Guardians hope to capitalize with 5 Draft picks on Day 1

The Cleveland Guardians are preparing for the 2025 MLB Draft, scheduled for Sunday, July 13 (Rounds 1-3) and Monday, July 14 (Rounds 4-20) in Atlanta. The team holds five selections on the first day alone, tied for the second-most and including the No. 27 overall pick in the first round and the No. 70 pick in Competitive Balance Round B (acquired from Arizona).

Guardians vice president of scouting Paul Gillispie emphasized this presents a "really good opportunity to add talent" with five picks in the top 101. He noted the draft's overall depth this year stands out relative to past seasons, providing many good options for both position players and pitchers at high school and college levels, which is beneficial given their high number of early picks.

Regarding draft strategy, Gillispie stated the general approach with the first pick is to select the best player available, as teams typically focus on acquiring the best talent group regardless of position due to varying developmental timelines. Positional need is considered later in the draft to ensure players get playing opportunities. MLB Pipeline's mock draft suggests the Guardians could select Wake Forest outfielder Ethan Conrad, noting college hitters like Conrad and Tennessee's Andrew Fischer are frequently linked to them.

The article provides context: last year, the Guardians selected Travis Bazzana first overall. Historically, their first selections in recent drafts have alternated between high school players (2019, 2020, 2023) and college players (2021, 2022). Last year, after Bazzana, they used 16 of their final 20 picks on pitchers.

Gillispie acknowledged the condensed two-day schedule (down from three days in recent years) requires extra preparation for the team.