Detroit Tigers: Final mock draft roundup

The 2019 MLB Draft begins at 7 pm on Monday night, and the Detroit Tigers have the fifth overall pick.

The big day has finally come as it’s time for the 2019 MLB Draft. Coverage of the draft begins Monday night at 7 pm on MLB Network, and the Detroit Tigers will be on the clock fairly early on as the team has this year’s fifth overall pick in the first round.

As MLB Draft experts and insiders are putting out their last mock drafts before the big night, let’s take a look through some of the biggest final projections as to who the Tigers could end up with at number five.

ESPN’s Keith Law yet again has not changed his projection of who the Detroit Tigers will take at fifth overall in his final mock draft posted earlier in the day on Monday. Once again, Law predicts that the Tigers will select OF Riley Greene from Hagerty HS in Oviedo, FL.

Greene is a very solid hitting prospect according to scouts, and could possibly be the best high school hitter in the entire draft class. The Florida Gators commit is ranked as the sixth-best prospect overall coming into the draft according to MLB Pipeline and is the most likely to still be on the board when the Tigers go on the clock.

At number five overall, Greene would be a solid, safe pick for GM Al Avila. Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter agrees with Law in the fact that Detroit will take Greene at number five overall. It seems that in the most likely scenario in which the draft will shake out, Greene will be the best talent left for the Tigers to snag at number five.

In Fansided’s own mock draft, Justin Buckhanan has the Tigers going with Vanderbilt OF JJ Bleday at fifth overall. Bleday is a tremendous talent at the plate and is a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, essentially the Heisman of college baseball.

So far in his junior campaign, Bleday is hitting .353 with a team-high 68 RBI and 26 home runs as he tries to lead the Commodores through the NCAA Tournament. However, both Law and Reuter have Bleday coming off the board just one spot ahead of the Tigers, going to the Miami Marlins at fourth overall.

Lastly, CBS Sports’ Mike Axisa projects the Tigers as possibly coming away with one of the biggest steals in the entire draft. Axisa has the Detroit Tigers getting lucky and selecting Cal 1B Andrew Vaughn with the fifth overall pick. Luck would have to be on Detroit’s side, however, considering how Vaughn is projected to go as high as third overall by experts such as Keith Law.

Another Golden Spikes finalist, Vaughn may very well be the best hitter in this entire draft class. So far in his junior year with the Golden Bears, Vaughn is carrying an outstanding .381 BA with 50 RBI coming into the draft. The Bay Area native gained much notoriety last year after finishing his sophomore season hitting .402, and is ranked as MLB Pipeline’s third-best prospect in the draft.

It’s become clear that GM Al Avila is looking to spend the fifth overall pick on whoever the best talent left on the board is, which means it will likely be an offensive player considering the wealth of hitting talent in the draft class.

You can tune into coverage of the MLB Draft beginning at 7 pm EST on MLB Network, and make sure to follow Motor City Bengals on social media for up to the minute draft updates concerning the Detroit Tigers.