MLB Draft

The 2015 MLB draft class is loaded with pitching talent. The deep group features both college and high school arms, and at a time when an organization can't have enough depth on the mound, the hurlers are probably going to fall off the board in Round 1.

The ignored sibling of sports selection processes, the MLB amateur draft doesn't receive all-out fanfare due to its unpredictability.

More than any other major sport, superstars are snagged in late rounds while top picks fizzle spectacularly. Signability issues also cloud the event, and patience is required with prospects spending years honing their craft in the minor leagues.

This year's Major League Baseball draft doesn't feature a generational talent at the top, nor does it have the depth of a class like 2011, but that does add to the drama, because anything can happen starting with the first pick. 

Arizona owns the No. 1 overall pick for the first time since 2005. That year produced Justin Upton, who turned out to be a very good big leaguer in his time with the Diamondbacks, before being traded to Atlanta and subsequently San Diego. 

With the NCAA regionals set to begin on Friday, fans will soon have the opportunity to view some of the top draft prospects in the 2015 class, whether it is college shortstops Dansby Swanson and Alex Bregman, prep outfielder Daz Cameron, left-handed pitcher Tyler Jay or right-hander Carson Fulmer.

Last year's No. 1 overall draft pick became eligible for the 2015 draft on Thursday, as IMG Academy announced Brady Aiken will pitch for its postgraduate baseball team this spring.

The 2015 MLB draft is now less than six months away. 

The order is set (well, mostly). The top talents have been identified.

College baseball squads are getting ready to head back to the diamond, and high school squads across the country are waiting for the fields to thaw so they too can get back on the field.

This year's draft class isn't particularly strong, and while it doesn't offer that one guy who's a surefire No. 1 pick, it does offer a great variety of players.

While it will be several years until most of the 2014 draft picks are ready for the major leagues, that doesn't mean we can’t get excited about the early returns from some of baseball’s brightest young players.

Thanks to an accelerated signing deadline in mid-July that was ushered in in 2012 as part of the new collective bargaining agreement—it used to be mid-August—draft picks are now encouraged to quickly begin their professional careers.

The signing deadline for 2014 draft picks officially passed Friday at 5 p.m. ET, and the Houston Astros were not able to sign No. 1 overall pick Brady Aiken, according Jim Callis of MLB.com (via Twitter). He also reports that the Astros failed to sign fifth-rounder Jacob Nix and 21st-rounder Mac Marshall.

The Chicago Cubs surprised the baseball world last month by selecting Kyle Schwarber out of Indiana University with the No. 4 overall pick in the first-year player draft.

In the wake of the 2014 MLB draft, several franchises came away with a crop of players they hope will materialize in the coming years. That goes for every team, but not all will be so lucky.