An early, in-order look at how the top 15 picks could be viewed heading into the July 14 MLB Draft:

1. Travis Bazzana, 2B, Oregon State, 6-foot, 200, LH batter: Either he or Charlie Condon will (today) be a happy pick for the Guardians. Bazzana is an Australian who hits everything hard, and often far, and who will be a brand of talent the intra-division Tigers can look forward to hating for years to come. His 50-game numbers in 2024: .424/.589/.972/1.561, with 26 home runs. Walk-rate is 26.6%, strikeout-percentage is 11.3. Also had a dynamite summer last year in the Cape Cod League.

2. Charlie Condon, OF, Georgia, 6-6, 216, RH batter: Here you have your basic seats-destroying monster of a power hitter who just turned 21 and who this spring for the Bulldogs has rolled up some gaudy 50-game digits: .454/.567/.1.083/1.649. He has done this, remember, on most days and nights against Southeast Conference pitching. Perhaps the Guardians can pass on him and take Bazzana. Or, his power, size, and destructive potential simply might be too much to resist.

3. Jac Caglianone, 1B/LHP, 6-5, 250, Florida: Even a year ago, it was obvious Caglianone would either be the first player taken in 2024, or among the first few. He has the Ohtani-like skill to also pitch, but it’s his bat that will be considered big-league weaponry on a potentially devastating scale. Caglianone has 28 home runs in 53 games, adorned by a 1.391 OPS.

4. Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest, 6-3, 210: Burns is one of those now-trendy 100-mph-plus guys who turns batters into ash. He transferred to Wake Forest from Tennessee and will be one of three first-rounders the Demon Deacons this year will bequeath to the MLB Draft. All the power-pitch and size requisites big-league teams crave, as well as experience throwing amid college baseball’s brightest, hottest lights.

5. Nick Kurtz, 1B, Wake Forest, 6-6, 240, LH batter: Kurtz is something of a left-handed-hitting Spencer Torkelson — when you compare him with Torkelson four years ago at Arizona State. His big-truck frame, his long-ball skills, and in Kurtz’s case, his defense, all make him an automatic top-10 pick, and very likely a top-five choice by the time July’s draft boards have settled.

6. Braden Montgomery, OF, Texas A&M, 6-2, 195, switch-hitter: Montgomery’s switch-bat crunches pitches (24 homers, 1.254 OPS) and his right-field arm is a runner-killing weapon. When you have match-up talent such as his at the plate, and can bring an added bonus in the outfield, this is a player with surplus pizzazz.

7. Hagen Smith, LHP, Arkansas, 6-3, 235: Smith has struck out 125 batters in 66 innings, which tells you hitters from neither side of the plate especially enjoy get-togethers with a lefty of his size and fury. He might not get past the draft’s fifth or six slots.

8. JJ Wetherholt, 2B, West Virginia, 5-10, 190, LH batter: Very good hitter, with decent sock, who hits from the left side and can play second base. Know where guys like this go? Typically, within the top 10 slots of a normal year’s MLB Draft.

9. Konnor Griffin, SS, Jackson Prep High (Flowood, Mississippi), 6-4, 215, RH batter: If you’re investing in prep talent where the player’s ceiling is more like a high-rise penthouse, then Griffin probably is your man. Outstanding tools to go with a body and arm that hint at exceptionalism.

10. Bryce Rainer, SS, Harvard-Westlake High (Westwood, California), 6-3, 195, LH batter: Tigers followers will remember Harvard-Westlake as the prep alma mater of old outfield hopeful Brennan Boesch, not that it has any relevance to Rainer, who plays a sterling shortstop and who hits left-handed lightning bolts that will keep him from his Texas commit and land him many millions of dollars in July.

11. Trey Yesavage, RHP, East Carolina, 6-4, 225: This might be a bit deep for Yesavage, whose size and high-octane stuff has him at nine-inning rates of 14.9 strikeouts and 2.5 walks. This is a big arm and a nice No. 1 or No. 2 starter waiting for a MLB home.

12. James Tibbs III, OF, Florida State, 6-foot, 201, LH batter: Tibbs’ knack for striking out minimally (21 in 237 plate appearances) while walking (37) with zeal pairs nicely with the 23 home runs he has blasted in 2024, alongside a .387 batting average and 1.342 OPS. The Tigers since Scott Harris arrived have a particular fancy for players of this plumage.

13. Carson Benge, OF, Oklahoma State, 6-1, 185, LH batter: Another guy with an aversion to whiffs is Benge, who happens also to be a left-handed stick with muscle (15 homers, 50 games) and with enough arm to have made him a splendid pitching prospect. He’ll be an outfielder in the big leagues and seems to fit the Tigers’ general list of draft-worthy specifications.

14. Seaver King, 3B/OF, Wake Forest, 6-foot, 195, RH batter: You never know how scouts see bats. Can they trust hitters to handle the velocity and mayhem that will be staples once they stare down big-league pitching? King is first-round timber, but he can chase pitches, and that might have turned off the Tigers inspectors.

15. Cam Caminiti, LHP, Saguaro High, Scottsdale, Arizona, 6-2, 215: If the Tigers opt for a prep pitcher, it will be a youngster with staggering allure, which is what Caminiti owns. He has marvelous two-way skills and could cut it as an outfield prize, as well. But the breadth of his pitches and their left-handed power make him the kind of super-prep talent that could, conceivably, spur the Tigers to grab Caminiti over a hitter.