Kiley McDaniel 2024 MLB Mock Draft: JJ Wetherholt to Guardians, Caglianone to Reds

Two days away from the start of the 2024 MLB draft, the only thing that seems certain right now is no one outside of the Cleveland Guardians organization has any idea what's happening with the No. 1 pick.

In his latest mock draft, ESPN's Kiley McDaniel projects West Virginia shortstop JJ Wetherholt as the top pick to Cleveland in part because he might be more likely to agree to an under-slot deal than some of the other candidates.

McDaniel did note he's "pretty sure" the Guardians are considering five players right now, including Wetherholt, Oregon State second baseman Travis Bazzana, Georgia outfielder Charlie Condon, Florida first baseman Jac Caglianone and Wake Forest pitcher Chase Burns.

McDaniel did throw a bit of a curveball with the No. 2 pick by having the Cincinnati Reds select Caglianone. The consensus for most of the spring was that Condon, who won the 2024 Golden Spikes award, would be Cincinnati's choice if Cleveland passed on him.

According to McDaniel, Caglianone or Burns "seem to be the leading" options for the Reds. Condon is slotted in at No. 3 to the Colorado Rockies, followed by Bazzana to the Oakland Athletics and Mississippi high school shortstop Konnor Griffin to the Chicago White Sox rounding out the top five.

Given the lack of consensus talent in this draft, it's not surprising that signing bonus money could be a key factor in what happens at the top of the class.

The Guardians, by virtue of having the top pick and three picks in the top 50, have the most bonus money of any team at $18.3 million. The Rockies are second at $17.2 million. The Reds ($15.8 million), Kansas City Royals ($15.4 million) and A's ($15.3 million) are the only other teams with at least $15 million available.

The slot value for the No. 1 pick is $10.6 million, which would shatter the all-time bonus record set last year by Paul Skenes ($9.2 million).

Given how highly regarded the top of last year's class was with Skenes, Dylan Crews and Wyatt Langford, the 2024 group is considered a step down.

Wetherholt was regarded as the top prospect in 2024 coming into the year after hitting .449/.517/.787 in 55 games last year. He suffered a hamstring injury early in the season that dropped his slash line to .331/.472/.589 in 36 games.

If the Guardians are confident Wetherholt's injury was a one-time incident and not indicative of a bigger problem, it wouldn't be a surprise to hear his name called first on Sunday.

Caglianone has been a two-way player for the past two seasons at Florida, though his 105 walks in 148.1 innings on the mound suggest pitching won't be part of his future in pro ball. He did hit .419/.544/.875 with 35 homers in 66 games for the Gators in 2024.