Revisiting the Cincinnati Reds 2021 MLB Draft

The Cincinnati Reds came away from the 2021 MLB Draft with some highly-regarded, young prospects. With this year's draft just a couple of weeks away, let's look back and see who Cincinnati selected last July.

The Reds entered the 2021 MLB Draft with the 17th overall selection. Cincinnati also had two competitive balance picks (No. 30 and No. 35) after Round 1.

Cincinnati had one of the best shortstops in the entire draft fall right into their lap. After the Pittsburgh Pirates surprisingly took catcher Henry Davis with the first-overall pick, the five top prep shortstops came off the board. Then at No. 17, the Reds got their man.

Matt McLain fell to the Reds at No. 17 in the 2021 MLB Draft.

Matt McLain out of UCLA fell out of the Top 10 and the Cincinnati Reds snagged the shortstop with the 17th pick in the 2021 MLB Draft. McLain has flown through the minor leagues to this point in his career and is currently at Double-A Chattanooga. McLain has double-digit home runs on the season and is a candidate to receive a call-up in September.

After McLain, the Reds picked up prep outfielder Jay Allen and Florida State catcher Matheu Nelson. Allen is very raw, but has oodles of talent. Nelson is currently at High-A Dayton and is a much hitter than he is a defender.

Following Round 1 and the two compensatory picks, the Cincinnati Reds used their second-round selection to take Virginia left-hander Andrew Abbott. The former Cavalier has already made it to Double-A Chattanooga and is thought to be a quick riser through the Cincinnati farm system.

Another college shortstop was taken with the Reds third-round pick. North Carolina State's Jose Torres was selected with pick No. 89. First baseman Ruben Ibarra, South Carolina's right-handed pitcher Thomas Farr, and UNC's Justice Thompson represented the Reds fourth, fifth, and sixth-round picks in the 2022 MLB Draft.

Did the Reds find a diamond in the rough in the later rounds?

Five of the Cincinnati Reds next six picks were pitchers. Outfielder Jack Rogers of Sam Houston was sandwiched between Kevin Abel, Hunter Parks, Donovan Benoit, Shawn Guilliams, and Julian Aguilar. The Reds took catcher Michael Trautwein out of Northwestern before snagging another hurler (Carter Rattfield) with the 420th pick in the draft.

The Reds final six selections were outfielder Blake Dunn, third baseman Austin Callihan, and pitchers Owen Holt, Dennis Boatman, Ryan Cardona, and Javi Rivera.

Several of the Reds top draft picks in the 2021 MLB Draft are expected to contribute down the road with Matt McLain and Andrew Abbott possibly making their presence known later in 2022 and certainly in 2023. Both Jay Allen and Justice Thompson figure into the future of the Cincinnati outfield and Ruben Ibarra could surprise a lot of fans in the near future.

The Reds also essentially picked up an additional draft pick in Chase Petty who was the Minnesota Twins first-round pick last year. The Reds received Petty in exchange for Sonny Gray during the offseason.