2024 MLB Draft Report: College World Series Final and Updated Top 100 Rankings

The expectation has happened in Omaha as Tennessee and Texas A&M advanced to the College World Series final. Whoever wins the three-game series will be the school's first baseball National Championship. Neither Florida State nor North Carolina pitching could cool off the Volunteers bats. In three games, Tennessee has scored 25 runs in large thanks to hitting five homers. Second baseman Christian Moore hit for the cycle in what seemed like an improbable comeback to beat Florida State, and outfielder Kavares Tears has two home runs and six RBI in the College World Series. 

Texas A&M's path to the final was slightly different from Tennessee's. In their three wins, the Aggies only scored 14 runs but held opponents to just three. After suffering a scare in their opening game against Florida, the Aggies displayed how deep their roster is by dominating Kentucky and Florida. There is another injury concern for A&M as Jace LaViolette tweaked his hamstring against Kentucky, and while he played against Florida, he is not 100% coming into this weekend. Already losing Braden Montgomery, LaViolette is critical for the Aggies, as he led the team with 28 home runs in 2024. 

2024 MLB Draft Prospects to Watch During College World Series

As of this writing, pitching probable's haven’t been released by Tennessee or Texas A&M, but I’m hopeful we get a Drew Beam vs. Ryan Prager duel. It could be a high-scoring three-game series, but Beam and Prager were excellent in their outings at Omaha. Game 1 starts on Saturday at 6:30 PM CT on ESPN, Game 2 is Sunday at 1:00 PM CT on ABC, and if necessary, Game 3 is Monday at 6:00 PM CT back on ESPN. 

This past week has been big for the MLB Draft, as some scouts traveled to Omaha to track college players, and others are in Arizona for the MLB Draft Combine. It’s a good time to update the Sox Machine Top 100 2024 MLB Draft Rankings. For those new to Sox Machine, the Top 100 methodology blends my personal thoughts with rankings from MLB, Baseball America, ESPN, The Athletic, Future Stars Series, and Prospects Live. The aim is to build a consensus from numerous industry outlets. 

Notes about the updated Top 100 rankings

• School Level Ratio: 60 College/Junior College prospects vs. 40 High School prospects
• Position Ratio: 55 position players vs. 45 pitchers
• Most popular position group: Right-handed pitchers, 28
• 14 of the Top 20 prospects are position players
• Top College Hitter: Charlie Condon, Georgia
• Top College Pitcher: Hagen Smith, Arkansas
• Top Prep Hitter: Konnor Griffin, Jackson Prep
• Top Prep Pitcher: Cam Caminiti, Saguaro High

Sox Machine Top 100 Rankings

Note: Prep prospects are highlighted in pink by school