Arizona rightfielder Brendan Summerhill plummeted in the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft on Sunday. Projected as a mid-first-round pick, Summerhill was selected 42nd overall in the Competitive Balance Round A by the Tampa Bay Rays.
Summerhill is the fifth player drafted all-time by Tampa from Arizona and will join former Wildcats pitcher T.J. Nichols in the Rays system. Nicholls was a fifth-round pick by Tampa from Arizona in the 2023 MLB Draft and currently pitches for the Bowling Green Hot Rods of the Advanced A South Atlantic League.
Summerhill had a .323 batting average, .535 slugging percentage and .424 on-base percentage with 97 runs scored 33 doubles, 12 triples, 14 home runs and 99 runs batted in during his three seasons at Arizona. Injuries caused Summerhill to miss 22 games during the 2025 season.
Outfielder Jared Thomas, the 42nd pick in the 2024 MLB Draft by the Colorado Rockies from Texas, has quickly moved up and currently plays for the AA Hartford Yard Goats. The 42nd pick has a slot value of $2,331,000. The final pick of the first round has a slot value of $3,382,600.
It's always Summer in the Sunshine State! ☀️ @BrendanSummerh1 is the 14th first round pick in Arizona Baseball history! pic.twitter.com/taNe2QRkch
— Arizona Baseball (@ArizonaBaseball) July 14, 2025
The consensus on Summerhill is that he has the potential to hit for more power than he did at Arizona. Summerhill could move to centerfield to take some of the pressure off of him to produce as a hitter. CBS Sports observed Summerhill would have to improve defensively to play CF.
"There are some tweener characteristics if his glove isn't good enough for center field and he doesn't take a jump in the power department."CBS Sports
Thomas is a good player for Summerhill to emulate. Thomas began his minor league career with Class A Fresno and moved up to High A Spokane before being promoted to Hartford this season. The Charleston RiverDogsare the Tampa A team and the Bowling Green Hot Rods are the Rays High A franchise.