The Pursuit of Perfection: Angel’s Chances at First Pick in…
The Los Angeles Angels are one of 16 teams eligible to recieve the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft in the draft lottery. The Angels have the third-best odds at winning the No. 1 overall pick, only behind the Colorado Rockies and Miami Marlins, who each finished with worse records than the Angels.
The Rockies and Marlins are tied for the highest odds to accrue the No. 1 pick at 22.45 percent after Colorado finished the 2024 MLB season with a 61-101 record and Miami managed a 62-100 record. The Angels follow behind them, with 17.96 percent odds for the pick, per Jonathan Mayo.
The only other team with odds higher than 10 percent is the Washington Nationals, who have 10.20 percent odds at the first pick. The Toronto Blue Jays come in fifth with 7.46 percent odds.
Every team that did not make the postseason in 2024 is eligible to contend for the No. 1 pick or a lottery pick in the top six selections, except for the Chicago White Sox and Oakland Athletics this season. By rule, no team can receive a lottery pick for three years in a row, which rules out the Athletics.
High odds, of course, guarantee a high pick or a lottery pick. The Cleveland Guardians had the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, despite having just two percent odds to receive it. The Guardians will not be in the same position next season, after making the American League Championship Series this season.
Even if the Angels do not have a lottery pick or the No. 1 overall pick, they are still expected to have a high pick in this draft. First-round picks are especially important to the Angels. Not only are the Angels rebuilding, but the Angels have promoted their first-round picks the fastest of any team over the last three years. Both Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel were the first members of their draft class to get promoted to the big leagues, and 2024 first-rounder Christian Moore is expected to follow in their paths next season.
The MLB Draft lottery takes place on Dec.10 at 5:30 p.m. ET.
