The 2015 MLB Draft took place in June 2015, one that proved to be consequential for several franchises. One rebuilding team took the opportunity to put the finishing touches on a dominant powerhouse, while another used the top pick to select a franchise shortstop. Here’s a detailed look on how the 2015 Draft shook out, a decade later.
The Top Five Produces a Trio of Stars
As we documented in our 2014 MLB Draft review, the Astros couldn’t agree with Brady Aiken after Houston selected him first overall. Houston didn’t like his medicals, which caused a cascading effect across their 2014 draft board. However, the Astros were able to receive a compensation pick, which became the second overall pick.
The first overall pick in 2015 belonged to the Diamondbacks. Arizona lost 98 games in a tough 2014 campaign, one that saw the D-Backs make significant changes to team personnel. Tony La Russa took over as chief baseball officer in May 2014 and hired ex-agent Dave Stewart – who played under La Russa in Oakland – as GM. Arizona moved on from manager Kirk Gibson and hired Chip Hale after the season.
By the summer of 2015, the Diamondbacks began to formulate an intriguing core. Arizona had franchise bat Paul Goldschmidt in place but the D-Backs began to turn things around thanks to the arrival of pitchers Robbie Ray and Patrick Corbin. Former first-round pick pitchers Archie Bradley and Braden Shipley weren’t far behind, either.
While teams don’t draft for organizational needs, the D-Backs were light on position players. Arguably the best position player available that year was Dansby Swanson, a second baseman-turned-shortstop. Swanson excelled in his junior season with Vanderbilt, as he hit a career-high 15 home runs and a 1.046 OPS. The ex-Commodore was widely regarded as a strong defender, and he showed power not seen in his first two years at college.
Arizona pulled the trigger and took Swanson first overall. However, Swanson wouldn’t be in the Diamondbacks organization for long. Six months after the MLB Draft, Arizona traded Swanson to his hometown team, the Braves, in a five-player deal headlined by the Commodores shortstop and Shelby Miller.
Miller went the other way but was largely ineffective with the Diamondbacks. Swanson, meanwhile, turned into a World Series champion and two-time Gold Glove recipient. Only one player selected in the 2015 MLB Draft had a higher bWAR (as of 2025) than Swanson: Alex Bregman.
Bregman, like Swanson, starred in the SEC. A 29th-round pick by the Red Sox in 2012, Bregman hit .369 in his freshman season to solidify his status as an elite college player. All Bregman did was hit in college, with a career slash line of .337/.409/.514 (.923 OPS). The ex-LSU shortstop was also a demon on the basepaths, as he stole 38 bases in his junior season.
His manager at LSU, Paul Mainieri, said Bregman was the kind of player who could play anywhere. “He’s a baseball player, obviously can play second, and I’m sure he could play third…There was talk before the Draft of making him a catcher. You put this kid anywhere on the field and he’s going to play that position well. One of those guys that was born to play baseball.”
The Astros selected Bregman second overall, with the pick received for not signing Aiken. It took Bregman less than two years to make his MLB debut with Houston, who moved him to third with Carlos Correa entrenched at short.
Bregman turned into a former 40-home run hitter, two-time All-Star, and two-time World Series champion.
The selection of Bregman, though, came with a secondary benefit. The second overall pick came with a slot of $7,420,100. Bregman signed for $5.9MM, around $1.5MM less than the slot. Those savings allowed the Astros to go big later in the draft. With their second first-round pick, Houston selected Kyle Tucker.
Tucker, the brother of ex-Astro Preston Tucker, was considered an elite high school talent with five tools. He signed for $4MM, slightly below the slot but very much affordable. The Astros outfielder turned into an elite hitter before Houston traded him to the Cubs in December 2024.
Houston had another pick at #37 and selected Daz Cameron, the son of Mike Cameron. Daz was a projected top-ten pick but fell. The Astros used the savings from Bregman and signed him for $4MM.
Cameron never played in the Majors with Houston. However, the Astros did use him to acquire Justin Verlander two years later.
Comparing the 2015 1st Round to 2014
First, let’s take a look at the top ten first-round picks, ranked by bWAR:
| Name | Pick | Team | Career bWAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Bregman | 2 | Astros | 39.6 |
| Dansby Swanson | 1 | Diamondbacks | 23.4 |
| Kyle Tucker | 5 | Astros | 23.0 |
| Austin Riley | 41 | Braves | 20.8 |
| Ian Happ | 9 | Cubs | 17.7 |
| Andrew Benintendi | 7 | Red Sox | 15.3 |
| Ke’Bryan Hayes | 32 | Pirates | 13.4 |
| Walker Buehler | 24 | Dodgers | 12.2 |
| Trent Grisham | 15 | Brewers | 11.2 |
| Ryan Mountcastle | 36 | Orioles | 8.0 |
The above list doesn’t take into account other well-known 2015 first-round picks. Former Fresno State catcher Taylor Ward thrived as an outfielder with the Angels, while Josh Naylor hit 31 home runs with Cleveland in 2024. Michael Soroka had a standout rookie season with the Braves. Soroka was taken 13 picks earlier than Austin Riley.
Riley proved to be the best bat taken aside from the “big three.” The Braves third baseman posted three straight 30+ home run campaigns (2021-23) and was instrumental in Atlanta’s World Series championship season.
Ian Happ was drafted ninth overall out of the University of Cincinnati. Happ was highly polished coming out of college and used as a 2B/OF by Joe Maddon early on in his career before becoming a full-time outfielder. The now-30-year-old hit 24 home runs in his rookie season and then went on to win three Gold Gloves for the Cubs.
Walker Buehler could have been a top-15 pick in 2015. However, he fell amidst concerns over his elbow. Buehler wound up needing Tommy John surgery, which he had in August 2015. That, however, proved to be a temporary setback. The ex-Dodger went on to have two 200+ strikeout seasons before needing Tommy John again in 2022.
Valuable Major Leaguers Taken Outside of the 1st
The second round of the 2015 MLB Draft didn’t yield many stars. The best player from that round who signed was ex-Braves reliever A.J. Minter (5.7 bWAR). However, the best player from that round opted to go to college instead. Brady Singer, selected by the Blue Jays, didn’t sign out of high school and chose the University of Florida, instead.
Singer became a first-round pick three years later.
Other notable picks in Rounds 3-10 were Brandon Lowe (Rays, 3rd), Harrison Bader (Cardinals, 3rd), Paul DeJong (Cardinals, 4th), Ryan Helsley (Cardinals, 5th), David Fletcher (Angels, 6th), Jake Cronenworth (Rays, 7th), and LaMonte Wade Jr. (Twins, 9th). Aside from Helsley and Wade Jr., all players had career bWARs of 10.0 or above for those keeping track.
The Cardinals did very well for themselves in the later rounds of the 2015 MLB Draft, which made up for the fact St. Louis didn’t get much from first-round picks Jake Woodford and Nick Plummer. Not to mention, St. Louis also snared ex-reliever Jordan Hicks in the third round.
Which picks busted?
One top-ten pick, Cornelius Randolph, never made the Majors. Randolph was taken tenth overall by the Phillies. However, the Georgia product made it as high as Triple-A, never posting higher than a .740 OPS in any full MiLB season.
Brady Aiken, meanwhile, was signed at #17 by the Indians (nka Guardians), one year after the aforementioned odyssey. But as noted in our 2014 MLB Draft recap, Aiken never managed to stay healthy and made it as high as Low-A. He last pitched in a Minor League game in 2019.
In total, nine first-round selections and 13 picks from the second round never made the Major Leagues.
Best Late-Round Picks
| Name | Round | Team | bWAR |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cedric Mullins | 13 | Orioles | 15.0 |
| Ty France | 34 | Padres | 8.2 |
Compared to 2014, the last day of the 2015 Draft didn’t bear significant fruits. Only two players drafted in Rounds 11-40 posted a bWAR of 8.0 or higher, Ty France and Cedric Mullins. Mullins is the only one as of 2025 to have a bWAR above 10.0, down from three produced in the 2014 MLB Draft.
France hit his way up the Minors, then turned into an AL All-Star with the Mariners in 2022.
Mullins hit .340 in his junior season with Campbell, then went on to become a 30-30 player with the Orioles in 2021. The current Orioles outfielder was part of an Orioles draft class that also included first-round pick Ryan Mountcastle, outfielder Ryan McKenna, and reliever Garrett Cleavinger.
Aside from Mullins, there weren’t many players taken and signed in Rounds 11-40 that turned into stars. Sure, as high schoolers, Shane McClanahan (Mets, 26th), Jonathan India (Brewers, 26th), and Jeremy Pena (39th, Braves) were selected in this draft. However, none of the three opted to sign; instead, they thrived at university.
Some of the more well-known names taken on the last day of the 2015 MLB Draft included Patrick Sandoval (Astros, 11th), Myles Straw (Astros, 12th), and Jeffrey Springs (Rangers, 30th).
Which teams did the best?
As far as which team did the best, it’s hard to make an argument against the Houston Astros.
The Astros picked two franchise stalwarts – Bregman and Tucker – in the top five, then supplemented those two with several fine later-round picks in Patrick Sandoval and Myles Straw. Sandoval, now the Red Sox, helped Houston land Martin Maldonado, while the Astros used Straw to get Phil Maton and Yainer Diaz.
Aside from the Astros, Tampa found their future second baseman in Brandon Lowe, plus Jake Cronenworth. Cronenworth came from a cold-weather school, the University of Michigan, and turned into a highly-valuable infielder for the Padres.
St. Louis found several regulars, including the 2024 NL Rookie of the Year. And, Atlanta found their franchise third baseman in Austin Riley, as well as hard-throwing reliever A.J. Minter.