(KBTX) – Sunday will mark the beginning of several former Texas A&M baseball player’s professional careers when they hear their name called as a part of the 2025 MLB Draft.
Seven A&M players are ranked in the Top 500 draft prospects, according to Perfect Game, with Aggie career home run leader Jace LaViolette leading the pack.
A&M also has six signees as a part of the 2026 recruiting class ranked in the Perfect Game Top 500 with the potential to be selected to the professional ranks.
Along with LaViolette, Aggie shortstop Kaeden Kent, left-handed pitcher Justin Lamkin, lefty Myles Patton and lefty Shane Sdao were invitees to the 2025 MLB Draft Combine at in mid-June at Chase Field in Phoenix, Az.
LaViolette ranks No. 16 on Perfect Game’s prospect list, while coming in at No. 20, according to MLB.com. Both MLB.com and ESPN’s mock drafts have the Katy Tompkins High School alumnus selected by his hometown Houston Astros. The Athletic has LaViolette going 15th overall to the Boston Red Sox.
In three seasons with the Aggies, LaViolette belted a program-high 68 home runs while slashing .285/.432/.651. His sophomore season, which saw the Aggies advance to the final series of the College World Series, was his most productive with 29 home runs and a .305 batting average. Last season was his most inconsistent with 18 home runs, but a career low .258 batting average.
He became one of the biggest storylines of the Southeastern Conference Tournament when he played the Aggies’ final game of the season with a broken hand.
“Possessing as much raw power as anyone in the Draft, LaViolette is built to crush balls with a quick left-handed stroke, the strength and leverage in his impressive 6-foot-6 frame and focus on launching pitches to his pull side,” his MLB.com draft profile reads. “He also makes quality swing decisions but the lone flaw in his offensive game does scare some teams. He frequently swings and misses within the strike zone, even on fastballs, leading to a .258 average with a 25 percent strikeout rate as a junior.”
Lamkin might have done the most for his draft stock in his junior season, recording a 5-7 record with a 3.42 ERA and a career-high 98 strikeouts. He ranks No. 115 on Perfect Game’s prospect list and No. 111 in MLB.com‘s rankings.
Left-handed starter Ryan Prager might have suffered the biggest fall by returning an extra year to play for the Aggies. He was selected as the 81st overall pick in the 2024 draft by the Los Angeles Angels, but pushed pro ball back a year. Now, he enters the draft ranked No. 259 by Perfect Game after a 4-4 season with a 4.21 ERA.
Kent (No. 221), Sdao (No. 228), reliever Weston Moss (No. 270) and Patton round out the Aggies in Perfect Game’s list.
Head coach Michael Earley and his staff will battle the pro ranks for several signees, headlined by left-handed pitcher Johnny Slawinski out of Lyndon B. Johnson High School in Johnson City. He ranks No. 46 on Perfect Game’s rankings and No. 68, according to MLB.com.
Outfielder Blane Bullard (No. 98, Klein Cain), outfielder Josiah Hartshorn (No. 112, Orange Lutheran, Anaheim, Ca.), shortstop Nicholas Partida (No. 114, Manvel), third baseman Boston Kellner (No. 408, Hamilton, Chandler, Az.) and outfielder Luke Billings (No. 475, Prosper) round out A&M’s commits who could be selected in the draft.
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