How do the top 2026 draft prospects compare to rec...
Key takeaways
- If I'm looking for someone to fit a category and two players ranked back-to-back in my rankings, but the lower-ranked one was drafted higher, I'll list them both since it's clearly a close call.
- Let's get right into it with the players who will be vying for the No. 1 pick on July 11.
- 1. 2026: Roch Cholowsky/Grady Emerson/Vahn Lackey 2. 2024: Charlie Condon/Travis Bazzana 3. 2025: Kade Anderson/Eli Willits/Ethan Holliday
Why this matters: a sports story that could shift standings, legacies, or fan conversations.
How does Roch Cholowsky and other top 2026 MLB draft prospects stack up against previous classes? Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire Kiley Mc Daniel Jun 29, 2026, 07:00 AM ETClose ESPN MLB Insider Kiley Mc Daniel covers MLB prospects, the MLB Draft and more, including trades and free agency. Has worked for three MLB teams. Co-author of Author of 'Future Value' Follow on XMultiple Authors Email Print Open Extended Reactions With the Men's College World Series over, all eyes are turning to the players who could be selected in this year's MLB draft, which is just 12 days away now. To better understand how the 2026 draft class fits into the larger context, let's compare some of the top players in various categories to their counterparts in the 2024 and 2025 drafts.
If I'm looking for someone to fit a category and two players ranked back-to-back in my rankings, but the lower-ranked one was drafted higher, I'll list them both since it's clearly a close call. There are of course some spots in my 2025 and 2024 draft ranking that I wish I could do a little differently in hindsight, but MLB executives spending millions of dollars just to stack their draft boards have already since been fired for the same reason, so I try not to have too much regret.
Let's get right into it with the players who will be vying for the No. 1 pick on July 11.