College Pitching Star May be Right Fit for Marlins First-Round Draft Pick
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It’s been a while since the Miami Marlins turned to a college pitcher in the first round of the MLB Draft. Could 2026 change that?
The Marlins learned earlier this week that they’ll select No. 14 in the MLB draft. Coming off a 2025 in which they had two selections, including a compensatory pick, the Marlins will only pick once in the first round.
Baseball America (subscription required) published its first mock draft after the first-round order was finalized and it believes the Marlins will end up with UC Santa Barbara pitcher Jackson Flora at No. 14 overall.
About Jackson Flora
Flora might be good enough to be the first college pitcher selected in 2026. If he is, then he will be the third Gaucho pitcher to have that honor, after Dillon Tate (2015) and Tyler Bremner (2025).
In 2025 he was named all-Big West first team after he went 6-3 with a 3.60 ERA, including 86 strikeouts and 17 walks in 75 innings. He was one of a handful of pitchers to throw a complete game last season and spent last summer in USA Baseball Collegiate National Team Training Camp.
Baseball America scouted Flora and he has two quality pitches, a fastball and slider, which means he may have more of a future as a reliever in the pros, unless he develops a fuller arsenal.
Recent Miami Marlins First-Round Picks
The Marlins have acquired nine players in the first round since 2020, the result of getting three compensatory picks. Most recently in 2025 Miami selected Oregon State shortstop Aiva Arquette with their first-round pick and Clemson outfielder Cam Cannarella with their compensatory pick.
In 2024, Miami selected outfielder PJ Morlando out of Summerville, S.C. He is working his way back from an injury that slowed his 2025 season. That followed a 2023 with two selections — right-hander pitcher Noble Meyer from Jesuit High School in Portland, Ore., and left-handed pitcher Thomas White from Phillips Academy in Andover, Mass. Both are in the system and White is Miami’s No. 1 prospect per MLB Pipeline.
Outfielder Jacob Berry was Miami’s first-round pick in 2022, and he played at Triple-A last season. He was named the MVP of the Triple-A national championship game after his walk-off home run. Shortstop Kahlil Watson from Wake Forest and catcher Joe Mack from Williamsville East High School in East Amherst, N.Y., were the first-round picks in 2021. Watson was traded to Cleveland in 2023, and Mack is on the doorstep of his MLB debut as Miami’s No. 4 prospect.
University of Minnesota pitcher Max Meyer was Miami’s first-round pick in 2020. He made his MLB debut with Miami in 2022.
