Will Cal's Caleb Lomavita Be a First-Round Pick in MLB Draft?

Golden Bears' junior catcher Lomavita is expected to be taken during the first day of the baseball draft on Sunday

Caleb Lomavita / Photo courtesy of Cal Athletics

Cal catcher Caleb Lomavita is expected to be taken during the first day of the Major League Baseball draft on Sunday, but the question is whether he’ll be selected in the first round or the second.

The Athletic’s recent MLB mock draft did not include Lomavita in the first round, but nearly every other reputable site projects the Golden Bears junior to be taken late in the first round. We will detail those projections later in this report.

Lomavita hit .322 with 15 home runs, 52 RBIs and a .981 OPS this past season for Cal, which finished with a 36-19 record and was surprised that it did not get a berth in the NCAA tournament.  Lomavita is hoping to be the 17th Cal player to be take in the first round of the MLB draft. Most sites project Lomavita to be taken somewhere around the 23rd overall pick, and that position has a slot bonus value of about $3.5 million, and that would approximate his signing bonus.

The round in which a player is drafted does not always correspond to his success in the major leagues.  Former Cal standout Marcus Semien was taken in the sixth round of the 2008 MLB draft, and he will be the American League’s starting second baseman in Tuesday’s All-Star Game.

The first two rounds of the 2024 MLB draft will be held on Sunday, starting at 4 p.m. Pacific time, and will be televised by ESPN and MLB Network.  Lomavita almost certainly will be drafted on the first day, and there is an outside chance that Cal outfielder Rodney Green Jr. will be drafted in the second round, although he is more likely to be taken Monday, when rounds three through 10 are held, starting at 11 a.m.  Rounds 11 through 20 will be held on Tuesday beginning at 11 a.m.   Monday’s and Tuesday’s rounds will not be televised but will be streamed on MLB.com.

Several Cal players are expected to be selected in this year’s draft, but Lomavita is the featured Golden Bears player.

Here’s when several reputable sites project Lomavita to be picked in Sunday’s draft:

ESPN

23. Lomavita is projected to be take with the 23rd pick of the first rund, by the Dodgers.

Comment:

Jeff Passan: I could've gone with Lomavita, Walker Janek from Sam Houston State or Malcolm Moore from Stanford. I opted for Lomavita because he's the best combination of present production, strong competition and tools ceiling. And Dave -- this is good value on Gillen. This format can work out well if you can float a guy because the position he plays is filled on the other two teams. You'll see what I mean with my final pick.

ESPN (Kiley McDaniel)

26. Lomavita is predicted to be drafted with the 26th overall pick, by the Yankees

Comment:

I keep hearing college bats at this pick, so I assume the Yankees will clean up whatever players make it here who aren't supposed to get this far. In this case, that's college catching with Lomavita, Janek and Malcolm Moore all still on the board. Dante Nori and Boston Bateman are targets for their next pick.

CBS Sports

24. Lomavita is projected to be taken with the 24th pick of the first round, by the Braves

Comment:

The short hook: Legit defensive catcher with approach issues.

Lomavita entered the spring ranked as our No. 1 backstop in the class. We're keeping him there, in part because he's a legitimate defensive backstop (and in part because it's a lackluster group), but we do have some concerns about his offensive game. He homered 31 times over the last two seasons and showed a good ability to hit for average. The hiccup here is that he possesses a serious walk allergy. Lomavita drew a free pass in fewer than 5% of his trips to the plate, all the while striking out nearly four times as often as he walked during conference play. The hope here is that Lomavita's defense and feel for the barrel can atone for what figures to be an empty on-base percentage. 

MLB.com

22. Lomavita is projected to be taken with the 22nd overall pick, by the Orioles

Comment:

It’s possible the O’s would love for Lomavita to be available with their next pick at 32, but he might not be there, so we’ll give him the edge over the other college hitters still available or pitchers like Cijntje or Iowa’s Brody Brecht.

USA Today

27. Lomavita is predicted to be take with the 27th pick opf the first round, by the Phillies

Comment:

USA Today: One of two Bay Area backstops who could go in the first round – along with Stanford’s Malcolm Moore – Lomavita brings a polished offensive profile but also questions about his receiving ability that may suggest a move to the infield.

Bleacher Report

21. Lomavita is predicted to be selected with the 21st overall selection, by the Twins

Comment:

There is a trio of college catchers—Caleb Lomavita (California), Walker Janek (Sam Houston) and Malcolm Moore (Stanford)—who could all be taken at the back of the first round, and in any order.

Lomavita offers perhaps the best mix of physical tools and on-field production, as he hit .322/.395/.586 with 15 home runs and 52 RBI in 55 games this spring while showcasing a plus arm and developing receiving skills. He is athletic enough to handle third base or a corner outfield spot, but he will undoubtedly start his pro career behind the plate.

On3

22. Lomavita is projected to be taken with the 22nd pick of the first round, by the Orioles

In MLB.com’s prospect list Lomavita is ranked as the 33rd-best prospect and Green is ranked 132nd.

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