Reds draft shortstop from UCLA in first round

McLain, who graduated from Beckman High School in Irvine, Calif., was drafted 25th overall by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2018 but opted to go to UCLA.

ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel ranked McLain 15th on his list of the top-200 prospects and wrote: “A first-rounder out of high school who hasn’t progressed as much as you’d want at UCLA, but is still potentially above average across the board as a likely second-base fit.”

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Keith Law, of The Athletic, wrote McLain seems like a steal for the Reds.

“Mybe the time he missed with a broken wrist limited teams’ chances to see him,” Law wrote, “but he played the best shortstop of his life when he was on the field and showed some new thump at the plate. He should be very quick to the big leagues and has some star potential as long as he stays at shortstop.”

The Reds have three picks in the top 35. They received a compensation pick — No. 30 overall — when Trevor Bauer signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

With that pick, they drafted Jay Allen, an outfielder from John Carroll High School in Fort Pierce, Fla. Allen, who has committed to play at the University of Florida, ranked 38th on Baseball America’s list of the top-500 prospect.

The Reds also had the fifth pick — No. 35 overall — in Competitive Balance Round A, which gives extra picks to “teams that have either one of the 10 smallest markets or 10 smallest revenue pools.” With that pick, they drafted Matheu Nelson, a catcher from Florida State University.

There will be 36 players drafted Sunday. Rounds 2-10 will take place Monday. The final 10 rounds will be held Tuesday.

In other draft news:

• Miami University right-handed pitcher Sam Bachman was drafted ninth overall by the Los Angeles Angels. He was the second college pitcher selected, following Vanderbilt right-hander Jack Leiter.