2020 MLB mock draft: UCLA outfielder Garrett Mitchell to Angels

The details of the 2020 MLB Draft aren’t yet finalized, but we know the draft will be some time in July, and could be as few as five rounds. But there will be a first round no matter the length.

At MLB.com, Jonathan Mayo mock drafted the entire first round, and had the Angels picking UCLA outfielder Garrett Mitchell at 10th overall.

“While the Angels are in need of pitching, it’d be a reach for a college arm here and Mitchell has the best set of tools in the class,” Mayo wrote.

Four college arms and one high school pitcher were drafted in the first nine picks by Mayo, leaving the UCLA junior outfielder for the Angels. The top of the Angels’ prospect list is already outfield heavy, with Jo Adell — a consensus top-10 prospect in baseball — and Brandon Marsh the top two spots. The two other Angels prospects to receive any mention on national top-100 lists are both outfielders as well, Jordyn Adams and D’Shawn Knowles.

The last time the Angels drafted a UCLA player in the first round was 1997, when third baseman Troy Glaus was picked third overall.

Baseball America rated Mitchell the sixth-best prospect in the draft, raving about his toolset: “He’s an 80-grade runner who changes games with his speed, is a plus defensive center fielder who effortlessly glides to balls and has a rifle for an arm.”

Mitchell starred at nearby Orange Lutheran High School, less than five miles from Angel Stadium, and was drafted by the A’s in the 14th round in 2017, but opted instead for college.

In three years at UCLA, Mitchell hit .327/.393/.478 with 24 home runs, 15 triples, and six home runs, plus stole 28 bases in 121 games. He led the NCAA with 12 triples as a sophomore in 2019, and was hitting .355/.425/.484 through 15 games this year before the NCAA shut down all spring sports in March due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The 6’3 junior was an All-American in 2019, and a unanimous preseason All-American in 2020. Mitchell’s UCLA bio notes he admires Mike Trout and Bryce Harper.

The Angels pick 10th overall in the first round. The bonus slot value for that pick is $4,739,900.