Early Reds 2025 draft returns include one gem and one letdown

The 2026 MLB Draft isn't far off, and the Cincinnati Reds will be picking 18th this year. The last time the Reds had their 18th pick in the draft, they selected Cam Collier out of Chipola College back in 2022. But rather than looking forward, let's take a look in the rearview mirror and spotlight two different players from the Reds' 2025 draft class.

The Reds have deployed several young prospects from last year's draft, including first-rounder Steele Hall. The young shortstop clobbered his first home run of the season last week, and will likely remain in the Arizona Complex League for the first-half of the 2026 season.

Another young player from the Reds' 2025 draft class who's off to a hot-start is Kien Vu. Cincinnati selected the 22-year-old with their ninth-round pick last July, and he got his feet wet in Low-A Daytona. In 23 games for the Tortugas, Vu hit .273/.371/.532 with four home runs, 18 RBI, seven stolen bases, and a 148 wRC+.

Vu was assigned to Low-A Dayton to begin his 2026 campaign, and he's settled in nicely during his first month with the Dragons. Through 29 games, he owns a .250/.371/.431 slash line with four round-trippers, 23 RBI, 10 stolen bases, and a 111 wRC+.

Those stolen bases might be the stat that stands out the most. Over his brief minor-league career, Vu has only been thrown out twice, going 17-for-19 (89.4% success-rate) through his first 52 games as a professional.

Reds prospects Kien Vu and Mason Neville are going opposite ways

At the other end of the spectrum is the Reds' fourth-round draft pick from last year, Mason Neville. Another 22-year-old prospect, Neville was taken with the 114th overall selection last July and signed with Cincinnati for just under $700,000.

There've been questions about Neville's ability to hit since he arrived on the campus at the University of Arkansas. He eventually transferred to Oregon University, put his strikeout issues behind him, and was able to show enough during the college season in 2025 to garner enough interest to be selected in the fourth round.

But so far, Neville's plays through the first month of the season has raised those same concerns that haunted him before last year's draft. In 24 games for the Tortugas, he's already racked up 40 strikeouts in 100 at-bats. You don't have to be a math wizard to know that a 40% strikeout rate is unsustainable. If he's doing that in Low-A, it's questionable as to whether or not he'll ever make it to the big leagues.

There's plenty of time for Neville to turn his first full professional season around, and there's a great possibility that both he and Vu will be climbing the team's farm system rankings during the next couple of years.

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