With their second round draft pick in the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft the Cincinnati Reds have selected right-handed pitcher Aaron Watson out of Trinity Christian Academy in Florida.
Aaron Watson Scouting Report
Height: 6′ 5″ | Weight: 205 lbs.
Bats: Right | Throws: Right | Position: RHP
Highest Ranking: 32 – ESPN
Fastball: The pitch works in the low 90’s and has been up to 96 MPH at it’s peak. He will throw both a 4-seamer and a 2-seamer.
Slider: An above-average pitch that works in the mid-80’s.
Curve: An average offering that works in the upper 70’s to low 80’s.
Splitter: An average pitch that works in the mid-80’s.
At present there’s a well-rounded pitcher who can show hitters plenty of different looks. But at his size and with his frame there’s a lot of room for him to fill out and likely add more velocity when that happens.
With two above-average pitches already, and two potentially average ones he’s got the makings of a starter. He’s showed good control in high school. If his velocity ticks up and he finds a bit more consistency with his secondary stuff he could be a strong middle of the rotation starter.
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The Cincinnati Reds haven’t drafted a high school pitcher this high since 2018 when they selected Lyon Richardson 47th overall.
Not that there’s anything wrong with projecting to be a middle of the rotation pitcher, but the upside feels like something you’d want a little more from in the top half of the 2nd round. There’s some projection here, too, and again while there’s nothing wrong with that it leaves open more room for road blocks getting in the way.
What you have to like, though, is that he’s got four or five pitches depending on how you want to look at it and he can already throw them all for strikes. His pitchability allows his stuff to play up for now and for a high school pitcher the floor feels like it’s quite high under normal circumstances. After going to a big upside in the 1st round it seems that the Reds went a bit safer in the 2nd round – at least as far as high school pitchers can be safe (which isn’t all that much).
Scouting Director Joe Katuska on Aaron Watson
“He’s a big kid, good projection to him. 6 foot 5, 6 foot 6. Up to 96 MPH with a really good sinker. It’s a sinker/slider/change up profile. Really good projection. We had a chance to scout him all spring and really like the upside there.”
On the competition he faced and how he performed in 2025
“He did really well. It’s a high level of competition down there in Jacksonville. The league he plays in, he has three teammates that are going to SEC schools next year and that’s kind of what he plays all year. We all know what sort of baseball they play at the high school level in Florida, especially at some of those private schools in the Jacksonville area and we saw him dominate all year.”
You can click here for full coverage for all of the 2025 Cincinnati Reds Draft picks.