MLB Draft 2015: 1st-Round Mock Draft, Breakdown of Top Prospects

Monday's 2015 MLB draft is quickly approaching, and there is a potential big reward to come for the Houston Astros.

Thanks to not signing last year's No. 1 overall pick, Brady Aiken, the American League West division leaders have two selections in the top five. Houston's surprisingly strong beginning to 2015 has the franchise building a promising future, and it's keen to add two huge pieces through the draft.

Aiken is available in the draft pool once again but is coming off Tommy John surgery. Other pitchers merit going off the board before the talented southpaw, plus several stellar position prospects ought to hear their names called early in the draft.

Below is an updated mock of the first round, with further analysis on several of the top prospects in the 2015 draft class.

Pick No.	Team	Selection
1	Arizona Diamondbacks	Dansby Swanson, SS, Vanderbilt
2	Houston Astros	Dillon Tate, RHP, UC Santa Barbara
3	Colorado Rockies	Brendan Rodgers, SS, Lake Mary (Fla.) HS
4	Texas Rangers	Jon Harris, RHP, Missouri State
5	Houston Astros	Alex Bregman, SS, LSU
6	Minnesota Twins	Walker Buehler, RHP, Vanderbilt
7	Boston Red Sox	Daz Cameron, CF, Eagle Landing Christian Academy (McDonough. Ga.)
8	Chicago White Sox	Carson Fulmer, RHP, Vanderbilt
9	Chicago Cubs	Kyle Funkhouser, RHP, Louisville
10	Philadelphia Phillies	Kyle Tucker, OF, Plant High (Tampa)
11	Cincinnati Reds	Andrew Benintendi, CF, Arkansas
12	Miami Marlins	Nathan Kirby, LHP, Virginia
13	Tampa Bay Rays	Chris Betts, C, Wilson High (Long Beach, Calif.)
14	Atlanta Braves	Ian Happ, OF, Cincinnati
15	Milwaukee Brewers	Tyler Jay, LHP, Illinois
16	New York Yankees	Brady Aiken, LHP, IMG Academy
17	Cleveland Indians	Garrett Whitley, OF, Niskayuna (N.Y.)
18	San Francisco Giants	D.J. Stewart, OF, Florida State
19	Pittsburgh Pirates	Mike Nikorak, RHP, Stroudsburg HS (Pa.)
20	Oakland Athletics	Ashe Russell, RHP, Cathedral HS (Ind.)
21	Kansas City Royals	Kevin Newman, SS, Arizona
22	Detroit Tigers	Tyler Stephenson, C, Kennesaw Mountain HS (Ga.)
23	St. Louis Cardinals	Phil Bickford, RHP, CC of Southern Nevada
24	Los Angeles Dodgers	Kolby Allard, LHP, San Clemente High (Calif.)
25	Baltimore Orioles	Trenton Clark, OF, Richland HS (Texas)
26	Los Angeles Angels	Tyler Nevin, 3B, Poway (Calif.) High
27	Colorado Rockies	Justin Hooper, LHP, De La Salle High (San Ramon, Calif.)
28	Atlanta Braves	Chris Betts, C, Wilson HS (Calif.)
29	Toronto Blue Jays	Cornelius Randolph, 3B, Griffin High (Williamson, Ga.)
30	New York Yankees	Mike White, SS, Alabama
31	San Francisco Giants	Cody Ponce, RHP, Cal Poly-Pomona
32	Pittsburgh Pirates	Riley Farrell, RHP, TCU
33	Kansas City Royals	Kyle Cody, RHP, Kentucky
34	Detroit Tigers	James Kaprielian, RHP, UCLA
35	Los Angeles Dodgers	Richie Martin, SS, Florida
36	Baltimore Orioles	Juan Hillman, LHP, Olympia High (Haines City, Fla.)

Breakdown of Top Prospects

Dansby Swanson, SS/2B, Vanderbilt

Mark Humphrey/Associated Press

Swanson has proved capable of playing second base in the past before moving over to shortstop and showcasing the arm strength to be a fixture there.

CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman said before even the most important of the Commodores' games that Swanson is a viable candidate to be the first player off the board in Monday's draft:

NCAA Baseball spotlighted how he isn't exactly hurting his stock amid Vanderbilt's defense of its College World Series title:

The combination of experience, versatility and prowess both at the plate and in the field makes Swanson hard to dispute as the No. 1 overall pick for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Justin Upton was the last first-round selection Arizona spent on a shortstop prospect all the way back in 2005, per ESPN.com, and he plays outfield away from the desert these days. Swanson presents an upgrade over anyone the Diamondbacks have now and could play second if called upon to do so.

Former Colorado Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd endorses Swanson on MLB.com as the proper pick for Arizona atop the draft. O'Dowd cites a slash line of .350/.438/.654 and Swanson's ability to compete on every single pitch as reasons to take him.

Dealing with draft hype, elite SEC competition and his high status as a defending national champion and the face of Vanderbilt's program have prepared Swanson well for being a franchise cornerstone in the pros.

Dillon Tate, RHP, UC Santa Barbara

Having just moved into a starter's role this past season, Tate doesn't have the wear and tear on his arm that most college juniors do. It makes him an intriguing prospect because he has upside still to explore and a wealth of experience to gain in a starting rotation.

Although this may delay Tate's arrival at the MLB level, he likely won't take long to prove himself in the minor leagues.

Tate (6'2", 185 lbs) has packed on some muscle but could still stand to get stronger, which should help improve his velocity, functional strength and consistency as a result. His high leg kick and explosive move to the plate allow him to fool hitters when he changes speeds.

As is evident in the video footage above, Tate relies on a fastball that reaches 96 mph and even higher, along with a hard slider with plenty of movement. Command is still a work in progress, as is a changeup that could develop into a devastating off-speed third pitch with a bit of work.

ESPN.com's Keith Law lauded Tate as the best college pitcher in the 2015 draft:

A scout also weighed in on Tate's MLB prospects.

"Are you taking some risk if it's the first pick in the country relative to a normal college guy who goes first in the country? Yeah," said the scout, per AZCentral.com's Nick Piecoro. "But there's probably more rawness and untapped potential compared to most guys who go first. This guy could be a beast."

A team can zero in on the finer parts of Tate's pitching arsenal once he's drafted. This young man has the raw skills to evolve into a perennial All-Star even if there are more pro-ready arms on the board.

Houston would be an ideal destination for Tate, since the Astros don't necessarily need him right away and can add him to a promising stable of pitching talent. If Houston can bring along 2013 No. 1 overall pick Mark Appel and Tate at around the same time, the club can expect to reign supreme atop the AL West.

Brendan Rodgers, SS, Lake Mary High School (Florida)

Lenny Ignelzi/Associated Press

Law refers to Rodgers as his best overall player in a May 27 mock draft, so there's a chance Arizona could snag the 18-year-old phenom if it is keen on more of a long-term project.

Rodgers is still so early in his baseball career that it's hard to predict how he'll ultimately fare when he reaches the highest level. His promotion there could come sooner rather than later, though.

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Nick Franklin has been working out with Rodgers and spoke about what he's seen from the prodigious high school product, per MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo:

"

I've been around him a while for this past offseason. We'd just work on the fundamentals of the game, being at short, where he naturally feels comfortable the most. Some of the same actions at short I have now...he already has. It took me a little bit, but he's already there. He's got pretty fluid actions at short. It's going to be interesting to watch, and I'm excited to see.

"

It's evident Rodgers has some serious natural instincts in the field. Although he lacks elite speed at this point, the foundation of fundamentals is there for Rodgers to be brilliant if he opts to stay at shortstop.

Back in late April, Mayo indicated Arizona could look into taking either Rodgers or Tate, while he also mentioned Swanson being in the running:

What makes Rodgers special and worthy of the gaudy draft stature are his innate power and knack to make contact in the batter's box. He'll need some time to adjust to superior pitching even at the minor league level, but Rodgers has the physical tools to be a special MLB hitter.

The Rockies seem like a nice fit for him. Their longtime superstar shortstop, Troy Tulowitzki, isn't a lock to stay in Colorado for the rest of his career, and Rodgers would be a nice insurance policy as a potential future replacement for Tulo.

All three of the aforementioned prospects are worthy of No. 1 overall consideration for different reasons. It's a matter of the Diamondbacks' draft philosophy, but the rich Astros will in all likelihood get richer by acquiring one of the marquee trio.