plate, in a very hitterish profile. 22. Baltimore Orioles - Theo Gillen, SS, Westlake HS, TX Gillen has been described as the best hitter in Texas. That ought to be good enough for a still-loaded Orioles system, although presumably, they just mean among high schoolers. If he's better than José Altuve and Corey Seager, he should go higher than this. 23. Los Angeles Dodgers - Kellon Lindsey, SS, Hardee HS, FL Lindsey is one of a handful of prep shortstops who will go in the 20-40 range. He’s an explosive athlete and an 80-grade runner. The Dodgers make superstars out of prospects with this type of athletic tools--or at least, they love to try. 24. Atlanta Braves - Carson Benge, OF, Oklahoma State A two-way player who should focus on hitting over pitching, Benge has gotten over his groundball woes of 2023. Benge has a nice balance of power and bat-to-ball skills in his profile. He’s a high-floored college bat who could go ten picks higher. 25. San Diego Padres - Ryan Sloan, RHP, York Community HS, IL One of the best prep righties in the class, Sloan has an enticing combination of frame, velocity, and pitch mix. That’s exactly the type of clay the Padres like to mold. 26. New York Yankees - Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP/LHP, Mississippi State A switch-pitcher who will likely focus on pitching right-handed as a pro. Cijntje has earned Marcus Stroman comps and has legitimate first-round steam at this point. 27. Philadelphia Phillies - Billy Amick, 3B, Tennessee Amick’s momentum was slowed midseason by appendicitis. He’s handled third base better than expected. It’s a power-over-hit profile, though, with some swing-and-miss concerns. 28. Houston Astros - Dakota Jordan, OF, Mississippi State We haven’t talked much about Jordan. He might have the best bat speed in the class. There are major strikeout issues, and the contact rate is in the sixties. If the right player development team can help make it work, there’s massive impact in the profile 29. Arizona Diamondbacks - William Schmidt, Catholic HS, LA Schmidt was an early riser in the cycle. The fastball took a velocity jump, and he might have the best breaking ball in the prep class, an absolute hammer of a curveball. 30. Texas Rangers - Malcolm Moore, C, Stanford This feels like a value play at this point. Moore has had a poor year offensively, but is still floating around the back half of the first round on most boards. 31. Arizona Diamondbacks - Tyson Lewis, SS, Millard West HS, NE There’s tons of steam on the Diamondbacks and Lewis, who has risen quickly up boards. It’s a potential hit/power/speed combination at shortstop. 32. Baltimore Orioles - Kaelen Culpepper, SS/3B, Kansas State A consistent performer throughout his collegiate career with no real gaps in his profile--and no real carrying tool, either. 33. Minnesota Twins - Joey Oakie, RHP, Ankeny HS, IA Given the Twins' combination of picks and bonus pool, it makes too much sense for them to tap into a deep prep pitching class somewhere in their first four picks. Oakie is one of my favorites, with a nasty combination of a running fastball and a sweeper with a ton of lateral movement. 34. Milwaukee Brewers - Walker Janek, C, Sam Houston State Janek is the best catcher in the class for me. He controls the running game with a plus arm and is a good defender. The offensive profile isn’t spectacular, but he does everything well. If the Brewers take two college players, expect things to get weird from there on out. They have money and picks to leverage creatively. 35. Arizona Diamondbacks - Jared Thomas, OF, Texas An impactful college bat who should stick in center field, Thomas has taken a step forward in 2024 with his offensive impact. It’s an appealing, well-rounded profile. 36. Cleveland Guardians - Braylon Doughty, RHP, Chaparral HS, CA While Doughty doesn’t have a prototypical frame, it’s a smooth, repeatable delivery, a good fastball, and a real ability to spin the baseball. He'd become a scary prospect in Cleveland’s player development system. 37. Pittsburgh Pirates - Wyatt Sanford, SS, Independence HS, TX A spring riser, Sanford has a solid overall offensive profile for a system that’s very arm-heavy. 38. Colorado Rockies - Caleb Lomavita, C, Cal A value play at this point. I don’t love Lomavita’s offensive profile, personally, it’s a wild yet high-impact approach. He’s had steam in the teens. 39. Kansas City Royals - Mike Sirota, OF, Northeastern Sirota has had a down year, but the tools and performance have been there before. He won’t last too long.

We’re in the thick of draft season now. To break up our positional previews, we’re going to highlight some helium profiles. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, it’s typically reserved for prospects that rise late in the cycle, and/or emerge suddenly. Here are five names to watch who have gained significant steam throughout the spring. For each prospect, you’ll find their name, position, school, and current ranking on the MLB Consensus Draft Board. Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Kentucky (31) Waldschmidt is an all-round prospect who transferred from Charleston Southern to Kentucky after his sophomore season. Despite not having a carrying tool, he can chalk up value in a number of different ways. It's a little bit of everything at the plate, as strong bat-to-ball skills combine with good on-base ability (in his first 29 games of 2024, Waldschmidt has walked 22 times and struck out just 16). There's sneaky pull-side power here, too, with a line-drives-to-all-fields impact at the plate. Waldschmidt has good speed, which aids him defensively and on the bases. In the outfield, he takes efficient routes and has a good shot to stick in center as a pro. Waldschmidt missed the beginning of 2024, recovering from a torn ACL. Through Regional play, Waldschmidt had a .359/.482/.657 line with 14 home runs, 24 stolen bases, and almost as many walks as strikeouts. He’s a first-rounder for me. Kellon Lindsey, SS, Hardee HS, FL (37) Lindsey simply appeared on the consensus board one day this spring in a top-35 slot.. A two-sport star who is committed to Florida to play football and baseball, the shortstop/outfield profile is underpinned by some of the most impressive athleticism in the entire class. There's a ton of projection left in Lindsey's frame. He's already posted 80-grade run times that should translate to him being a plus defender, whether he sticks at short or in center, in addition to being a menace on the base paths. Lindsey has also received rave reviews for his offensive improvements thus far in 2024. Quick hands, excellent bat-to-ball skills, good barrel control, and an emerging ability to backspin the baseball make Lindsey a serious helium prospect and someone who could have significant impact as a first-round pick come July. He’s the type of athlete I’d expect the Dodgers to target. Tyson Lewis, SS, Millard West HS, NE (39) Lewis is a left-handed hitting prep shortstop prospect, in a class in which that demographic is a significant weakness. The Arkansas commit has gained a ton of strength in the last year, which has translated into better bat speed and more power. Lewis has a quick swing supported by lightning-fast hands that (at present) profiles as a line-drive machine. While some don't love his high hand placement, it's been working well. His athletic frame offers plenty more upside in terms of future power, if he's able to get to his newfound bat speed with more consistency. Defensively, Lewis has plus speed and great quickness, which aids his defense at shortstop. Solid actions and an above-average arm give him a good chance to stick there as a pro. This is a potential power-speed combination that won't remain on the board for long in July. There’s some steam connecting Lewis with the Diamondbacks and their slew of picks starting late in the first round. Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP/LHP, Mississippi State (43) No. Your eyes do not deceive you. Cijntje is a switch pitcher. The native of Curaçao has a glove that fits both hands. A natural left-hander, Cijntje is better as a right-handed pitcher and will likely stick there as a professional. He's been on the radar as a prospect for a while, due to his unique skill set, but there's a unique athlete in this profile, too. From the right side, the fastball sits in the 93-95 mph range and has touched 97 mph, with good carry. There's an above-average slider with good bite and an average changeup. From the left side, it's less velocity and more of a fastball-slider combination. If he does make it to the majors using both arms and has to navigate the Pat Venditte Rule, he'll always be choosing to pitch righty when a switch-hitter comes up. While Cijntje doesn't have an ideal frame, he's stocky and strong, and has made a good deal of progress with his control in 2024--although the command of his pitches could still improve. An incredibly unique profile, it'll be fascinating to see what a drafting organization does here. My bet is a starting role from the right side to begin with. He’s in contention to be a first-round pick. Dax Whitney, RHP, Blackfoot HS, ID (84) It's not often that senior evaluators travel to Idaho to see a prospect ahead of the MLB draft, but that's exactly the case for Dax Whitney, one of the biggest pop-up prospects in the 2024 class. Whitney hadn't had a ton of exposure on the showcase circuit, preferring to play for his legion team instead, but he has evaluators pouring in after a pop in both movement and velocity this spring. He has a great pitcher's frame, at 6-foot-5, 190 pounds, with plenty to dream on in terms of future projection. That's all added up to be a clean, repeatable delivery that has him consistently throwing strikes and pounding the zone. On the mound, he throws a fastball that sits 92-94 mph, but can grab as high as 96 mph. That's backed up by an excellent 12-6 curveball, a shorter slider with real tilt, and an emerging changeup that he's shown consistent feel for. Whitney is one of the biggest up-arrows and buzziest names ahead of the draft this spring. He went from not ranked on this board to debuting at 81. There's a good chance he's a top-50 pick in July, with the combination of size, stuff, and polish that's easy to dream on. What do you make of some of the rapid risers in this year’s draft class? Any other names you’d throw into the mix? Join our draft discussion in the comments below.

In episode 39 of Destination: The Show, Jeremy and Jamie sit down with Carlos Collazo, Draft Expert at Baseball America. The guys talk through the top of the 2024 draft class, including who Carlos would take at 1:1. They then dig into demographics in more depth including catching, prep shortstops, and prep arms. The guys go on to talk through who might be good options for the first pick for the Cubs, Brewers, and Twins respectively. We then put Carlos on the spot and asked him to give us some under the radar players to watch in addition to asking him to make some tough calls on similar player profiles. 3:50 Top of the class 5:20 Who does Carlos take 1:1? 7:46 Where does the chaos start on Day 1? 13:10 College catching 18:48 Prep shortstops 21:17 Prep arms 26:59 The Cubs pick 30:24 The Brewers pick 32:21 The Twins pick 38:30 Under the radar 41:14 Either/Or 45:05 What's next for Carlos or BA? You can support the show by downloading it from wherever you get your podcasts, including iTunes and Spotify. If you enjoy the content, consider leaving us a five-star rating and review in addition to sharing or retweeting DTS-related content. You can follow us on Twitter @DTS_POD1, @Jeremynygaard, @J_D_Cameron, and @TheodoreTollef1. You can also find full episodes and clips of our shows on our YouTube page @DestinationTheShow.