(Cover photo: mlb.com)
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: Nolan Schubart
Power. When you think of OSU’s Nolan Schubart, you think of power. In his 3 seasons in Stillwater, Schubart has hit 59 home runs and driven in 199 runs in 165 games.
In his freshman year, Schubart was named to multiple national All Freshman teams and was a 3rd Team All American by NCBWA, ABCA, and Collegiate Baseball. He was named the Big 12 Co Freshman of the year and named to the 1st Team All Big 12 Team.
In his sophomore year, he was named 2nd Team All American by NCBWA, Baseball America, and Perfect Game as well as a 3rd Team nod by D1 Baseball. He was also named 2nd Team All Big 12 while missing 12 games due to injury during the season.
This last year saw his numbers “dip” to .300/.436/.630 with 19 HR and 57 RBI.
Schubart also hits the hardest ball in college baseball with exit velos over 110 mph.
Prospect Rankings
*Prospect Ranking: MLB Top 250 (MLB), ESPN Top 150 (ESPN), Keith Law Top 100 (Law)
- MLB: 126
- ESPN: N/A
- Law: 85
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: 45 | Power: 60 | Run: 30 | Arm: 40 | Field: 30 | Overall: 45
Schubart played for a St. Mary’s Prep (Orchard Lake, Mich.) juggernaut that captured three straight titles in his three full seasons and included two players who signed for seven-figure bonuses (Brock Porter out of high school, Alex Mooney following two years at Duke) and another who could be a first-round pick in 2025 (Auburn outfielder/catcher Ike Irish). He fell two hits shy of winning the Big 12 Conference triple crown last spring, batting .370 with 23 homers and 68 RBI in 49 games. He continued to rake during the summer, slashing .341/.565/.773 between brief stints with the U.S. collegiate national team and in the Cape Cod League.
While Schubart is pretty much a one-tool guy, prodigious left-handed power is always in demand, and he owns plus-plus raw pop thanks to his combination of bat speed, massive strength and a stroke designed to launch balls in the air. He can drive the ball out of any part of any ballpark and will take walks when pitchers refuse to challenge him. He comes with concerns about how he’ll handle pro pitching, however, because he strikes out at a high rate and struggles even with in-zone contact.
Schubart has to hit because he offers little value outside of the batter’s box. He’s a well-below-average runner with range to match on the outfield corners and a below-average arm. He’ll almost certainly shift to first base at the next level and could wind up at DH.
Keith Law
Scouting Report
Bats: L, Throws: R
Schubart has plus power, but the hit tool is a real question, as he continues to strike out too often and saw his average drop to exactly .300 this year from .370 as a sophomore. He doesn’t hit breaking stuff, with a 40 percent whiff rate on sliders (per data from Synergy), and whiffed a third of the time on fastballs 94 and up. He’s mostly played right field and is average there, with some experience at first and in left. So why is he here? He hits the ball as hard as anyone in Division I, topping out over 116 mph this year with a hard-hit rate in the top 3 percent of all qualified hitters, so even small improvements in his approach that improve his contact rate at all should yield large benefits. He was high school classmates with Ike Irish and Rangers prospect Brock Porter.
Outlook
Yes, it is true that Schuart’s numbers this past season were his worst in college, but his OPS was still over 1.000. What some may not realize is that for most of the season, several of Schubart’s teammates were injured at various times and teams took a “don’t let Schubart beat us” approach.
Schubart does strike out a lot and swings and misses breaking balls at a high rate. But in today’s game it seems that is not as much of a problem as it was before. A couple of years adjusting against top pitching should help his contact rate and with his power, create even more extra base hits. His prodigious power alone may entice a team to draft him higher than what his ratings indicate.
Schubart played mostly in RF during college, but he is definitely not known for his defense. Maybe a team would like to transition Schubart to 1B? Otherwise, you may see Schubart establish himself as a DH.
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