(Cover photo by Steve Sisney/For The Oklahoman)
The 2025 MLB Draft is fast approaching. The draft will be 20 rounds over 3 days and starts on Sunday, July 13.
It will be a part of the MLB All Star Game festivities in Atlanta with the first 3 rounds on Sunday, July 13, starting at 5:00 p.m. (CDT) and can be seen on both the MLB Network and ESPN. Rounds 4-20 will begin on Monday, July 14, at 10:30 a.m. and will be streamed on MLB.com.
Just like previous years, the Sooner State will be well represented and this year it should be represented early. A total of 3 Sooner State alums are expected to go no later than the first 15 pick with 2 of them possibly going in the top 5 with some “experts” projecting either of those 2 going number 1.
Leading up the the draft, we will take a look at a total of 10 players projected to go in the draft from the state of Oklahoma, but expect more names from the Sooner State to be called over the 2 days. (Caden Powell was not talked about by anyone last year and he was taken in the 6th round by the Astros.)
Today’s player: Ethan Holliday
Ethan Holliday is a 2025 graduate of Stillwater High School. He is the brother of 2022 overall #1 pick, Jackson Holliday, and the son of former MLBer, Matt Holliday.
Holliday has long been considered the #1 overall prospect in this year’s draft class. He has had that billing going back to his junior year of high school and has carried that hype (or burden) admirably ever since. This year alone, Holliday has been named the Oklahoma Gatorade Player of the Year, and the National Player of the Year by Baseball America, National High School Baseball Coaches Association, and Perfect Game.
In 2025, Holliday batted .617 (2.041 OPS), and 16 HRs.
Prospect Rankings
*Prospect Ranking: MLB Top 250 (MLB), ESPN Top 150 (ESPN), Keith Law Top 100 (Law)
- MLB: 1
- ESPN: 3
- Law: 1
Scouting Grades Reports
*When looking at the scouting grades, MLB uses a “20-80” system: 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is above average, 70-80 is well above average.
MLB Pipeline
Scouting grades: Hit: 50 | Power: 65 | Run: 50 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 | Overall: 60
Ever since Jackson Holliday went No. 1 overall in the 2022 Draft, he has told people that his younger brother is better than he was at the same stage. Ethan is more physical and powerful than Jackson and much more closely resembles their father, the seven-time All-Star Matt. Both brothers scuffled on the showcase circuit entering their Draft years, but while Jackson was considered a second-round talent at that point, Ethan is a leading candidate to get taken No. 1 in July.
Gatorade’s Oklahoma player of the year, Holliday may have the most usable left-handed power in the Draft and he generates it with little effort. Still adding to his 6-foot-4 frame, he already has plenty of strength and an easy left-handed swing with plenty of bat speed and leverage. He tried to do too much when he got pitched around on the circuit last summer, leading to some swing-and-miss concerns, but he should develop into at least an average hitter with 35-homer pop and plenty of walks.
Holliday moves well for his size and has average speed, though he’ll probably lose a step as he continues to mature physically. He has nice actions and solid arm strength at shortstop, but he won’t cover enough ground to stay there on a long-term basis. The Oklahoma State recruit projects better as a slugging third baseman and could be a quality defender on the hot corner.
Keith Law
Scouting Report
Bats: L, Throws: R
Holliday is probably the best-known player in the class, thanks to his famous father, Matt, and increasingly famous brother, Jackson, but also because there have been plenty of points in the past year-plus when Ethan has looked like the best prospect in the class. He has easy plus power already and projects to be more similar to his father in that regard than his brother, though he’s not as advanced a hitter as Jackson was at the same age. Ethan has been inconsistent this spring at the plate, with his front side flying open as he tries too hard to get to that power, leaving him vulnerable to stuff on the outer third, although that’s a fixable problem. He does know the strike zone, and rarely chased stuff out of the zone last summer and fall. He’s big for shortstop but has great hands and a plus arm, showing better range this spring and more consistency on routine plays; if he moves to third base, it’ll be because he outgrows short, not because of a lack of ability. He’s not a sure thing, given some of his swing-and-miss issues (such as on velocity up in the zone) and the mechanical adjustments he’ll have to make, but he offers the best combination of upside and probability in the class.
Outlook
Although some people (here’s looking at you, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN) are now looking to find reasons to move Holliday down from #1, he is clearly the top prospect in most of everyone’s eyes.
He is definitely the best prospect to come out of Oklahoma the last several years including his brother, Jackson, who went #1 overall in 2022. Holliday will be drafted as a shortstop, but most project him to eventually move to 3B with his size and projectable power.
Another thing that scouts and “experts” like is the family background. He’s grown up with a dad who played at a high level for several years in Matt Holliday. He also saw first hand what his brother, Jackson, went through in the draft process and the minors. Ethan is more equipped than possibly any other high school prospect out there.
It would be shocking if the Washington Nationals don’t pick him #1 overall. Reading how their front office works, they like to take players with the most upside and at only 18 year old with all the tools and intangibles Holliday has, it is hard to argue that anyone else in the draft has a higher upside.
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