MLB Draft 2026 Live Updates With Analysis of Every High School Prospect, First and Second Round

The 2026 MLB Draft begins on Saturday with the first, second and third rounds. Many teams will select high school prospects from around the country, and High School On SI will provide analysis and scouting reports of each high schooler selected.

Sports Illustrated's recent mock draft predicted that four high school prospects will be selected in the top 10. Fort Worth Christian (TX) shortstop Grady Emerson might be the top pick in the draft. He is MLB.com's top prospect of 2026.

Gulliver Prep's (FL) Jacob Lombard, another shortstop, is the No. 2 high school prospect on MLB.com's list, and he is No. 5 overall. He is right above Oak Grove (MS) outfielder Eric Booth Jr. and Stoneman Douglas (FL) left-handed pitcher Gio Rojas.

This page will be updated throughout the first two rounds of the MLB Draft.

First Round

1. Chicago White Sox — Roch Cholowsky - SS - UCLA

2. Tampa Bay Rays — Grady Emerson — SS — Fort Worth Christian (TX)

Emerson is the first high schooler taken off the board. He bats left and throws right, and he is committed to Texas. Emerson earned the 2026 Gatorade Player of the Year honors.

Emerson is one of the top hitters in the class. He makes great contact and could develop more power moving forward. He has very few flaws in his game and presents significant upside for the Rays.

3. Minnesota Twins — Vahn Lackey — C — Georgia Tech

4. San Francisco Giants — Jackson Flora — RHP — UC Santa Barbara

5. Pittsburgh Pirates — Derek Curiel — OF — LSU

6. Kansas City Royals — Zion Rose — OF — Louisville

7. Baltimore Orioles — Eric Booth Jr. — OF — Oak Grove (MS)

Booth Jr. is the second high schooler taken in the draft. He bats and throws left. He is one of the fastest high school baseball players. He has a 6.33 second 60-yard dash and can use his speed in center field. At the plate, he has strong bat speed and strength.

8. Athletics — Drew Burress — OF — Georgia Tech

9. Atlanta Braves — AJ Gracia — OF — Virginia

10. Colorado Rockies — Tyler Bell — SS — Kentucky

11. Washington Nationals — Chris Hacopian — 2B — Texas A&M

12. Los Angeles Angels —Jared Grindlinger — OF — Huntington Beach HS (CA)

Grindlinger is a two-way prospect who is a top contact hitter. He is 17 years old and has thrown fastballs up to 95 mph, and he can throw a circle change as well.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 60 | Control: 55 | Overall: 55

13. St. Louis Cardinals — Trevor Condon — OF — Etowah HS (GA)

Condon was the Georgia baseball player of the year. MLB.com compared him to Pete Crow-Armstrong.

MLB.com wrote this:

"Condon has double-plus speed and likes to use it, playing with constant intensity as he tries to make things happen on the bases and runs down balls in the gaps. He's a quality center fielder who will stay there at the next level, with the added bonus of solid arm strength. A Tennessee recruit, he's reminiscent of former Volunteers star Drew Gilbert with his 5-foot-11 frame, tools and flair."

14. Miami Marlins — Jacob Lombard — SS — Gulliver Prep (FL)

The Marlins stay in South Flordia and choose Jacob Lombard. His brother is George Lombard Jr. of the Yankees, and his father is George Lombard, a former MLB player.

He bats and throws right. He's had some swing and miss issues, but he's a top athlete with lots of potential.

15. Arizona Diamondbacks — Ryder Helfrick — C — Arkansas

16. Texas Rangers — Gio Rojas — LHP — Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS (FL)

Rojas is the top high school pitching prospect on MLB.com. He threw 11 shutout innings for Team USA at the WBSC U-18 World Cup. His fastball has reached 98 mph, and he complements it with a sweeper. He helped Stoneman Douglas to the Clas 7A Florida championship.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 60 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 55 | Overall: 60

17. Houston Astros — Logan Hughes — OF — Texas Tech

18. Cincinnati Reds — Justin Lebron — SS — Alabama

19. Cleveland Guardians — Liam Peterson — RHP — Florida

20. Boston Red Sox — Jake Schaffner — SS — North Carolina

21. San Diego Padres — Coleman Borthwick — RHP/3B — South Walton HS (FL)

Borthwick can play two ways, but his pitching is his special talent.

MLB.com said:

"Borthwick has the size, pitch mix and makeup to be a future workhorse starter near the top of a big league rotation one day. While he’ll sit 93-95 mph mostly with his fastball, he’s shown the ability to get the heater up to 97-98 mph with good life up in the zone and to both sides of the plate. His best secondary offering is a hard 84-85 mph slider that can flash plus and miss a ton of bats. He has a really good feel for spin, though at times he can try to do too much. There’s some feel for a changeup with some fading action, but he doesn’t use it much."

Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 60 | Changeup: 45 | Control: 55 | Overall: 50

22. Detroit Tigers — Cameron Flukey — RHP — Coastal Carolina

23. Chicago Cubs -- Cade Townsend - RHP - Mississippi

24. Seattle Mariners -- Ace Reese - 3B - Mississippi State

25. Milwaukee Brewers -- Trey Ebel - SS - Corona HS (CA)

Trey Ebel is the son of Dodgers third base coach Dino Ebel. His brother, Brady, was selected by the Brewers with the No. 32 pick last season.

Trey throws and bats right handed, and he is a good contact hitter so far in his young career.

Prospect Promotion Incentive picks

26. Atlanta Braves - Carter Beck - OF - Indiana State

27. New York Mets - Carson Wiggins - RHP - Arkansas

28. Houston Astros - Jack Radel - RHP - Notre Dame

Competitive Balance Round A

29. San Francisco Giants - Carson Bolemon - LHP - Southside Christian HS (SC)

The Giants take their second pitcher of the day, this one from high school. He struck out 101 batters in 42 1/3 innings as a junior in high school, and he led Southside Christian in the Class 3A championship by throwing a 19-strikeout no-hitter.

He's a polished high school pitching prospect who can throw a curveball and a sweeper.

30. Kansas City Royals - Taylor Rabe - RHP - Mississippi

31. Arizona Diamondbacks - Blake Bryant - RHP - Citizens Christian HS (GA)

Bryant won the Georgia Independent School Association Class A championship in his junior and senior seasons with Citizens Christian.

He's a toll pitcher at 6-foot-6, and his control can be sporadic, but he has lots of potential.

32. St. Louis Cardinals - Tegan Kuhns - RHP - Tennessee

33. Tampa Bay Rays - Taj Marchand - SS - James Island HS (SC)

The Rays took top high school shortstop Grady Emerson with the second overall pick, but that doesn't stop them from choosing Marchand.

MLB.com's scouting report says he has average speed and quickness, so a move to second or third base could be what happens for Marchand.

James Island won the state 4-A title when Marchand was a sophomore and the 5-A Division I championship when he was a junior and senior.

34. Chicago White Sox - Landon Thome - SS - Nazareth Academy HS (IL)

Thome gets to stay home. He is the son of Hall of Famer Jim Thome. He bats left handed and with power at the plate, and he continues to improve his infield skills.

35. New York Yankees - Hunter Dietz - LHP - Arkansas

36. Philadelphia Phillies - Tyler Spangler - SS - De La Salle HS (CA)

Spangler has few weaknesses as a prospect. He is a 6-foot-3, 195 pound shortstop who has quality defensive fundamentals.

37. Colorado Rockies - Daniel Jackson - C - Georgia

Second Round

38. Colorado Rockies - Logan Reddemann - RHP - UCLA

39. Toronto Blue Jays - Cole Carlon - LHP - Arizona State

40. Los Angeles Dodgers - Bo Lowrance - SS - Christ Church Episcopal HS (SC)

Another high schooler from South Carolina is off the board, this one to the Dodgers.

He's 6-foot-5 and has a good left handed stroke. He makes contact to all part of the field but needs to improve his lift.

41. Chicago White Sox - Cole Prosek - 2B - Magnolia Heights HS (MS)

Prosek is the nephew of Brewers third-base coach Matt Erickson. Gatorade named him the Mississippi 2026 Player of the Year.

MLB.com says: "He can chase pitches and get pull-happy on occasion, but his good feel for the barrel allows him to make quality contact."

42. Washington Nationals - Chase Brunson - OF - TCU

43. Minnesota Twins -
Carson Tinney - C - Texas

44. Pittsburgh Pirates - Aiden Ruiz - SS - The Stony Brook HS (NY)

Ruiz's strenght is his glove. He can make acrobatic plays as well as fundamental ones, and he could one day compete for Gold Gloves.

45. Los Angeles Angels - Jarren Advincula - 2B - Georgia Tech

46. Baltimore Orioles - Ty Head - OF - NC State

47. Athletics - Mason Edwards - LHP - USC

48. Atlanta Braves - Kaiden McCarthy - RHP - Vermont Academy (VT)

McCarthy is only 6-foot, but he is athletic and he's got great velocity on his fastball, sometimes hitting 99 mph. He has a good changeup to complement it.

49. Tampa Bay Rays - Ben Blair - P - Liberty

50. St. Louis Cardinals - Rocco Maniscalco - Oxford HS (AL)

Maniscalco needs to improve at the plate, but his fielding his top trait. He has a solid arm and can cover the ground necesary to be a shortstop.

51. Pittsburgh Pirates - Chris Rembert - 2B - Auburn

52. Miami Marlins - Ethan Kleinschmit - P -Oregon State

53. Arizona Diamondbacks - Carson Kerce - SS - Georgia Tech

54. Texas Rangers - Connor Comeau - SS - L. C. Anderson HS (TX)

MLB.com says:

"Comeau is very advanced at the plate for his age, employing a quick and effortless left-handed stroke while making good swing decisions. He's underdeveloped physically at 6-foot-4 and 180 pounds, so he's only scratching the surface of his power potential. He already shows precocious feel for driving balls to the opposite field and could provide 20-25 homers on an annual basis once he adds needed strength and pulls more pitches."

55. San Francisco Giants - Kaden Waechter - RHP - Jesuit HS (FL)

The Giants take their second high schooler and third pitching prospect so far this draft. Waechter has a consistent delivery and can already throw multiple pitches well.

56. Kansas City Royals — Jack Slightom - RHP - Lyons Township HS (IL)

Slightom has a strong fastball with a side-step delivery. He needs to improve his slider and utilize his changeup.

Scouting grades: Fastball: 60 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 45 | Overall: 45

57. Houston Astros — Wes Mendes - P - Florida State

58. Cincinnati Reds — Eric Becker - SS - Virginia

59. Cleveland Guardians — Logan Schmidt - LHP - Ganesha HS (CA)

MLB.com says: "Schmidt has shown an ability to repeat his delivery well and fill up the strike zone with all three of his offerings, providing a very nice left-handed starting pitching kit."

Scouting grades: Fastball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 50 | Control: 55 | Overall: 50

60. San Diego Padres - Elliot Lascelles - SS - Upper Canada College HS (ON)

Lascelles in a Canadian prospect and he hit a combined .389 with four extra-base hits in 54 at-bats against Minor League arms.

61. Detroit Tigers - Tyson LeBlanc - SS - Kansas

62. Chicago Cubs — Caden Sorrell - OF - Texas A&M

63. New York Yankees — Sean Duncan - P - Terry Fox SS (BC)

Scouting grades: Fastball: 50 | Slider: 50 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 50

64. Philadelphia Phillies — Caden Bogenpohl - OF - Missouri State (MO)

65. Seattle Mariners — Jake Brown - OF - UCLA

66. Milwaukee Brewers — Sawyer Strosnider - OF - TCU

Competitive Balance Round B

67. Boston Red Sox — Owen Hull - OF - North Carolina

68. St. Louis Cardinals — Andrew Williamson - OF - Central Florida

69. Detroit Tigers — Evan Dempsey - P - Florida Gulf Coast (FL)

70. Cincinnati Reds — Mulivai Levu - 1B - UCLA

71. Miami Marlins - Ryan Peterson - P - Sam Houston State (TX)

72. St. Louis Cardinals - Dawson Montesa - P - West Virginia (WV)

73. Athletics - Gabe Gaeckle - P - Arkansas (AR)

74. Minnesota Twins - Brett Renfrow - P - Virginia Tech

Compensation picks

75. Chicago Cubs - Myles Bailey - 1B - Florida State

High School On SI will continue with third round and Sunday roundups throughout the weekend.

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