Oklahoma baseball celebrates eight players selected in 2025 MLB Draft

Oklahoma Baseball had a banner night in the 2025 MLB Draft, with four players selected on Day One, including two first-rounders and the program’s first No. 1 overall pick in nearly five decades. Five Sooners were selected on the final day of the 2025 MLB Draft, bringing Oklahoma’s total to eight picks this year, tying for fourth most among all schools. Oklahoma has produced 315 draft picks historically, ranking in the top 10 among colleges. With Kyson Witherspoon’s first-round selection earlier, OU now boasts 22 first-rounders. Since head coach Skip Johnson’s arrival in 2018, OU has had 48 draftees, including 34 pitchers.

Leading the way was 17-year-old shortstop Eli Willits, an Oklahoma signee and the son of OU associate head coach Reggie Willits, who was taken No. 1 overall by the Washington Nationals. Willits, a switch-hitting prep star from Fort Cobb-Broxton High School, became the third-youngest player ever selected with the first overall pick and the youngest since Ken Griffey Jr. in 1987.

Eli Willits out of Fort Cobb-Braxton selected 1st overall in MLB Draft by Washington Nationals

Moments later, junior right-hander Kyson Witherspoon became the second Sooner taken in the top 15 in the last four years, going 15th overall to the Boston Red Sox. The Jacksonville, Fla., native became OU’s 22nd first-rounder in program history — and the fourth under head coach Skip Johnson. Witherspoon had a dominant 2025 season as OU’s ace, earning consensus First Team All-America honors, posting a 10-4 record, a 2.65 ERA, and 124 strikeouts, which ranked second in the SEC and 11th nationally. He is OU’s highest draft selection since Cade Horton went seventh overall in 2022.

OU's Kyson Witherspoon selected 15th overall by the Red Sox in MLB Draft

Continuing the family storyline, Kyson’s twin brother, Malachi Witherspoon, was selected in the second round (No. 62 overall) by the Detroit Tigers, marking just the second set of twins drafted out of Oklahoma. The duo joined Ryan and Damon Minor (1996) in that exclusive club. If both reach the big leagues, they would become only the 11th set of twins in MLB history and the first to debut after being drafted together since the Minors.

Malachi, who transitioned to a starting role in 2025, made 36 appearances over two seasons at OU and finished with 91 strikeouts, second only to Kyson. A former closer who notched five saves in 2024, Malachi closed his college career with a dominant stretch that included six starts with at least seven strikeouts.

Rounding out OU’s Day One selections was junior catcher Easton Carmichael, taken in the third round (No. 82 overall) by the Pittsburgh Pirates. A three-year starter and two-time All-American, Carmichael capped off his Sooner career with a monster 2025 season — batting .329 with 17 home runs and 62 RBIs. He ranks among the program’s all-time leaders in RBIs (7th), home runs (11th), total bases (11th), extra-base hits (11th), and hits (16th).

Day Two Picks

Brandon Cain, a versatile infielder/outfielder, played 21 games with two starts in right field for OU, scoring five runs and contributing one walk and one sacrifice hit. Before transferring to Oklahoma, he starred at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, where he batted .359 with 49 runs, 29 RBIs, 17 stolen bases, and five home runs in 47 games as a sophomore.

Colorado selects Dylan Crooks. One of the nation’s top closers in 2025, earning Third Team All-America honors and finishing as a Stopper of the Year finalist. He posted a 1.69 ERA with 16 saves (second-most in the country), 33 strikeouts, and just 10 walks over 32 innings in 26 appearances. Opponents hit just .195 against him.

The Paris JC transfer finished his OU career with 51 appearances over two seasons, including a 4.11 ERA in 2024. He was also honored with OU’s “Go Mitch Go” Award for leadership and character.

Tate heads to LA. After missing most of the 2025 season due to injury, Dylan Tate made two late appearances — tossing a scoreless inning vs. Vanderbilt in the SEC Tournament and striking out five over four innings in relief against North Carolina in the NCAA Regional.

The Jefferson College transfer posted a 3.90 ERA with 63 strikeouts and 18 walks across 57.2 innings in 2024 before joining OU.

Veteran left-hander James Hitt made 28 relief appearances in 2025. He heads to Pittsburgh with the second-most on the team and fifth-most in the SEC, finishing with a 3.82 ERA, 35 strikeouts, and just 12 walks over 35.1 innings. He went 3-0 and delivered key outings, including a win over Oklahoma State with three hitless innings and 4.0 scoreless frames against Kentucky in the SEC Tournament.

Over his three seasons at OU, Hitt made 62 appearances (19 starts), posting a 9-2 record and 115 strikeouts across 140.2 innings. A 2023 All-Big 12 Honorable Mention and 2024 Big 12 All-Academic First Team honoree, he transferred to Oklahoma after beginning his college career at Texas Tech.

Cade Crossland goes to St. Louis. He made 16 appearances with 13 starts in his sophomore season, finishing 5-5 with a 6.32 ERA and 84 strikeouts in 68.1 innings. He ranked second on the team with 11.06 strikeouts per nine innings and held opponents to a .254 average. Highlights included a career-high 10 strikeouts vs. No. 3 Texas and seven shutout innings with nine Ks against Nebraska in the NCAA Regional.