STLtoday.com

Full name
Payton Marcus Graham
Born
11/04/2003 in Vancouver, WA
Profile
Ht.: 6'1" / Wt.: 190 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School
Kamiakin


Ranked #254 prospect in 2025 draft
School: Gonzaga Drafted/Committed: Never Drafted
Age At Draft: 21.7

Graham is a power-armed righthander with a physical, 6-foot-2, 220-pound frame but a spotty collegiate track record and medical concerns. He pitched as a reliever in his first two seasons with Gonzaga where he struggled with strikes, then made just one start in 2025 before dealing with arm soreness and Tommy John surgery that ended his season. Graham works with a high-effort, reliever-ish delivery but sits in the mid 90s with a fastball that has been up to 98. His go-to secondaries are a low-80s slider and a hard cutter around 90 mph, but he’s also mixed in a curveball and changeup in the past. He has plenty of weapons and might benefit by shortening his arsenal in the future in an attempt to become more consistent. Graham has always been a below-average strike-thrower and owns a career 13.6% walk rate. He’s a wildcard because of his health, but will still be more appealing to teams than his surface-level college stats indicate.

Picklefork wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:04 pm

craviduce wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:00 pm

Cranny wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 12:53 pm There are still 15 Top 100 draftees still on the board. Please pick one.

at this point....every team out there won't select those guys unless there is an agreed to contract in place.

Not until the 10th round, that is where they don't lose the allotted slot money. The kids that are still remaining from the top 100 will almost certainly forgo the draft and head to college or in Ford's case, transfer as a draft eligible soph.

Whether you agree or not with the strategy of the Cardinals draft process, you have to acknowledge they have smart people in place that know things that we don't, MLBTV, ESPN and bloggers don't.

Full name
Ryan Weingartner
Born
07/05/2004 in Berlin, NJ
Profile
Ht.: 5'11" / Wt.: 180 / Bats: R / Throws: R
School
St. Joseph's
Top Rankings

Draft Prospects


Ranked #391 prospect in 2025 draft
School: Penn State Drafted/Committed: Never Drafted
Age At Draft: 21.0

Weingartner was an All-Atlantic 10 first-teamer after a 2024 season in which he hit 15 homers and stole 18 bases with St. Joseph’s. After two years with the program, Weingartner transferred to Penn State for his 2025 junior season. He didn’t replicate the same offensive performance he showed in the A-10, but he does have solid on-base skills and slugged 10 homers. Weingartner is a patient hitter who doesn’t expand the zone too often and has always taken his share of walks, even upping his walk rate to just under 16% despite facing stronger competition in the Big Ten. At 5-foot-11, 185 pounds, he doesn’t offer much physical projection, but he’s a good runner who stole 30 bases in his one season at Penn State and can play a premium defensive position.

Cranny wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:10 pm

Picklefork wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:04 pm

craviduce wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:00 pm

Cranny wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 12:53 pm There are still 15 Top 100 draftees still on the board. Please pick one.

at this point....every team out there won't select those guys unless there is an agreed to contract in place.

Not until the 10th round, that is where they don't lose the allotted slot money. The kids that are still remaining from the top 100 will almost certainly forgo the draft and head to college or in Ford's case, transfer as a draft eligible soph.

Whether you agree or not with the strategy of the Cardinals draft process, you have to acknowledge they have smart people in place that know things that we don't, MLBTV, ESPN and bloggers don't.

What about the college guys in the Top 102 that are still there?

tyoung12290 wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 12:57 pm

Cranny wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 12:52 pm

CNYFan wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 12:49 pm I like the LH in Round 4, Crossland.

The Gonzaga Pitcher is a long shot.

Why waste your 7th round pick on an injured long shot, who has no track record of success.

7th round is a lotto anyways. Looks like hes been adding velocity so who knows.

Cranny wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:10 pm

Picklefork wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:04 pm

craviduce wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:00 pm

Cranny wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 12:53 pm There are still 15 Top 100 draftees still on the board. Please pick one.

at this point....every team out there won't select those guys unless there is an agreed to contract in place.

Not until the 10th round, that is where they don't lose the allotted slot money. The kids that are still remaining from the top 100 will almost certainly forgo the draft and head to college or in Ford's case, transfer as a draft eligible soph.

Whether you agree or not with the strategy of the Cardinals draft process, you have to acknowledge they have smart people in place that know things that we don't, MLBTV, ESPN and bloggers don't.

What about the college guys in the Top 102 that are still there?

Absolut wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 08:58 am

Melville wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 08:39 am

Absolut wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 07:39 am With all the talk of a generational pick for cards, did they play it too safe, trying to make sure they didn’t completely miss? Hernandez would have been the swing for the fences pick…

Franklin is not an example of "playing it too safe".
He is a high risk / high reward lottery ticket.

I was referring to Doyle, with their generational hasn’t happened in 27 years drafting this early pick.

SPOKANE, Wash. – Gonzaga right-handed pitcher Payton Graham was named among the top 100 prospects for the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft, the MLB Pipeline announced on Dec. 5.

Graham enters his junior season for the Bulldogs in 2025, posting 67 strikeouts in just 60 and one-third career innings pitched. The Kennewick, Wash., native has appeared in 29 games across his first two seasons with three starts. He will enter 2025 as a key piece of Gonzaga's pitching staff, both from the bullpen and as a potential spot-starter.

In 2024, Graham was often the first out of the bullpen and one of GU's high-leverage arms. In a crucial West Coast Conference series against Portland, Graham entered game one with the Zags and Pilots tied at one, pitching three and a third innings while striking out three on just 36 pitches to close the door on an eventual 2-1 win.

Graham and the Bulldogs return to the diamond Feb. 14 as Gonzaga opens their 2025 season at UC Davis.

For a full look at MLB Pipeline's Top 100 Draft Prospects, click here. https://gozags.com/news/2024/12/10/base ... pects.aspx

Hoosier59 wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 11:52 am It would seem, the way they are drafting these unranked players now, that the Cardinals must be figuring it will take most of their money to sign their first three picks!

Cranny wrote: ↑14 Jul 2025 13:22 pm Please pick Henry Ford from UVA.