Red Sox's Braden Montgomery: Heading to Boston

The Red Sox have selected Montgomery with the 12th overall pick in the 2024 First-Year Player Draft.

Montgomery was a two-way player in 2022 and 2023 with Stanford, but he largely scrapped pitching to focus on developing as a right fielder after transferring to Texas A&M for his junior season. The 6-foot-2 switch hitter has monster power to all fields and a double-plus arm in the field, so he possesses a classic right fielder profile. He slashed .322/.454/.733 with 27 home runs in his lone season in the SEC. His strikeout rates have been higher than the other hitters in contention to go in the top 5-to-10 picks, but he turned in an OPS over .830 with a wood bat in the Cape Cod League in 2022 and 2023, so his track record of producing in two college conferences and the top summer circuit are big marks in his favor. He suffered a broken right ankle on a play at the plate June 8, so he may not be ready to make his professional debut until 2025. Montgomery attempted only eight steals in 75 games across his junior season and final year on the Cape, and he grades as an average runner, so home runs, RBI, runs and on-base percentage are the top categories he could be a big positive in.