MLB Draft slide could give Reds the dream prospect they never expected

Unfortunately for the Cincinnati Reds, they have been plagued with mediocrity for a while outside of a few flash in the pan seasons since they last won a playoff series in 1995. However, as the game takes, it also has its way of giving, and the MLB Draft is a chance given to teams each year to improve.

After landing the second overall pick in last year's draft, the Reds are fortunate enough to pick within the top 10 once again with the ninth-overall pick. A few names have floated around the Reds pick at No. 9, but one of the more intriguing players in this year's class is looking like he could land with Cincinnati as the high-profile power hitter fans have dreamed about for years.

Could the Reds snag Jace Laviolette in the 2025 MLB Draft?

MLB Draft season can be a bit chaotic at times, and it has been nothing short of that for Texas A&M's Jace Laviolette. The Aggies were among the top teams in college baseball last year, coming up just short to Tennessee in the College World Series. Laviolette was right in the middle of the action, helping lead the offense as a sophomore, and cementing himself as a prized draft prospect headed into the offseason of his platform junior year.

Coming into 2025 season, Laviolette's name was at the top of many pre-season draft boards as the favorite to be selected first overall this July. Unfortunately for the lefty slugger, it was a slow start to his junior campaign and he never really caught stride the way he did during his sophomore year.

Tangible year-over-year improvements are super important for draft prospects, especially for players like Laviolette that come with some holes in their hit tool. He was a highly-touted draft prospect coming out of the high school ranks in 2022, but it was those hit tool concerns that led teams to pass on signing him. Three years later, and Laviolette still comes with the same concerns.

He struck out a higher rate than he did in 2024 while losing 150 points on his slugging percentage. His .258 batting average would also be the lowest mark in a platform year for a player drafted in the first round. While Laviolette scuffled in 2025, a number of collegiate and prep talents shot up draft boards, leaving him projected somewhere in the middle of the first round, merely a few months after he was ranked as the top player in the class.

Jace Laviolette would offer the Reds plenty of upside in the 2025 MLB Draft

Regardless of his struggles, this is still a dynamic player who might actually be underrated at this point in the season. His Aggies did miss the playoffs, so he's not getting that extra month of high-level competition that's vital for raising a player's draft stock. Notable college bats like Aiva Arquette, Ike Irish, and Gavin Kilen have had the luxury of getting looks deep into postseason play while Laviolette can only wait until his name is called in July.

Regardless of the concerns around his ability to hit, Laviolette is still a left-handed bat with arguably the best power in the class. He mashed a total of 68 career home runs at Texas A&M, 50 of which came as a freshman and sophomore. It's easy 65-grade power, but I would argue it's comfortably 70 grade due to his ability to get the ball in the air to the pull-side while also hitting balls out back side.

While he does swing and miss at a higher rate than you would like to see, Laviolette does make a lot of excellent swing decisions, leading to elite walk rates. A chase problem is one less problem a big league organization would have to worry about upon his selection.

Outside of the batters' box, Laviolette is a lot more than just your typical slugger, which is really what separates him from a lot of the power-over-hit college bats in this class. He has manned center field for the better part of his college career, and while the assumption is that he would move to right field because of his size, more and more evaluators believe he can stick in center at the next level.

The athletic skill-set for Laviolette is a lot like Aaron Judge's. Despite the size, he gets around well in center field and possesses a strong arm that will play in right field if he does move over. If he can stick in center field as an average defender, there might be less pressure on the bat to perform.

There aren't a lot of players with Laviolette's unique skill-set. His closest comparison in last year's draft class was probably Charlie Condon, the third-overall pick to the Colorado Rockies. Condon's feel to hit was a little closer to his power grade than Laviolette's, but also didn't quite have the same athletic upside despite standing in at roughly the same size.

How could the Reds land Jace Laviolette with the No. 9 pick in the MLB Draft?

In hindsight, Condon probably should have dropped a few more picks after seeing the success of college bats taken after him such as Nick Kurtz, Jac Caglianone, and JJ Wetherholt. With that being said, it seems very feasible that Laviolette could be available when the Reds pick at No. 9. Laviolette could be signed under slot value ($6.5 million) considering he has routinely been ranked in the 10-20 range over the last few months.

The Reds are no strangers to cutting under-slot deals with college players with their first round picks. They did it last year when they surprised fans by taking Chase Burns second overall and signing him at $9.25 million compared to the slot value at $9.79 million. A year prior, they did the same with Rhett Lowder as the seventh overall pick, signing him at $5.7 million compared to the slot value at $6.28 million.

The Reds have typically targeted players they can cut deals with to save money for prep talents in the following rounds. It was that strategy that landed the Reds Tyson Lewis last year and Sammy Stafura in 2023, the organization's eighth and ninth ranked prospects according to MLB Pipeline.

The farm system in Cincinnati is lacking a true power threat, so Laviolette could fit right in. Cam Collier, the Reds fourth ranked prospect, has a similar offensive profile and the Reds have done a good job in developing him as a super young prospect at the time he was drafted. Laviolette could slot right up there alongside Collier as one of the top prospects in the system before even making his professional debut.

Skills aside, Laviolette certainly has the makeup to grind his way to the big leagues. This is a kid who broke his hand in this year's SEC Tournament, but played the following day just because of how important being available in the season's biggest moments was to him. I have no doubts that if someone lands Laviolette within the first ten picks, they could be looking back on him as a steal.

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