28 Appalachian League Alumni Selected in 2025 MLB Draft
July 16, 2025 - Appalachian League (ApL) News Release
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - Twenty-Eight Appalachian League alumni were selected in the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft. Seven of the first 100 draft picks were former Appy League players; one first-round pick, two second-round picks and four third-round picks.
Marcus Phillips (Elizabethton '24) became the league's first selection in 2025 when the Boston Red Sox drafted him with the 33rd overall pick. Phillips is the third first-round pick in league history, and the second highest overall selection.
Including Phillips, seven alumni were selected in the first three rounds. Bristol's Cooper Flemming (53rd overall) and Tanner Franklin (72nd) were both second round picks, while Josh Owens (84th), Jacob Morrison (94th), Cody Miller (96th) and Cody Bowker (100th) were third round picks. Previously, only four alumni were selected in the first three rounds in the first four years of the league's history.
Four selections played in the Appy League in 2025: Flemming (Bristol), Owens (Elizabethton), Wyatt Vincent (Pulaski) and Landry Jurecka (Pulaski). Flemming, Owens and Vincent were the first high schoolers ever drafted out of the Appy League.
Every Appy League team had a player selected in this year's draft, Elizabethton led the way with seven selections and Pulaski followed close behind with six. Six different Major League clubs took at least two former Appy Leaguers; the Arizona Diamondbacks and New York Yankees led the way with three selections each.
The complete list of Appalachian League players selected;
Rd Pick Team Player Pos. School Appy Year Appy League Team
CB-A 33 Boston Red Sox Marcus Phillips RHP Tennessee 2024 Elizabethton River Riders
2 53 Tampa Bay Rays Cooper Flemming SS Aliso Niguel HS (CA) 2025 Bristol State Liners
CB-B 72 St. Louis Cardinals Tanner Franklin RHP Tennessee 2023 Kingsport Axmen
3 84 Texas Rangers Josh Owens TWP Providence Academy (TN) 2025 Elizabethton River Riders
3 94 Milwaukee Brewers Jacob Morrison RHP Coastal Carolina 2022 Princeton WhistlePigs
3 96 Atlanta Braves Cody Miller SS East Tennessee State 2023 Johnson City Doughboys
3 100 Philadelphia Phillies Cody Bowker RHP Vanderbilt 2022 Elizabethton River Riders
8 240 St. Louis Cardinals Ryan Weingartner SS Penn State 2023 Elizabethton River Riders
8 247 Atlanta Braves Carter Lovasz RHP William & Mary 2022 Elizabethton River Riders
9 273 Arizona Diamondbacks Wallace Clark SS Duke 2023 Greeneville Flyboys
9 284 New York Yankees Blake Gillespie RHP UNC Charlotte 2024 Bluefield Ridge Runners
10 296 San Francisco Giants Isaiah Barkett 2B Stetson 2023 Burlington Sock Puppets
10 308 Kansas City Royals Max Martin RHP UC-Irvine 2024 Pulaski River Turtles
11 343 New York Mets Wyatt Vincent OF Nixa HS (MO) 2025 Pulaski River Turtles
13 396 Houston Astros Aubrey Smith RHP UNC Wilmington 2023 Bristol State Liners
14 412 Toronto Blue Jays Noah Palmese RHP Webber International 2024 Bristol State Liners
14 429 Detroit Tigers Beau Ankeney 1B Loyola Marymount 2022 Greeneville Flyboys
14 430 San Diego Padres Clay Edmondson RHP UNC Asheville 2023 Pulaski River Turtles
15 448 Boston Red Sox Skylar King OF West Virginia 2023 Elizabethton River Riders
16 474 Cincinnati Reds Maison Martinez RHP Florida State 2024 Danville Otterbots
16 483 Arizona Diamondbacks Collin Rothermel RHP Jacksonville 2022 Elizabethton River Riders
16 494 New York Yankees Jackson Lovich SS Missouri 2023 Pulaski River Turtles
17 511 Chicago Cubs Logan Poteet C UNC Charlotte Kingsport '22, Tri-State '24
17 513 Arizona Diamondbacks Joel Sarver RHP UNC Charlotte 2021 Danville Otterbots
18 550 San Diego Padres Landry Jurecka RHP Queens U of Charlotte 2025 Pulaski River Turtles
19 556 Chicago White Sox Nick Weyrich RHP Marshall 2023 Pulaski River Turtles
19 585 Los Angeles Dodgers Anson Aroz C Oregon 2022 Johnson City Doughboys
20 614 New York Yankees Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek SS Southern California 2023 Bluefield Ridge Runners
Appalachian League Stories from July 16, 2025
- River Riders Blasted in Lopsided Loss to Otterbots - Elizabethton River Riders
- Johnson City falls short in close battle with Pulaski - Johnson City Doughboys
- 28 Appalachian League Alumni Selected in 2025 MLB Draft - ApL
- Flyboys Stymied by Kingsport on Tuesday - Greeneville Flyboys
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