Where the A's Will in Selecting in the 2026 MLB Draft

Following the draft lottery, the A's will be selecting...

Jul 9, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Oakland Athletics draft pick Jacob Wilson shakes hands with Rob Manfred during the first round of the MLB Draft at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images | Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images

Following a 76-86 campaign in 2025, the Athletics entered the draft lottery with a 6.55% chance of landing the top overall pick, the fifth-best odds of any team.

They ended up with the eighth pick in the 2026 MLB Draft.

Once the Giants had continued to last in the selection process—along with the interview with Buster Posey before the announcements began—it was fairly clear that could spell trouble for the A's. San Francisco ended up with the fourth overall pick.

While the MLB Draft isn't a straightforward "best player goes first" type of draft, according to the rankings on MLB Pipeline, the A's could be looking at some of the top arms in the available where they will be selecting. The top four prospects are all shortstops, followed by a pair of outfielders.

Then, beginning with the No. 7 ranked prospect is 18-year-old left-hander Carson Boleman out of Southside Christian (HS). Another 18-year-old lefty, Gio Rojas out of Stoneman Douglas (HS), is ranked No. 8.

2026 MLB Draft Order:

1. White Sox
2. Rays
3. Twins
4. Giants
5. Pirates
6. Royals
7. Orioles
8. A's
9. Braves
10. Rockies
11. Nationals
12. Angels
13. Cardinals
14. Marlins
15. Diamondbacks
16. Rangers
17. Astros
18. Reds

— Underdog MLB (@UnderdogMLB) December 9, 2025

Where the A's decide to go with this pick could be interesting, given that they broke their long-standing trend of taking position players in the first round last year by taking left-hander Jamie Arnold. Could they go with another pitcher with this pick?

Another option could be to take a chance on De La Salle (HS) shortstop Tyler Spangler, who is committed to Stanford. He is ranked as the No. 11 player in the upcoming draft, and is a local kid.

The A's will have plenty of options available to them in the draft, and the rankings will surely change a bit in the coming months as a full season is played by the potential draftees.

News and Notes

Jul 28, 2025; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics 2025 1st round draft pick Jamie Arnold speaks with members of the media before the game against the Seattle Mariners at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images | Sergio Estrada-Imagn Images

The A's most recent selections have been Jamie Arnold (No. 2 prospect), whom they took with the 11th pick in 2025, Nick Kurtz (4th overall in 2024) and Jacob Wilson (6th overall in 2023). While Arnold has yet to pitch in pro ball, he is already ranked as the No. 38 prospect in all of MLB.

The addition of whomever they select with the eighth pick should land them another top-100 prospect around midseason, which will be another boost to their farm system. The hope for the club is that they'll be in the postseason for the next few seasons, so they won't have to deal with the whims of the ping pong balls for a little while.

Joe Rudi was on hand as the A's representative at the draft, while the Texas Rangers had former A's shortstop Elvis Andrus on hand as their rep. The White Sox had former No. 1 overall pick Harold Baines on hand for themselves, and coupled with the best odds to land that pick, they ended up with the first selection in the draft. Perhaps there was some magic in the air.

Rudi was signed by the A's the year before the draft was implemented, so there was no telling what impact he'd have on the A's fortunes in the draft lottery.