The San Antonio product was considered one of the best hitters in the draft.
With the No. 18 pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, the Arizona Diamondbacks selected San Antonio Johnson shortstop Kayson Cunningham, a Texas Longhorns commit.
With the 18th pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, we have selected INF Kayson Cunningham from Lady Bird Johnson HS (TX). pic.twitter.com/wtDjVypGaT
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) July 13, 2025
Originally a Texas Tech commit, new head coach Jim Schlossnagle and his staff were able to flip Cunningham from the Red Raiders after arriving in Austin from College Station, but by that point, the 5’10, 178-pounder was already considered one of best hitters in the this year’s draft with his slashing ability from the left side.
“That’s the biggest part of my game, my hit tool,” Cunningham told MLB Network during the MLB Draft Combine in Phoenix last month. “I hit .460 as a freshman, .400 as a sophomore and .450 as a junior, so going into my senior year, I was just like, ‘All right, I want to hit above .500 this year.’”
The slot value for the No. 18 pick is $4.6 million.
The Arizona Diamondbacks will select HS SS/2B Kayson Cunningham from Johnson (TX) and Texas Longhorns commit with the 18th overall pick in the MLB Draft, per sources.
He was USA Baseball’s 2024 POTY in and Gatorade state POTY in Texas. pic.twitter.com/Jf8oy4GuDG
— Harrison Cordell Fant (@Fantavious9) July 13, 2025