Jamie Cameron

In episode 86 of Destination: The Show, Jeremy and Jamie do a full recap of the 2025 MLB Draft. They dig in on the primary picks for the Blue Jays, Padres, and Red Sox before spending some time on the Cubs. Is Chicago leaning into more college upside and volatility than other teams? The guys spend a good amount of time examining the Brewers draft, one of Jamie’s favorites, in which the Brewers took a typical power-hitting corner infield bat before loading up on interesting prep profiles. Finally, they review a tweaked approach from the Twins, who leaned into more volatility and upside with the college arms, digging in specifically on Riley Quick, James Ellwanger, Jason Reitz, and Matt Barr. 0:00 Intro 4:25 Housekeeping 7:50 Episode 86 coverage plan 8:30 Toronto Blue Jays 17:59 San Diego Padres 21:40 Boston Red Sox 27:53 Chicago Cubs 38:48 Milwaukee Brewers 52:11 Minnesota Twins 53:36 Marek Houston 1:00:19 Quentin Young 1:04:20 Riley Quick 1:11:00 James Ellwanger, Jason Reitz, Matt Barr 1:21:23 Closing You can support the show by downloading it from your preferred podcast platform, including iTunes and Spotify. If you enjoy our content, consider leaving us a five-star rating and review, and also share or retweet DTS-related content. You can follow us on Twitter @DTS_POD1, @Jeremynygaard, @J_D_Cameron, and @TheodoreTollef1. We’re now on Bluesky @destinationtheshow.bsky.social. You can also find full episodes and clips of our shows on our YouTube page @DestinationTheShow. View full article

In episode 85 of Destination: The Show, Jeremy and Jamie live stream an episode to get ready for day one of the 2025 MLB Draft. They walk through a mock draft of the first 36 picks and alternate picking for teams based on fit, industry steam, and value. The guys pause at each team we cover in more depth to talk about options from particular demographics that make sense with their picks. Destination: The Show will be live streaming throughout day one of the 2025 MLB Draft, breaking down every pick, kicking off at 4:30 CT on Sunday, July 13th. 0:00 Intro 3:59 Mock Draft preview 5:10 Picks 1-5 14:34 Picks 6-7 18:08 Blue Jays at 8 22:35 Picks 9-14 32:35 Red Sox at 15 35:00 Twins at 16 45:40 Cubs at 17 47:00 Picks 18-19 48:55 Brewers at 20 51:33 Picks 21-24 56:04 Padres at 25 58:00 Picks 26-31 1:07:52 Brewers at 32 1:09:45 Red Sox at 33 1:10:43 Picks 34-35 1:12:18 Twins at 36 1:16:43 Listener Questions You can support the show by downloading it from wherever you get your podcasts, including iTunes and Spotify. If you enjoy the content, consider leaving us a five-star rating and review in addition to sharing or retweeting DTS-related content. You can follow us on Twitter @DTS_POD1, @Jeremynygaard, @J_D_Cameron, and @TheodoreTollef1. We’re now on Bluesky @destinationtheshow.bsky.social. You can also find full episodes and clips of our shows on our YouTube page @DestinationTheShow. View full article

Draft week is finally here! We’ll have a ton of coverage for you here at Talk Sox. Here’s a few important details to get you oriented to our coverage. The Red Sox finished the 2024 season with the 13th worst record in MLB. Normally, their draft bonus pool would be lower than other teams who receive compensation picks for being revenue receiving teams. The Red Sox will have the 13th largest bonus pool overall, at $12,409,300. This is a function of receiving an additional pick (33rd overall) from the Brewers as part of the Quinn Priester trade. The Red Sox top 100 picks and slot values are as follows: Slot value for pick 15: $5,114,200 Slot value for pick 33: $2,898,300 Slot value for pick 75: $1,093,800 (compensation for Nick Pivetta) Slot value for pick 87: $907,200 The Red Sox forfeited their second round pick for signing a player who received the qualifying offer. You can find our MLB Draft board here. This is a project I’ve been working on since February. The rankings are consensus rankings, taken from leveraging all of the major draft boards in the industry. The goal is to eliminate some of the noise in rankings for casual fans looking to get more interested and get to know the class better. You’ll find the logo from the team next to their pick positions in each round, to give folks an idea of the caliber of talent available in a particular portion of the draft. By Sunday, you’ll find a write up for 136 player profiles with biographical information, scouting reports, 2025 performance for college players, and potential fits. The board will be updated every day or so until day one. Additionally, we’ll be live streaming an episode of Destination: The Show through the entirety of day one. We’ll get started at 5:30 ET/4:30 CT. We’ll bring you information on all day one picks, live reactions, and team-specific special guests. We hope you’ll join us. View full article

It’s mock draft season! Over the next two weeks in the buildup to the draft, we’ll be rolling out at least two mock drafts, covering the first round and the first batch of competitive-balance picks. For each of these, we’re doing our best to read the tea leaves and make picks based on the talent available at a particular slot, and considering each organization's drafting tendencies. Feel free to jump into the comments with disagreements and other preferred picks. 1. Nationals: Kade Anderson, LHP, LSU All the buzz here seems to be between Anderson and Ethan Holliday. If the LSU southpaw doesn’t go number one, surely, he won’t get past three. 2. Angels: Liam Doyle, LHP, Tennessee Fast-moving college players is the Angels' trend until it isn’t, and we'll project them to take such players until they don't. 3. Mariners: Jamie Arnold, LHP, Florida State Arnold is a quality arm for a system that’s become bat-dominant. The Mariners are outstanding at developing arms. 4. Rockies: Ethan Holliday, SS, Stillwater HS, OK This appears to be the floor for Holliday. The organization for which his dad became a household name won't let him slide any further. 5. Cardinals: JoJo Parker, SS, Purvis HS, MS If the board unfolds like this, the Cardinals will get their pick of a strong cluster of prep shortstops. Parker has a chance to be the best offensive profile of the bunch. 6. Pirates: Eli Willits, SS, Fort-Cobb Broxton HS, OK Willits has been steady on boards all spring. This would be a good get at six overall. (And yes, he's the son of former big-league outfielder Reggie Willits.) 7. Marlins: Seth Hernandez, RHP, Corona HS, CA The Marlins would be thrilled to have Hernandez here. They have consistently developed pitching talent well. 8. Blue Jays: Billy Carlson, SS, Corona HS, CA The Blue Jays are in an interesting spot. There are plenty of good options here. It would be hard to pass on Aiva Arquette, the consensus top college bat available. Toronto has been linked heavily to the prep shortstop group, though. Carlson is the best defensive shortstop in the draft. There’s potential for good impact with the bat, too. 9. Reds: Aiva Arquette, SS, Oregon State Arquette is currently ranked sixth, by consensus. The Reds would be thrilled with this outcome. He’s a physical hitter who should be able to move relatively quickly, despite some refinement needed in the hit tool. 10. White Sox: Kyson Witherspoon, RHP, Oklahoma Witherspoon is the consensus college starting pitcher number four. He shouldn’t last long outside the top 10, even if he slips past Chicago. 11. Athletics: Ike Irish, C, Auburn The Athletics have found success with college bats recently (Jacob Wilson, Nick Kurtz), Irish is one of the strongest college hit/power combos in a class lacking them. 12. Rangers: Kayson Cunningham, Johnson HS, TX Cunningham might have the best hit tool on the prep side (along with Parker), to go with plus speed. 13. Giants: Marek Houston, SS, Wake Forest Houston is shortstop 1-B to Billy Carlson’s 1-A. He’s a lock to stick at that spot, with a good approach and hit tool, despite (generously) fringy power. 14. Rays: Josh Hammond, SS, Wesleyan Academy, NC Hammond is an outstanding athlete who made tremendous strides with the bat this spring. 15. Red Sox: Gavin Kilen, 2B, Tennessee Kilen ratcheted up the power with Tennessee, to go with the great hit tool. He should have plenty of suitors in the teens. There are a number of other college bats who could make sense here, including Brendan Summerhill and Wehiwa Aloy. 16. Twins: Tyler Bremner, RHP, UC Santa Barbara The Twins are well-known for successfully developing mid-to-late college arms into viable MLB options. What if the starting ball of clay was more interesting? Bremner was a consensus top-five prospect coming into this season. It’s a metrically appealing fastball, an above-average slider, and a plus changeup. There’s work to do on the command, but he finished strong. The ceiling is a playoff-caliber starter. 17. Cubs: Gage Wood, RHP, Arkansas Wood’s surge this postseason is reminiscent of Cade Horton’s in 2022. Wood punctuated a strong stretch run with a 19-strikeout no-hitter in the College World Series. This is around his range. The Cubs system is bat-heavy, and Wood has an outlandish fastball shape on which to build. 18. Diamondbacks: Steele Hall, SS, Hewitt-Trussville HS, AL Hall has some of the best speed and athleticism in the entire class. This might be the low end of his range. 19. Orioles: Wehiwa Aloy, SS, Arkansas The Orioles won’t be put off by the aggression in Aloy’s approach. This feels like the lower end of his range, but he’s a good fit in Baltimore. 20. Brewers: Gavin Fien, 3B, Great Oaks HS, CA Fien is one of the least talked-about first-round prep profiles, and one of my favorites. He hit everything and everyone last summer. While his early spring was a little uneven, he turned it around down the stretch. He has a chance to be one of the better hit/power combos in this draft class. There’s a good chance he’s taken in the mid-teens. (No, he's not the son of ex-pitcher Casey Fien.) 21. Astros: Ethan Conrad, OF, Wake Forest The Astros love strong athletic traits. Conrad missed time due to injury but was mashing after transferring from Marist. 22. Braves: Riley Quick, RHP, Alabama Quick is a good fit here for the Braves, who often lean toward arms in their usual late first-round range. 23. Royals: Kruz Schoolcraft, LHP, Sunset HS, OR The Royals are a pitching organization, now. Schoolcraft has plenty of buzz here to land with them. 24. Tigers: Slater De Brun, OF, Summit HS, OR Another steam pick here. De Brun is a table-setter type with good strength, outstanding speed and an excellent hit tool. 25. Padres: Brady Ebel, SS, Corona HS, CA What’s the safest bet in the draft? That the Padres will take a prep player with their first pick. Ebel has a sweet left-handed swing with plenty of projection to grow into a solid hit/power combo. There’s a good defensive infield skill set at play here, too. 26. Phillies: Xavier Neyens, 3B, Mount Vernon HS, WA Neyens is another profile that has been less talked up this spring. It’s power to rival that of Ethan Holliday. 27. Guardians: Brendan Summerhill, OF, Arizona Summerhill’s range likely starts in the teens. This feels low, and this is great value for the Guardians at 27. Prospect Promotion Incentive Picks 28. Royals: Daniel Pierce, SS, Mill Creek HS, GA One of the smoothest defensive profiles at short in this class, but there’s legitimate offensive upside, too. Compensation Picks 29. Diamondbacks: Caden Bodine, C, Coastal Carolina Bodine had a tremendous postseason. It’s a plus hit tool and outstanding receiving skills as a catcher. 30. Orioles: Jace Laviolette, OF, Texas A&M The preseason consensus number-one player finds a home here. He feels like an ideal candidate for an organization with two or three picks in the top 40.f 31. Orioles: Sean Gamble, SS/OF, IMG Academy, FL A left-handed hitting power/speed threat with the type of athleticism that could lend itself to the infield or outfield long-term. 32. Brewers: Andrew Fischer, 1B/3B, Tennessee Fischer feels a little under-ranked to me. He has a patient approach, a track record with wooden bats, and just put up a .760 SLG in the SEC. This offensive profile will play anywhere. He’s a first round-caliber talent, and this represents good value. It would be a nice counterbalance to the Fien pick earlier in the round for the Brewers. Competitive Balance Round A 33. Red Sox: Patrick Forbes, RHP, Louisville The Red Sox brain trust has invested in their pitching infrastructure recently. Forbes is a high-octane arm who could develop into a monster with the right development behind him. It’s ace-caliber arm talent that’s a little rough around the edges. 34. Tigers: Zach Root, LHP, Arkansas A ready-made diverse arsenal and a track record of performance in the SEC represent good value for a farm system stacked with talent. 35. Mariners: Cam Appenzeller, Glenwood HS, IL The Mariners have money to spend in this draft. Appenzeller is one of the best prep pitchability arms in this draft class. 36. Twins: Devin Taylor, OF, Indiana The Twins WILL get their bats in the first few rounds, and Taylor has been a tremendous college performer. It’s not a spectacular profile in terms of speed and defense but he mashes. He had a 169 wRC+ with 18 home runs in 2025. That was buoyed by a 19.3 BB% and a measly 11.2 K%. This is a fast-moving, high-floor college outfield bat. View full article

This draft cycle, we’re going to try something new. Every few weeks, I’ll be posting an article here listing out who the Sox would select based on their position on the consensus draft board. As the consensus board is updated, the players in those spots will be adjusted and I’ll post another update. This is not a pure mock draft. Rather, I’m hoping it’ll give readers an idea of the caliber of talent in each of the team’s first few picks. Additionally, it should help readers who want to dig into draft coverage a bit more get familiar with the class. Here would be the Sox first three picks by consensus draft ranking as of June 22, 2025. First Round (15th Overall): Brendan Summerhill, OF, Arizona In a draft class that lacks well-rounded college bats, Brendan Summerhill might be a sweet spot where skill, track record, and draft spot meet. Summerhill is a left-handed hitting outfielder who was productive in 2024. He posted a .950 OPS to go with eight home runs (32 extra-base hits) in addition to 31 walks and 36 strikeouts in 58 games. He backed this up with a strong summer on the Cape (.798 OPS). Summerhill has a polished offensive skill set. His EV90 (104 mph) and Max EV (110 mph) were both around 75th percentile in D1 baseball, and he's already maximizing pulled batted ball events. Summerhill backs up solid impact with strong bat-to-ball skills. A 86% contact rate and 83rd percentile in-zone whiff percentage are further buoyed by excellent out of zone contact, and the fact that he doesn't chase too much (64th percentile). The remaining questions in 2025 are the efficacy of Summerhill as a defensive center fielder as a pro and how much power he can get to in game, as there seems to be more in the tank than he produced in 2024. He's one of only a few college bats where hit and power might be above average in tandem, and firmly a first-round prospect for me. Comp A (33rd Overall/Quinn Priester Trade): Alex Lodise, SS, Florida State Alex Lodise, along with Mason Neville, have cases for the best breakouts in college baseball in 2025. He was on an incandescent heater for most of the 2025 season for Florida State, which resulted in being named one of three finalists for the Golden Spikes award. It’s a hyper aggressive approach in a profile that’s carried by his power. Lodise excels doing damage on contact, with a EV90 of around 108 mph and a 95th percentile hard hit rate. There are some warts here, though. Lodise swings at everything. He chases too much and there’s some swing and miss in his game. The latter can be ameliorated by a drafting organization that can help him reign in his approach just a tick. There’s good bat speed, present pull-side power and emerging defensive skill that gives him at least a solid shot of sticking at shortstop long-term. Lodise finished 2025 with a .394/.462/.705 (1.167 OPS) line with 17 home runs (38 extra-base hits) and a 153 wRC+, all while walking 9.3% of the time and striking out at a 20% clip. He’s vaulted himself somewhere in the top 35 or so picks in July. Compensation Pick (75th Overall/Nick Pivetta): Dean Moss, OF, IMG Academy Moss will be 19 on draft day, and keeps showing up on boards a little lower than I expect to find him based on the strength of his offensive profile. The LSU commit is currently at IMG Academy in Florida. He's an outfielder with a strong, athletic frame that may be close to maxed out. There's plenty to like about the offensive tools, though. I really like the swing here. It's a combination of a good hit tool, strong strike zone awareness and an ability to drive the ball exceptionally well, with some of the best bat speed in the class for a prep hitter. The supplementary tools are solid too. Moss has average speed, a solid arm and a good glove. My bet is he will at least start his pro career in center field if a team can keep him away from Baton Rouge. The age might scare some teams away, but they'll be missing out on a really strong prep profile. View full article

This draft cycle, we’re going to try something new. Every few weeks, I’ll be posting an article here listing out who the Red Sox would select based on their position on the consensus draft board. As the consensus board is updated, the players in those spots will be adjusted, and I’ll post another update. This is not a mock draft. Rather, I’m hoping it’ll give readers an idea of the caliber of talent in each of the team’s first few picks. Additionally, it should help readers who want to dig into draft coverage a bit more get familiar with the class. Here would be the Sox's first three picks by consensus draft ranking as of 05.22.25. First Round (15th Overall): JoJo Parker, Purvis HS, MS Joseph 'JoJo' Parker is a left-handed hitting prep infielder out of Mississippi who lit up the summer showcase circuit and has steadily moved up boards this spring. It's a big league type frame at 6'2, 200 lbs. and an unusual setup at the plate for Parker, with a very narrow, open stance and an extreme barrel tip behind his head and shoulders. Parker has a good eye and approach at the plate, with an above average hit tool and developing power. His other tools are mostly average. He'll have a chance to stick at shortstop in the short to medium term, but might end up moving to another position on the dirt. This profile has a chance to be a strong hit/power combo if everything clicks. Joseph's twin brother Jacob will also likely be a top 100 profile in this class. Comp A (33rd Overall/Quinn Priester Trade): Patrick Forbes, RHP, Louisville Forbes has been one of the biggest surprises (pleasant) as the 2025 college season begins to wind down. His stuff has taken a jump forward and he's one of a number of up arrow college arms in this class. It's a great frame at 6'3", 220 lbs. It's big time arm talent too. It's a fastball that sits 94-96 mph from a low release and has been as high as 98 mph. Forbes has a sweeper he throws in the high 70s to low 80s. There's plenty of horizontal break on that pitch, he'll need to firm it up some when he turns pro. He throws a changeup too, which has looked promising, although it could use a little more velocity separation from his fastball. Forbes' 2025 has been impressive. It's also noteworthy that he was previously a two-way player and as such, hasn't focused solely on pitching for that long. The frame and stuff is there for a pitching savvy organization to have success with. The second half of the season has been more of a struggle, but it’s still a 3.22 FIP and 35 K% through ~50 innings, even if there have been too many walks this season (10.3%). Compensation Pick (75th Overall/Nick Pivetta): Joseph Dzierwa, LHP, Michigan State Six-foot-eight left-handed starters don’t grow on trees. There’s an intriguing crop of lefties on both the college and prep sides in 2025. Joseph Dzierwa is a lesser known name who has done himself a world of good in the first third of the season. He’s mostly a two-pitch guy currently. His fastball has seen an uptick in velocity and his changeup is an absolute weapon. His slider is barely usable and needs a makeover if he’s to remain a starter in pro ball. Dzierwa has almost doubled his K-BB% from 2024 to 2025 while pounding the strike zone. He’s maintained a 2.38 FIP through 91.2 innings with a 28 K% and a measly 5.9 BB%. He’s a fascinating ball of clay for a pitching-savvy organization. View full article

In episode 77 of Destination: The Show, Jeremy and Jamie start with a slew of injuries to notable Twins prospects, including Luke Keaschall, Walker Jenkins, and Charlee Soto. The guys then give an overview of the bonus pool system in MLB, detailing how the different rounds of the draft work. They go on to dig into the bonus pools of the Brewers, Twins, Red Sox, Cubs, and Padres. Finally, they spend some time reacting to the most recent BA staff draft, digging into whether the picks made might make sense for the Padres, Jays, Cubs, Brewers, and Twins. 0:00 Intro 5:55 Housekeeping 6:37 Twins Prospect Injuries 14:59 Draft Bonus Pools 17:55 Brewers Bonus Pool 20:40 Twins Bonus Pool 23:31 Red Sox Bonus Pool 27:10 Cubs Bonus Pool 30:02 Padres Bonus Pool 35:58 Bouncing around the first round You can support the show by downloading it from wherever you get your podcasts, including iTunes and Spotify. If you enjoy the content, consider leaving us a five-star rating and review in addition to sharing or retweeting DTS-related content. You can follow us on Twitter @DTS_POD1, @Jeremynygaard, @J_D_Cameron, and @TheodoreTollef1. We’re now on Bluesky @destinationtheshow.bsky.social. You can also find full episodes and clips of our shows on our YouTube page @DestinationTheShow. View full article

This week, MLB released bonus pool allocations and pick values for the 2025 MLB Draft. Additionally, MLB released international signing bonus pools for the 2026 signing period. This week, MLB released bonus pool allocations and pick values for the 2025 MLB Draft. Additionally, MLB released international signing bonus pools for the 2026 signing period. The Red Sox finished the 2024 season with the 13th worst record in MLB. Normally, their draft bonus pool would be lower than other teams who receive compensation picks for being revenue receiving teams. The Red Sox will have the 13th largest bonus pool overall, at $12,409,300. This is a function of receiving an additional pick (33rd overall) from the Brewers as part of the Quinn Priester trade. The Red Sox top 100 picks and slot values are as follows: Slot value for pick 15: $5,114,200 Slot value for pick 33: $2,898,300 Slot value for pick 75: $1,093,800 (compensation for Nick Pivetta) Slot value for pick 87: $907,200 The Red Sox forfeited their second round pick for signing a player who received the qualifying offer. Their financial flexibility puts the Red Sox in a decent position ahead of a draft class shaping up to be uncertain in terms of top tier talent, but with plenty of depth through around 75 picks, with prep bats a demographic of strength. Reminders on Draft Financials Organizations are allowed to spend up to 5% more than their total pool without incurring a penalty, a choice many teams take advantage of. The Twins and the Rockies are the only MLB teams who have never spent any overage on their bonus pool. Any amount up to 5% over the pool is met with a 75% tax on the overage. If a team spends between 5-10% more than their pool, the penalty is 75% tax on the overage and loss of a future first rounder. Any team who exceeds their bonus pool by more than 10% up to 15% pays 100% tax on the overage and will lose a first and second round future pick. Any team who exceeds their bonus pool by more than 15% loses two future first round picks in addition to paying 100% tax on the overage. Rounds 11-20 work differently to the first half of the draft. These picks do not come with an assigned slot value. Teams can spend up to $150,000 per pick without that spending coming out of their bonus pool. If they spend over that amount, any overage will be deducted from their bonus pool. For example, an 11th round pick signing for $250,000 will result in $100,000 being subtracted from that teams’ bonus pool. MLB Announces 2026 International Bonus Pools MLB announced bonus pools for the 2026 international signing period today. The 2026 signing window opens on January 15th, 2026 and runs through December 15th, 2026. The Red Sox are in a group of three teams (which also includes the Blue Jays) who have the joint second smallest bonus pools. The Red Sox can spend $5,940,000 in the 2026 international signing window. View full article