Reds take Mason Neville, who was one of the top names still left on the board
Tied the NCAA lead in homers at 26 this year. Ranked 26 on Keith’s board.
Keith’s scouting report: Neville was a top-100 draft prospect out of high school in 2022, but had a strong commitment to Arkansas and ended up going in the 18th round to the Reds. He went to Fayetteville for one year, barely playing, and transferred to Oregon, where he’s put together a huge breakout season in 2025 as the Ducks moved from the Pac 12 (RIP) to the Big Ten, leading Division I in homers through mid-May. Neville is a 55 runner who projects to stay in center field, probably an above-average defender there as his reads on balls give him a little extra range beyond his pure foot speed. He has at least 60 power, as he’s produced contact over 110 mph several times, and the swing is geared to pull the ball in the air but also allows him to drive the ball the other way if the pitch is further away from him. There are concerns about the bat even with his performance this year — the change in conferences means Neville has faced worse pitching this year than he did in 2024, which has likely contributed to the declines in his whiff and strikeout rates, and in a brief stint in the Cape Cod League, he struck out in nearly half of his trips to the plate (19 K in 39 PA), even whiffing on a lot of average fastballs. He might not hit for a high average, making up for it with all of his secondary skills, including strong walk rates, power, and defense, enough to see an average to above-average regular ceiling and good chance for an extra outfielder as a reasonable floor.