Could the Red Sox luck into Jack Leiter at No. 4 in the draft?

Jack Leiter is one of the top prospects in the 2021 MLB Draft, but there’s growing buzz the Boston Red Sox will luck into him at No. 4 overall.

As the Vanderbilt Commodores get set to play for a second straight College World Series title Wednesday night, two of their pitchers are getting closer to being among the first handful of players taken in the 2021 MLB Draft. Jack Leiter made what will likely be the final appearance of his college career Monday night, allowing two runs over six innings with eight strikeouts and one walk.

Leiter, the son of former MLB pitcher Al Leiter and the nation’s strikeout leader (179), will be off the board in the first few picks when the draft starts in a couple weeks. The Pittsburgh Pirates (No. 1 overall) and the Texas Rangers (No. 2 overall) could consider taking him, and even with a boatload of young pitching, the Detroit Tigers at No. 3 could have him on their radar. But Kiley McDaniel of ESPN (Insider, subscription required) thinks there’s an increasing chance Leiter is there for the Boston Red Sox at No. 4.

According to McDaniel, the Red Sox will get a shot at least one of the four prep shortstops, including Marcel Mayer and Kahlil Watson, but there’s an “increasing chance” Leiter gets to them at No. 4.

Jack Leiter would be a no-brainer pick for the Red Sox

McDaniel suggested the Red Sox will have a chance to take at least one of the top four prep shortstops in this year’s draft class. But Xander Bogaerts is not going anywhere, and they just took a shortstop (Nick Yorke) in the first round of last year’s draft. McDaniel has put Leiter to the Red Sox in his most recent mock, while citing pitching as Boston’s biggest “system need” heading into the draft.

CBS Sports‘ mock draft late last week also had Leiter going to the Red Sox at No. 4, with Detroit notably going with high school pitcher Jackson Jobe at No. 3. Leiter is a draft-eligible sophomore who could return to school, so that may scare the top three teams off.

Boston can literally just sit by at No. 4 and see who falls to them. If Leiter is there, that would be a great bit of fortune and a no-brainer pick for CBO Chaim Bloom and company.