On 12-5-24, MLB.com posted their top 100 prospects in the
upcoming draft. Beginning 2-2-25, we will post it in backward order, ending
with the pick for 1.1
https://www.mlb.com/prospects/2025/draft/ -
#6 Kayson Cunningham
SS Johnson (TX)
18/years old
5' 9" 170
COMMITTED - Texas
Scouting grades: Hit: 60 | Power: 45 | Run: 60 | Arm: 55 |
Field: 55 | Overall: 55
A slightly bigger and lefty-swinging version of Jett
Williams, a Texas prep shortstop who went 14th overall to the Mets in 2022,
Cunningham is a better pure hitter at the same stage and perhaps the best in
the 2025 prep class. He led Team USA with a .417 average at an 18-and-under
World Cup qualifier in Panama last August.
Cunningham has exceptional barrel control and rarely swings
and misses. He has a mature approach, covers the entire strike zone and
utilizes the entire field. Though he's not physical, his bat speed and ability
to repeatedly barrel balls should allow him to get to 15-20 homers per season.
Cunningham has plus speed and plays with a lot of energy on
the bases and in the field. He has good actions and solid to plus arm strength
at shortstop, giving him a good chance to remain at the position. He'll be 19
on Draft Day and eligible as a sophomore in 2027 if he attends Texas.
2-26-25 –
MLB mock draft 2025: Projecting first round for 2025 MLB
Draft
https://sportsnaut.com/mlb/mlb-analysis/lists/mlb-mock-draft-2025/
15. Boston Red Sox: Kayson Cunningham, SS, Johnson High
School (Texas)
The Boston Red Sox will soon have three prospects graduating
to the big leagues in Kristian Campbell, Roman Anthony, and Marcelo Mayer, and traded
two others away in Kyle Teel and 2024 first-rounder Braden Montgomery as part
of the Garrett Crochet trade. To build back up their farm system, the Red Sox
should take the top prep shortstop outside of Ethan Holliday in Kayson
Cunningham. According to Bleacher Report’s Joel Reuter, Cunningham has a 60-hit
and 60-speed profile while his “plus defensive tools give him the potential to
be an offensive catalyst and a defensive cornerstone.”
2-25-25 - 2025 MLB Draft: A closer look at the top 20 high
school prospects entering the spring
3. Kayson Cunningham, SS, San Antonio
Some scouts rate Cunningham as the best pure hitter in the
draft, despite his small size. He makes consistent contact from the left side
of the plate and rarely strikes out. He might not develop more than gap power,
but he’s also a good runner who should stick in the middle infield.
2-15-25 –
CBS Sports - 2025 MLB Draft prospect rankings
6. Kayson Cunningham, SS, Johnson HS (TX)
The quick hook: Up-the-middle player with offensive promise
Whereas Willits will have youth working in his favor come
draft night, Cunningham's relative seniority (he'll turn 19 in late June) may
cost him ground if the three prep shortstops remain neck and neck heading down
the stretch. Make no mistake, though. He's still an enticing prospect with
top-five potential. In the recent past, teams have been OK taking older prep
shortstops if they believe in their skill sets: the Diamondbacks still have
reason to think Jordan Lawlar can validate their faith, and the Royals surely
don't regret plucking Bobby Witt Jr. Cunningham won't reach Witt's heights, but
his mature left-handed operation allows him to control the barrel and the zone
alike, resulting in some plus hit tool projections. Scouts were more split on
his future at shortstop, though they all agreed he ought to remain at an
up-the-middle position. It seems unlikely, then, that Cunningham will find
himself honoring his commitment to Texas.
1-28-25 –
MLB 2025 Mock Draft 2.0: Predictions for Every 1st-Round Pick
8. Toronto Blue Jays: SS Kayson Cunningham, Johnson HS (TX)
Cunningham is the top prep shortstop in the 2025 class not
named Ethan Holliday, and his 60-hit, 60-speed profile and plus defensive tools
give him the potential to be an offensive catalyst and a defensive cornerstone.
His undersized 5'9", 170-pound frame and pure hitting skills have drawn
comparisons to New York Mets prospect Jett Williams.
1-16-25 -
An Early Look at the Top 30 Prospects for the 2025 MLB Draft
https://lastwordonsports.com/baseball/2025/01/15/top-30-prospects-2025-mlb-draft/#google_vignette
10. Kayson Cunningham,
SS, Johnson HS, San Antonio
Smaller stature guy, but that hasn’t scared teams away in the
past who show Kayson’s ability to stick up the middle on the dirt long term.
Has an excellent defensive profile with quick feet and solid glove work. There
is a quality hit tool here as well, albeit with light power, but players who
have a chance to play SS don’t last long on the board.
1-27-25 - Just Baseball –
2025 MLB Draft - Top 80 High School Prospects
https://www.justbaseball.com/college/mlb-draft-top-high-school-prep-prospects/
6. Kayson Cunningham – SS
HT/WT: 5’10/178 | Bat/Throw: L/R | School: Johnson (TX) |
Commitment: Texas | Age: 19
Despite the smaller stature that Cunningham possesses, he has
a case for having the best pure contact hitter in the entire prep class.
Cunningham covers the zone exceptionally well, keeping the whiffs and chases at
bay.
It’s a smooth, direct left-handed swing with a good bit of
bat speed and an all-fields approach at the dish. The hit tool projects as a
plus or better tool with contact rates over 90% over the summer.
There is some pop in the bat, mainly to the pull side and
he’ll work the gaps for extra bases, but his swing is more suited for line
drives right now. He should add some lift to his swing in due time, but he’ll
profile best as a hit-over-power type.
Cunningham is a plus runner underway and has good range at
shortstop with smooth hands and a strong arm. There’s a chance he could move to
the other side of the second base bag, but it’s hard to envision him leaving
the dirt up the middle. Cunningham flipped from Texas Tech to Texas over the
summer and will be eligible as a sophomore in 2027.
1-17-25 –
Introduction to the 2025 MLB Draft: Top prep hitters
available
https://bucsondeck.substack.com/p/introduction-to-the-2025-mlb-draft-1c4
Kayson Cunningham
A left-handed, undersized shortstop from Texas, Kayson
Cunningham is one of the best pure hitters in the entire draft class. MLB
Pipeline has him ranked as their second-best prep hitter in the class and
third-best overall (Holliday and Seth Hernandez).
Due to his size, he received a ‘left-handed’ version of Jett
Williams comparison, but he is considered a better hitter at this point in the
draft process. Defensively, he has the tools to play shortstop but may end up
at second long-term.
He would be a draft-eligible sophomore, so that does give him
some leverage, but there are teams out there that don’t necessarily mind taking
the ‘older’ prep kids in the draft at this point.
1-3-25 –
2025 MLB Draft: Top 75 Prep Prospects — Prospects Live
https://www.prospectslive.com/prospects-live/2024/12/26/2025-mlb-draft-top-75-prep-prospects -
6. SS Kayson Cunningham, Johnson (TX)
Height: 5’10
Weight: 178
b/t: L/R
Draft Day Age: 19 YR
Commitment: Texas
Hometown: San Antonio, TX
Despite the smaller stature that Cunningham possesses, he has
a case for having the best pure contact hitter in the entire prep class.
Cunningham covers the zone exceptionally well, keeping the whiffs and chases at
bay. It's a smooth, direct left-handed swing with a good bit of bat speed and
an all-fields approach at the dish. The hit tool projects as a plus or better
tool with contact rates over 90% over the summer. There is some pop in the bat,
mainly to the pull side and he'll work the gaps for extra bases, but his swing
is more suited for line drives right now. He should add some lift to his swing
in due time, but he'll profile best as a hit-over-power type. Cunningham is a
plus runner underway and has good range at shortstop with smooth hands and a strong
arm. There's a chance he could move to the other side of the second base bag,
but it's hard to envision him leaving the dirt up the middle. Cunningham
flipped from Texas Tech to Texas over the summer and will be eligible as a
sophomore in 2027.
12-23-24
White Sox 2025 MLB Draft Notebook 1.0
https://www.futuresox.net/2024/12/23/white-sox-2025-mlb-draft-notebook-1-0/
6. Pittsburgh Pirates: Kayson Cunningham, SS, Johnson HS (TX)
Cunningham will stay at shortstop and the 5-9, 170 pounder
can really hit. He also possesses plus speed. The Piartes could also take Seth
Hernandez; the best prep pitcher in the 2025 class.
12-10-24 –
Here's Pipeline's first full 2025 mock draft
https://www.mlb.com/news/first-full-2025-mlb-mock-draft?partnerID=web_article-share –
6. Pirates: Kayson Cunningham, SS, Johnson HS, San Antonio
(No. 6)
A slightly bigger and lefty-swinging version of Jett
Williams, a Texas prep shortstop who went 14th overall in 2022, Cunningham is a
better pure hitter at the same stage and perhaps the best in this prep class.
10/6/24 - 2025 Draft Prospect - top 20 high school prospects
for the '25 Draft
5. Kayson Cunningham, SS, Lady Bird Johnson HS (Texas)
A super high-energy player, Cunningham has hit pretty much
everywhere he’s been, including slashing .417/.483/.542 with 12 RBIs for Team
USA during its 18U qualifier and picking up a pair of hits with three steals in
MLB’s High School All-American Game. He has excellent barrel control and makes
a ton of contact with gap power right now. He’s not the biggest guy in the
world at 5-foot-9, but he has the hands and actions for shortstop, though some
see a future at second base for the Texas recruit.
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