Red Sox finally draft a pitcher in the first round, grabbing Kyson Witherspoon at No. 15
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Witherspoon is the first pitcher selected by the Sox in the first round since Tanner Houck in 2017, and represents the their highest selection of a college pitcher since 1988, when they took college lefty Tom Fischer with the No. 12 overall pick. It's the earliest the Red Sox have taken a college righthander, a mark previously held by a pair who went No. 19 overall: Roger Clemens (1983) and Matt Barnes (2011).
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This marks the fourth time the Red Sox have had the No. 15 pick. Previously, they used that position to select Hall of Famer Jim Rice (1971) and two players (first baseman Otis Foster in 1975, pitcher Andy Yount in 1995) who never reached the big leagues. Rice, Chase Utley (2000), and New Hampshire native Chris Carpenter — who went on to win the 2005 NL Cy Young Award — represent some of the best picks at this spot.
The Red Sox have three picks remaining on Day 1, No. 33 (acquired from the Brewers this year for Quinn Priester) in the Competitive Balance round that falls between the first and second rounds, No. 75 (compensation for the free agent departure of starter Nick Pivetta) at the end of the second round, and No. 87 in the third round.
The draft began with a surprise and then a shock, as Oklahoma high school shortstop Eli Willits went to the Nationals with the No. 1 overall pick, followed by UC Santa Barbara righthander Tyler Bremner — who seemed like he had a longshot chance to be on the board for the Red Sox — going to the Angels at No. 2.
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