The 2026 First Year Player Draft will be the 62nd Major League Baseball Amateur Draft. It will begin on July 11, 2026, in Philadelphia, PA as part of the 2026 All-Star Game festivities.
As has been the case since 2023, the first overall pick was determined through a lottery held at the winter meetings on December 9, 2025. Three teams were not eligible for the draw because they had been included in the lottery in previous years, including the Colorado Rockies, owners of the worst record in baseball in 2025. As a result, Colorado was locked into the 10th overall pick, followed by the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Angels. Ironically, the Chicago White Sox, who were in a situation similar to that of the Rockies heading into last year's draft, now had the best odds to be awarded the first overall pick and they won the lottery. The Tampa Bay Rays were the other big winners of the lottery, being awarded the second overall pick even though the odds placed them seventh. Also, five teams saw their first-round pick downgraded by ten ranks for exceeding the luxury tax threshold, including two who saw their top pick fall into the second round.
At the time of the lottery, the top prospect for the draft was SS Roch Cholowsky of UCLA, although there was still plenty of time for rankings to change. Another SS, Grady Emerson, coming from a high school in Texas, was considered the second-best player available at that early stage, and the best one from the high school ranks. The two were still considered to be running neck-and-neck six months later with the college season about to switch to its post-season tournaments phase. One unexpected development was that both UCLA and Georgia Tech, home to another top 3 prospect, C Vahn Lackey, were both upset before reaching the 2026 College World Series, meaning that the pair both missed the opportunity to showcase themselves in the prestigious event.
Draft Order[edit]
First Round[edit]
Prospect Promotion Incentive Picks[edit]
Competitive Balance Round A[edit]
Other Sports Selections[edit]
Further Reading[edit]
- Daniel Malone: "MLB Draft Lottery 2026: How To Watch, Team Odds, Top Prospects & More", Baseball America, December 8, 2025. [1]
- Jonathan Mayo: "White Sox win Lottery, earn No. 1 pick in 2026 Draft: Rays, Twins, Giants, Pirates round out the top five selections", mlb.com, December 9, 2025. [2]
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