Today will be rounds 3-10 of the 2024 Major League Baseball draft. This post will contain all of the information for each one of the Cincinnati Reds selections on Day 2 of the draft. It will be updated throughout the day as each pick comes in. Things get underway at 2pm ET.
This is also where I remind you that you can help support all of the work done here through Patreon. Running this website is a full time job, and one that doesn’t have an off day for 9 months out of the year. For a few bucks a month you can get in on some cool perks, including daily run downs and notes on the games and performances during the season. An example of some of the extra stuff is like when I transcribed the entirety of the media scrum between the Reds media and 1st round pick Chase Burns and scouting director Joe Katuska on the club’s first day of the draft. For more information, give this link a click and help keep us going.
Quick hit links and information:
- Cincinnati Reds Picks and Reports from Day 1
- Baseball America’s Top 500 (subscription required)
- MLB Pipeline’s Top 250
- ESPN’s Top 250 (subscription required)
- The Athletic’s Top 100 (subscription required)
You can follow along with the conference call at MLB.com. You can also follow along with the MLB Draft Tracker right here.
Cincinnati Reds Round 3 Selection: Mike Sirota
Background information:
- School: Northeastern
- Position: Outfield
- Height:6′ 3″
- Weight: 188 lbs.
- Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Scouting Report
After having a breakout sophomore season where he hit .346/.472/.678 with 18 home runs, Mike Sirota got out to an abysmal start in 2024. He rebounded well down the stretch and put up an OPS of 1.253 in the final 21 games of the season, but overall his numbers were way down from the previous year.
When he’s at his best he shows plus speed that he can use well on the bases and in center. At the plate his bat speed sticks out, but at least right now his swing is geared more for line drives than for loft and while he has fringe-average raw power he may need some mechanical changes to get there and get more loft on the ball. Like his power, his hit tool is fringe average.
If everything develops he’s a guy who can help a team in just about all aspects. He’s got more upside as a defensive player, but that holds true for most players who can stick in center. His bat’s upside profiles well for center if he gets the most out of it.
He entered the year as a potential top-half of the 1st round draft pick, but his struggles dropped him down the boards.
Sirota has played in parts of two summers in the Cape Cod league and in his 37 games he’s shown he can hit with a wooden bat. Between the two summers he hit .312/.465/.477.
Video
Stats
| Year | PA | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 2022 | 164 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 20 | 10 | 17 | 29 | .326 | .411 | .511 |
| 2023 | 265 | 9 | 4 | 18 | 54 | 19 | 44 | 49 | .346 | .472 | .678 |
| 2024 | 256 | 16 | 2 | 7 | 37 | 19 | 59 | 48 | .298 | .473 | .513 |
| Career | 685 | 39 | 6 | 29 | 111 | 48 | 120 | 126 | .324 | .458 | .577 |
Cincinnati Reds Round 4 Selection: Peyton Stovall
Background information:
- School: Arkansas
- Position: Second Base
- Height: 5′ 11″
- Weight: 200 lbs
- Bats/Throws: Left/Right
Scouting Report
Injuries were a bit of a problem for Peyton Stovall while he was at Arkansas. He played with a torn labrum for some time before undergoing surgery. This season he broke his foot early in the spring and missed time before returning to the field.
As a freshman and sophomore he struggled at the plate, posting an OPS under .800 in both years. In 48 games this year he took a big step forward, hitting .340/.409/.535, but he also struck out twice as often as he walked.
He has a chance to hit for a good average and could have 15 home runs if his power develops. He’s is a fringe-average defender but can probably remain at second base.
His strikezone recognition is solid and he doesn’t strike out a ton, but he wasn’t a huge contact guy in college. The profile would improve some if he could walk a bit more often, which may come as a pro as the data says he doesn’t expand the zone often.
Video
Stats
| Year | PA | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 2022 | 226 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 31 | 1 | 19 | 39 | .295 | .373 | .425 |
| 2023 | 176 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 31 | 3 | 15 | 27 | .253 | .330 | .393 |
| 2024 | 230 | 12 | 0 | 9 | 38 | 2 | 20 | 41 | .340 | .409 | .535 |
| Career | 632 | 24 | 1 | 20 | 100 | 6 | 54 | 107 | .300 | .374 | .456 |
Cincinnati Reds Round 5 Selection: Tristan Smith
Background information:
- School: Clemson
- Position: Left-handed Pitcher
- Height: 6′ 2″
- Weight: 195 lbs.
- Bats/Throws: Right/Left
Scouting Report
A draft-eligible sophomore, Tristan Smith has good stuff from the left side. His fastball works in the 91-94 MPH range and touches 96 with good movement. His slider is his best pitch, flashing plus at times and is above-average now. He also has a quality change up that he will mix in.
In 2023 most of his time came out of the bullpen for Clemson as he threw 31.2 innings in 24 games. Control was a concern as a freshman. This past year he moved to the rotation and made all 12 of his appearances as a starter. He threw 50.1 innings with a 4.47 ERA and the control remained a bit of a concern as he walked 32 and hit seven others while striking out 66. His season saw him miss some time with an ankle injury in March that cost him about a month before he returned to the mound.
If he can reign in his control a little bit he’s got plenty of stuff to be a big league starting pitcher. If he can’t then he’ll find himself in the bullpen where the stuff may be able to tick up a bit.
Video
Stats
| Year | W | L | ERA | IP | H | HR | BB | K | WHIP |
| 2023 | 0 | 1 | 4.55 | 31.2 | 24 | 4 | 25 | 43 | 1.55 |
| 2024 | 2 | 1 | 4.47 | 50.1 | 47 | 8 | 32 | 66 | 1.57 |
| Career | 2 | 2 | 4.50 | 82.0 | 71 | 12 | 57 | 109 | 1.56 |
Cincinnati Reds Round 6 Selection: Jacob Friend
Background information:
- School: Davidson
- Position: Catcher
- Height: 6′ 1″
- Weight: 200 lbs
- Bats/Throws: Left/Right
Scouting Report
An interesting catcher profile here with Jacob Friend. Despite being a catcher he’s got above-average speed and has also played some center field in college.
While in the long run he’s not going to be a center fielder, he could play in either of the corner spots and there’s also no reason to think that he can’t remain behind the plate if that’s where the organization wants to keep him.
In the batters box he’s a patient hitter who works the count and has a good understanding of the strikezone. He never really hit for much average in college, hitting .274, .277, and .274 in his three seasons at Davidson. He walked more than he struck out as a junior, but that is more due to his high walk rate than him making a lot of contact. For a college hitter he struck out at a bit of a higher-end rate.
Stats
| Year | PA | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 2022 | 122 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 17 | 3 | 19 | 23 | .274 | .418 | .379 |
| 2023 | 204 | 7 | 1 | 11 | 40 | 4 | 41 | 48 | .277 | .465 | .561 |
| 2024 | 206 | 7 | 0 | 10 | 29 | 8 | 46 | 42 | .274 | .473 | .527 |
| Career | 532 | 19 | 2 | 22 | 86 | 15 | 106 | 113 | .275 | .457 | .504 |
Cincinnati Reds Round 7 Selection: Myles Smith
Background information:
- School: UC Irvine
- Position: Outfield
- Height: 6′ 1″
- Weight: 205 lbs.
- Bats/Throws: Left/Right
Scouting Report
The first two years at UC Irvine were not very good for Myles Smith. He hit .229 in 22 games as a freshman and .226 as a sophomore. But this past year he broke out in a big way as he hit .401/.533/.637 with 10 home runs after hitting one in each of his first two seasons. That earned him Big West Player of the Year honors.
At the plate he’s more hit over power. There’s some questions about just how much power he’ll hit for in the future because his swing isn’t really geared for power and his raw power is below-average to fringe-average. He gets the zone well and made plenty of contact this year while walking 20 more times than he struck out.
Defensively his speed and arm likely limit him to left field.
Video
Stats
| Year | PA | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 2022 | 62 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 19 | .229 | .377 | .333 |
| 2023 | 176 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 21 | 11 | 33 | 35 | .226 | .428 | .307 |
| 2024 | 242 | 13 | 0 | 10 | 49 | 5 | 50 | 30 | .401 | .533 | .637 |
| Career | 480 | 20 | 1 | 12 | 80 | 16 | 95 | 84 | .316 | .475 | .480 |
Cincinnati Reds Round 8 Selection: Luke Hayden
Background information:
- School: Indiana State
- Position: Right-handed pitcher
- Height: 6′ 1″
- Weight: 195 lbs.
- Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Scouting Report
He spent his first two seasons at Indiana before transferring to Indiana State this past year. His time at Indiana was a bit of a struggle as he posted a 5.27 ERA as a freshman in 27.1 innings and 9.00 in 24.0 innings as a sophomore. He battled control issues in both seasons. This year he had a 3.81 ERA in 16 starts, throwing 78.0 innings with 47 walks and 91 strikeouts.
He works in the 91-94 MPH range with his fastball that touched 96 this spring. He will mix in an above-average slider in the mid-80’s. The third pitch is a change up that also works in the mid-80’s, but he rarely throws it.
The big question is just how many strikes he will be able to throw. While his walk rate improved in 2024 it also came against lesser competition than he faced in his first two seasons and it still wasn’t exactly good. The control has to improve for him to remain in the rotation, but the bullpen is there for him if he can’t.
He was planning to transfer to LSU for his senior year.
Video
Stats
| Year | W | L | ERA | IP | H | HR | BB | K | WHIP |
| 2022 | 4 | 1 | 5.27 | 27.1 | 23 | 2 | 28 | 25 | 1.87 |
| 2023 | 2 | 0 | 9.00 | 24.0 | 34 | 7 | 15 | 21 | 2.04 |
| 2024 | 7 | 2 | 3.81 | 78.0 | 73 | 10 | 47 | 91 | 1.54 |
| Career | 13 | 3 | 5.08 | 129.1 | 130 | 19 | 90 | 137 | 1.70 |
Cincinnati Reds Round 9 Selection: Ryan McCrystal
Background information:
- School: East Carolina
- Position: Catcher
- Height: 6′ 2″
- Weight: 215 lbs.
- Bats/Throws: Left/Right
Scouting Report
After not playing much as a freshman or sophomore, Ryan McCrystal got plenty of time on the field in 2024 with East Carolina and he took full advantage of it. In his 54 games he hit .346/.402/.521. He made a good amount of contact, striking out 24 times with 16 walks in 212 trips to the plate. Following the college season he played in the draft league for 13 games and hit .373/.403/.559.
He has a good arm behind the plate with a chance to stick behind the plate, but it’s not for certain. There’s some raw power in his bat that he has a chance to tap into. He has an aggressive approach that will likely need to improve as a professional.
Stats
| Year | PA | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | SB | BB | K | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| 2022 | 34 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 9 | .148 | .294 | .259 |
| 2023 | 87 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 3 | 18 | .232 | .256 | .342 |
| 2024 | 212 | 10 | 1 | 7 | 39 | 2 | 16 | 24 | .346 | .402 | .521 |
| Career | 333 | 16 | 1 | 9 | 57 | 2 | 25 | 51 | .296 | .353 | .448 |
Cincinnati Reds Round 10 Selection: Yanuel Casiano
Background information:
- School: Albergue Olimpico Baseball Academy (PR)
- Position: Catcher
- Height: 6′ 0″
- Weight: 185 lbs.
- Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Scouting Report
Arguably the top prospect from Puerto Rico this year, Yanuel Casiano. He’s still 17-years-old.
He has plus arm strength behind the plate and while he doesn’t stand out behind the plate in the other areas, he should be able to stick at the position.
Offensively there are plenty of questions. He has enough power for a catcher, but there are questions about how much of it he will be able to use because his hit tool grades out well below-average. Catchers don’t have to hit a lot, so finding some improvements along the way could go towards a stronger long-term profile.
Video
That wraps up the picks for Day Two of the draft. Everyone will be back at it on Tuesday afternoon at 2pm ET for the final 10 rounds of the draft.