Two-Way Standout Kruz Schoolcraft Projected To Padres In MLB Pipeline's Mock Draft

[Billy Mock]

We are nearly two months away from the 2025 MLB Draft (July 13-14), which means draft season is in full swing and draft boards are really starting to take shape. Competition is at its highest at both the college and high school levels at the moment, with conference tournaments taking place shortly and state tournaments in full swing. That said, this is the time of year when the most movement takes place on draft boards and mock drafts. MLB Pipeline recently dropped their first mock draft of the year, and they have a dynamic two-way high school standout falling to the Padres in the first round with the 25th overall pick. 

Kruz Schoolcraft is not only one of the top prep players in this year's draft class, but he has an 80-grade name as well, which has to count toward something. Jokes aside, Schoolcraft's game is just as unique as his name. Schoolcraft is an 18-year-old left-handed pitcher and first baseman from Sunset High School in Oregon. Committed to the University of Tennessee, Schoolcraft was actually 2026 draft eligible, but reclassified for this year's class, making him one of the younger prep athletes on the board. 

Although he's very young, the lefty is already a very imposing figure, standing at 6'8" and 230 pounds. As a pitcher, he draws a lot of similarities to former White Sox first-round pick Noah Schultz, both physically and through his delivery from the left side. It's a very easy, repeatable delivery from a lower arm slot with some deception through his arm action. His movement on the mound is very fluid for a pitcher with his body type, and he moves down the mound very well. It's a blueprint that a lot of teams have recently adopted for their arms, and one that has found a lot of success. He runs his fastball into the upper-90s and features an above-average changeup and slider. The arsenal lays a really solid foundation upon which to build at the next level.

Plenty of players are entering the draft as two-way players, but Schoolcraft feels like one of the few that actually has the potential to stick as both a hitter and a pitcher. There's the belief that he can easily be an above-average hitter at the next level if he focuses solely on that. The bat has a ton of pop, and he's an excellent defender at first base. However, this is to be taken with a grain of salt since the success rate of two-way players is still very low. He's expected to focus on pitching at the next level, but the bat is still an option if whichever team he takes needs to pivot in that direction.

This pick makes a lot of sense for the Padres, considering they are not strangers to taking prep talents in the first round. You would have to go all the way back to 2016 to find the last time the Padres dipped into the college ranks with their first-round pick. Four of their picks since have been prep arms. They selected Kash Mayfield, another lefty, just last year, and also selected MacKenzie Gore and Ryan Weathers back in 2017 and 2018, who both have, of course, found some success at the big league level. Among other picks, it's obvious that the Padres are fans of high-floor athletes who can really shape into big league talents. Schoolcraft certainly can be the next name added to that list.

Earlier in the season, Schoolcraft was looking like a potential top ten pick, but has recently dropped into the back of half of the first round on many mock drafts, which is why it makes sense that he would be available here at 25th overall for the Padres. This has more so been a matter of a number of other players really solidifying themselves as front-half guys while prep arms continue to be the riskiest demographic to choose from. Regardless, Schoolcraft could definitely be a steal for the Padres with the 25th pick if he pans out the way he's projected to. 

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