MLB Draft 2015: Full 1st-Round Order and Predictions for Top Prep Stars

The MLB draft may lack the popularity and entertainment value of its NBA counterpart, but it can lord one thing over the NBA: High school stars don't have to wait a year to get paid.

Yes, no high school baseball players jump right into the big leagues, but they can at least earn a modest sum while racking up the mileage as they bus across the country on the minor league circuit.

Drafting skilled prep competitors is always a massive gamble. The level of competition isn't exactly high, and a player's body still develops a lot at 18, 19 years old. But high schoolers often offer some of the highest ceilings of anybody in the draft pool, so teams won't ever stop taking the risk.

Here are three talking points regarding some of the biggest names who've yet to hit the collegiate ranks.

2015 MLB Draft—First Round, Compensation Round, Competitive Balance A Order

Pick	Team	Note on Pick
First Round
1	Arizona Diamondbacks
2	Houston Astros	Compensation for failure to sign Brady Aiken
3	Colorado Rockies
4	Texas Rangers
5	Houston Astros
6	Minnesota Twins
7	Boston Red Sox
8	Chicago White Sox
9	Chicago Cubs
10	Philadelphia Phillies
11	Cincinnati Reds
12	Miami Marlins
13	Tampa Bay Rays
14	Atlanta Braves
15	Milwaukee Brewers
16	New York Yankees
17	Cleveland Indians
18	San Francisco Giants
19	Pittsburgh Pirates
20	Oakland Athletics
21	Kansas City Royals
22	Detroit Tigers
23	St. Louis Cardinals
24	Los Angeles Dodgers
25	Baltimore Orioles
26	Los Angeles Angels
Compensation Picks
27	Colorado Rockies	Michael Cuddyer, Mets forfeit first-rounder
28	Atlanta Braves	Ervin Santana, Twins forfeit second-rounder
29	Toronto Blue Jays	Melky Cabrera, White Sox forfeit third-rounder
30	New York Yankees	David Robertson, White Sox forfeit second-rounder
31	San Francisco Giants	Pablo Sandoval, Red Sox forfeit second-rounder
32	Pittsburgh Pirates	Russell Martin, Blue Jays forfeit first-rounder
33	Kansas City Royals	James Shields, Padres forfeit first-rounder
34	Detroit Tigers	Max Scherzer, Nationals forfeit first-rounder
35	Los Angeles Dodgers	Hanley Ramirez, Red Sox forfeit Competitive Balance Round B pick
36	Baltimore Orioles	Nelson Cruz, Mariners forfeit first pick
Competitive Balance A
37	Houston Astros
38	Colorado Rockies
39	St. Louis Cardinals
40	Milwaukee Brewers
41	Atlanta Braves
42	Cleveland Indians

Predictions

Brady Aiken Won't Be Selected in First 20 Picks

One of the bigger questions surrounding the 2015 draft is where Brady Aiken will end up. The Houston Astros famously selected the left-hander first overall last year, but Aiken failed to sign with the team after Houston became concerned by the results of his physical.

Aiken had Tommy John surgery in March, so the Astros' fears weren't unfounded.

"I'm obviously extremely disappointed," he said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). "I wanted to let my pitching speak for itself, but now there are going to be new distractions. For that reason, I wanted to be the one to tell people what's happened and make this a fresh start."

Some team is bound to gamble on Aiken; the question is when.

He's still essentially a prep player. He didn't pitch in the independent league or junior college after going undrafted, instead opting for the IMG Academy. So you have all of the risks that come with drafting a prep star in addition to the fact he had Tommy John surgery just a few months ago.

MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo still had Aiken going 15th overall to the Milwaukee Brewers in his May 29 mock draft. CSN Chicago's Patrick Mooney also threw out that the Chicago Cubs aren't eliminating Aiken as an option at No. 9.

While it wouldn't be crazy for Aiken to go in the top 10 or 15 picks, the end of the first round is a more realistic destination. The potential is obviously there, but his arm issues will be too much to risk an early selection.

Kolby Allard Will Be a Steal in Middle-to-Back End of First Round

Speaking of left-handers with injury issues, Kolby Allard would likely come off the board quickly were it not for a stress reaction in his back he suffered in March. As a result, Allard could fall 10 or 15 spots in the first round.

Mayo thinks the Atlanta Braves will give a hard look at Allard:

Should Allard begin slipping in a big way, he'd be a tremendous value pick for whoever selected him.

In his April rankings, FanGraphs' Kiley McDaniel listed Allard as the 11th-best player available:

"

Allard has lots of top-five pick momentum early in the spring, despite being a 5’10 or 5’11 prep lefty. He sits 90-93 and has been as high as 97 mph with a clean delivery, feel for a changeup and an above average to plus breaking ball. Allard is also very young for his class and some SoCal scouts saw shades of Brady Aiken when Allard hit 97 mph late last summer.

"

Even if he grows to become a No. 3 or 4 starter, Allard would more than pay back his investment as a mid-to-late first-rounder. His height and injury history are obviously concerning, but neither should be the kind of thing that prevents him from fulfilling his potential.

Brendan Rodgers Will Lose Out on Top Spot to Dansby Swanson

Brendan Rodgers is arguably the best prep player available, but he's in a tough fight with Dansby Swanson for the No. 1 overall spot.

Swanson has been one of the best talents in college baseball this year, batting .348 with 14 home runs and 61 runs batted in. MLB Network provided a brief overview of the Vanderbilt shortstop.

Since college players generally come with somewhat less risk than high schoolers, the Arizona Diamondbacks will likely opt for Swanson over Rodgers.

Rodgers may wind up being the better pro, though.

Baseball America's J.J. Cooper wrote a great detailed breakdown of Rodgers' skill set and where it puts him among the other high school shortstops who were selected with a top-three pick.

Among the four identifying groups he uses—All Bat, Glove First, Great Bat but Too Big and All-Around—Cooper considers Rodgers to fall in the All-Around category, which Tim Beckham, Shawon Dunston, Chipper Jones, Kurt Stillwell and Justin and B.J. Upton all populate.

Rodgers isn't a prodigious hitter, but he should provide more than enough pop for a shortstop. In addition, his defense should progress at a level where a position change isn't necessary.