Outfielders Andrew Williamson (UCF) and Caden Ferraro (Texas Tech) and infielder Dee Kennedy (Kansas State) were three of the position players the Cardinals selected on Day 1 of the MLB Draft. The Cards also took West Virginia pitcher Dawson Montesa at No. 72.
Focusing primarily on position players a year after selecting 12 pitchers, the St. Louis Cardinals grabbed two outfielders and a rapidly improving infielder with three of their final four picks on Day 1 of the MLB Draft.
The Cardinals took UCF outfielder Andrew Williamson with the No. 68 pick and Texas Tech outfielder Caden Ferraro at No. 86 and snagged Kansas State shortstop Dee Kennedy (No. 114) with their seventh and final pick of Day 1.
Kennedy, who hit just .209 as a freshman at Texas, transferred to Kansas State and underwent LASIK surgery and proceeded to slash .357/.461/.733/1.194 with 20 homers, 17 doubles and 69 RBI in 57 games in 2026. The Cardinals also took a flier on West Virginia University right-handed pitcher Dawson Montesa with the No. 72 overall pick.
Earlier in the day, the Cardinals selected Georgia high school star Trevor Condon at No. 13 and Alabama high school shortstop Rocco Maniscalso at No. 50 on Day 1 of the two-day MLB Draft. In between, the Cardinals made one of the best value picks of the day by grabbing hard-throwing University of Tennessee right-hander Tegan Kuhns at No. 32.
Williamson was the best player on UCF, and he showed superstar potential in the NCAA Tournament. He hit four homers in the Auburn Regional with three of them coming against NC State. For the season, he slashed .322/.442/.645/1.087 with 16 homers, 13 doubles, four triples and 48 RBI. He led the Knights in eight offensive categories while also producing 17 multi-hit and 12 multi-RBI games.
Montesa transferred from tiny Adelphi College and helped West Virginia reach the College World Series for the first time in school history. In 19 games (15 starts) he was 6-5 with a 5.38 ERA. He struck out 92 batters in 77 innings, but he allowed 13 homers in 2026.
Ferraro took a similar path as Montesa by winning a national championship with Blinn Community College in 2025 before transferring to Texas Tech. In his one season with the Red Raiders, Ferraro hit. 374 with 19 doubles, eight homers and 46 ERA. As a sign of just how sharp his eye is, he had more walks (39) than he did strikeouts (36).
Kennedy, whose official first name is Dondreone, laid the foundation for his stellar junior season at Kansas State by doubling six times and homering once in 30 games in the Cape Cod League in 2025. He can play shortstop, second base, third base and left field.
The 5-foot-11, 190-pound Kennedy hit three homers against SIUE on March 8, a game where he was 4 for 5 with six RBI. He had a career-best seven RBI against Penn State on Feb. 15 – a game where he added two homers, two doubles and five runs scored.
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