Mississippi State baseball’s strong track record in producing Major League prospects continued this weekend at the MLB Draft in Atlanta. The program saw seven players from the 2025 team selected in the draft, including six pitchers from Justin Parker’s staff.
Parker and new head coach Brian O’Connor will enter 2025 with a mostly bare cupboard due to graduation, transfer departures and draft selections. All three weekend starters were taken in the top 10 rounds.
Pico Kohn (Yankees), Evan Siary (Rangers), Karson Ligon (Blue Jays), Luke Dotson (Diamondbacks), Nate Williams (Cubs) and Jacob Pruitt (Phillies) all heard their names called on Monday.
Kohn was the highest drafted Bulldog, going 134th overall to the Yankees in the fourth round after a strong year as MSU’s Friday starter. He finished with a 5-4 record and a 4.73 ERA while registering 114 strikeouts. In his career he allowed just a .236 batting average against.
Hunter Hines (Nationals) was the only MSU position player taken in the draft. He ended his four-year MSU career as the program’s all-time home run leader, overtaking Rafael Palmeiro with 70 while posting a .282 career average at the plate with 221 RBI.
The seven Bulldogs drafted takes the program’s total number of draft picks to 248. Players have until July 28 to sign with their respective clubs. Evan Siary has a year of eligibility remaining, as do Dotson and Pruitt, although the latter two entered the transfer portal and committed to Texas and Missouri, respectively.
Mississippi State fans kept an eye on the draft not just to celebrate the next step for former Bulldogs, but also to keep track of any incoming recruits who may choose to go pro. Three commitments were taken in the top 10 rounds of the draft, where the guaranteed money is, but the Bulldogs kept much of their 2025 recruiting and transfer portal class intact.
MSU’s highest-rated high school commit was one of the first names on the draft board on Sunday. JoJo Parker, the top player in Mississippi and the Class 4A Mr. Baseball as a senior, was taken eighth overall by the Toronto Blue Jays.
The in-state commit out of Purvis was a highly touted prospect leading up to the draft, and several mock drafts predicted him to go inside the top 10 on Sunday, so his departure wasn’t too much of a shock to MSU fans.
Only two other recruits were taken in the first 10 rounds of the draft. East Union pitcher Landon Harmon went 80th overall to the Washington Nationals and senior transfer Davion Hickson went 165th overall to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
JoJo’s brother, Jacob Parker, was selected in the 19th round by the Arizona Diamondbacks, but reaffirmed his commitment to the Bulldogs on social media on Tuesday morning.
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