The 2025 MLB Draft will start with the Washington Nationals.
The Nationals were awarded the No. 1 overall pick in next year's draft via the draft lottery on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings in Dallas. It was MLB's third-ever draft lottery.
Washington, which entered with the fourth-best odds of winning the top pick at 10.2%, will now kick off a draft for the third time in franchise history. The Nats used their previous No. 1 selections on Stephen Strasburg in 2009 and Bryce Harper in 2010.
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The Los Angeles Angels, who had the third-best odds at 17.96%, received the No. 2 pick.
The Colorado Rockies and Miami Marlins were tied for the best odds at 22.45%, but both dropped out of the top three. Colorado received the fourth pick, while Miami fell all the way down to seventh.
Meanwhile, the Seattle Mariners and St. Louis Cardinals both shot up the draft board into the top six. Seattle, which had the 15th-best odds at 0.53%, landed the No. 3 selection. And St. Louis, which had the 13th-best odds at 0.82%, jumped up to the No. 5 spot.
The sixth and final lottery pick went to the Pittsburgh Pirates, who stayed put at No. 6.
Here's a full look at the lottery results:
- Washington Nationals
- Los Angeles Angels
- Seattle Mariners
- Colorado Rockies
- St. Louis Cardinals
- Pittsburgh Pirates
- Miami Marlins
- Toronto Blue Jays
- Cincinnati Reds
- Chicago White Sox
- Oakland A's
- Texas Rangers
- San Francisco Giants
- Tampa Bay Rays
- Boston Red Sox
- Minnesota Twins
- Chicago Cubs
- Arizona Diamondbacks
The draft lottery is used to award the first six selections, with the rest of the top 18 then set in reverse order of the regular-season standings.
MLB
The Chicago White Sox and Oakland A's both finished with bottom-five records, but landed at 10th and 11th, respectively, after not being eligible for the lottery. The MLB-worst White Sox couldn't receive a lottery pick for a second straight year as a payor club, which pays into revenue sharing. The A's weren't allowed to get a lottery pick for a third straight year as a payee club, which receives money from revenue sharing.
Non-playoff teams that are ineligible for the lottery, like Chicago and Oakland, can't pick any higher than 10th.
Who are the top 2025 MLB Draft prospects?
In 2022, the Baltimore Orioles used the No. 1 overall pick on Jackson Holliday, the son of former seven-time All-Star Matt Holliday. Three years later, Jackson's brother could go first overall to a team that plays right down the road.
Stillwater High School (Oklahoma) infielder Ethan Holliday was recently rated as the No. 1 2025 draft prospect by MLB Pipeline. Holliday, 17, is a left-handed hitting shortstop/third baseman. Should the Nats take Holliday, he and Jackson would become the first set of siblings to both go No. 1 overall in the MLB draft.
Texas A&M outfielder Jace LaViolette, Florida State left-hander Jamie Arnold, UC Santa Barbara right-hander Tyler Bremner and Corona High School (California) right-hander Seth Hernandez rounded out the top five of MLB Pipeline's draft prospect rankings.
What is the 2025 MLB Draft order?
The order of the final 12 first-round picks, which involves the playoff clubs, is based on how far a team advanced in the postseason and its revenue-sharing status.
Here's a look at the order of the 19th through 30th selections:
19. Baltimore Orioles
20. Milwaukee Brewers
21. Houston Astros
22. Atlanta Braves
23. Kansas City Royals
24. Detroit Tigers
25. San Diego Padres
27. Cleveland Guardians
28. New York Mets
29. New York Yankees
When is the 2025 MLB Draft?
The 2025 draft will take place from July 13-15 in Atlanta.