theathleticuk
With the 2026 MLB Draft now in the books, heres my look at each National League East teams draft class.
I focus on the top 10 rounds, since those are the picks that count toward each teams bonus pool.
Players taken after the 10th round may be paid up to $150,000 without counting against the bonus pool, so the best prospects taken in Rounds 11 through 20 rarely end up signing.
Advertisement The number in parentheses after each players name indicates the round in which he was taken; PPI equals Prospect Promotion Incentive Round; CBA equals Competitive Balance Round A, which comes after the first round, and CBB equals Competitive Balance Round B, which comes after the second round.
A C after a number indicates that it was a compensation pick between rounds for losing a free agent or failing to sign a draft pick last year.
Note that New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies were assessed 10-pick penalties for exceeding the luxury tax thresholds, so their first-round picks came during the PPI Round and CBA, respectively.
I do assume that all players taken in the top 10 rounds will sign, although each year there are roughly two to five players who dont for various reasons.
I also skipped over college seniors who were probably selected as money-saver picks, agreeing to bonuses under their slot figures so their teams can go over slot for other players, or other players who appear to be more about under-slot bonuses than major-league potential.
Finally, I dont give letter grades for drafts.
I think that whole idea is absurd.
The best I can offer is to tell you that I think teams did well or not well based on what I know about the players available at those picks, and in general, I prefer to talk about specific picks rather than try to sum up months of work for each scouting department in a pithy line or two.
(Note: Scouting grades are on a 20-80 scale.
Click here for my top-100 draft prospect list.) Atlanta: College picks early allow room for high school pitching selections later Atlanta led off its draft with Virginia outfielder AJ Gracia (1), who has a strong mix of high contact rates and above-average to plus raw power.
His swing gets pretty uphill, which could pose a problem at higher levels, and hes going to end up in an outfield corner after playing center for the Hoos.
He missed a little time with a shoulder injury this year.
Atlanta followed that with the most surprising pick of the top 30, Indiana State outfielder Carter Beck (PPI), who had a tremendous year in a weak Missouri Valley Conference, where he barely saw anything 95+ or plus breaking stuff.
He has produced high exit velocities and is a 55 runner, so you might see a 20/20 upside up the middle.
Hes going to have to prove he can catch up with something close to major-league quality stuff, which hell start to see as soon as he gets to High A or Double A.
Advertisement Kaiden McCarthy (2) is a 6-foot high school right-hander from Vermont who missed time this spring with an injury, so he wasnt seen a ton.
He reclassified into the 2026 class and wont turn 18 until early August.
He comes from a high slot and is up to 96 or so with a sharp, vertical slurve as his out pitch.
Hes pretty polished, but I dont see a lot of projection and thought he might go to Tennessee.
Atlanta stuck with high school arms with its next pick, selecting Kingsburg (Calif.) High School right-hander Jensen Hirschkorn (3), who is all projection.
He has present arm strength but nothing plus and limited feel and command.
Hes also 6 feet 7 and a basketball player who has spent less time on baseball than a lot of his peers, which might explain the lack of present polish but is probably a good thing for his arm health.
Jacksonville, Fla., high school right-hander Cole Dennis (4) sits in the low 90s and hit 96 at the MLB Draft Combine, with a hammer breaking ball and a pretty simple, no-windup delivery.
He does wrap his wrist a little in back, but hes on time and should end up at least an average command guy.
Mississippi left-hander Wil Libbert (5) is up to 98 but gave up 10 homers in 48 innings over eight starts and nine relief appearances.
His slider might be a plus pitch if he threw it harder.
Wisconsin high school right-hander Tyson Grulkowski (6) comes from a very low three-quarters slot, working 92-94 with a curveball and a little bit of a changeup.
Hes 6-5, and I get some Justin Masterson vibes here from the size, arm slot and the stuff, although Masterson never did overcome his platoon-split issues.
I saw Arizona high school third baseman Ryne Barker (11) at the National High School Invitational this year and liked the bat a little and his overall feel for the game.
Hes 19 but pretty projectable and athletic, with plus speed and I think a real chance to hit.
Hes committed to Texas Tech.
Advertisement Miami Marlins: High-risk, high-upside first pick balanced with high-floor picks later The Marlins went for ceiling with shortstop Jacob Lombard (1), the tooled-up younger brother of Yankees prospect George Lombard Jr.
and son of former big leaguer ..
well, you can probably figure that out.
Lombard has plus speed, arm, power, maybe field, too, but there are significant holes in his approach, and he swung and missed a ton at showcases and even too much this spring against high school competition.
In 1995, hes in consideration for No.
1 overall.
The Marlins have a lot of work to do here, but if they can get Lombard to put bat to ball more often, they have a chance at an All-Star.
Oregon State left-hander Ethan Kleinschmit (2) is a strike-throwing southpaw without an out pitch.
He sits 91-93 with an average slider and has 55 control but fringy command.
I noted pre-draft hed be a perfect candidate for a team to try to put through a velocity-training program, since its a good delivery already and he works in the zone now with modest stuff.
Sam Houston State right-hander Ryan Peterson (CBB) sits 93-95 with riding life and has good feel to spin the ball, with above-average control.
Hes brought his arm slot down to low three-quarters and added deception as a result.
He doesnt have a changeup or anything else for lefties and will need one to be a starter, with mid-rotation upside.
Arkansas infielder Cam Kozeal (3) projects as a low-OBP second baseman with some power.
He hit the ball quite hard but was unable to pick up much breaking stuff.
Georgia prep outfielder Wessley Roberson (4) has a good swing with contact skills now, probably not projecting to more than average power.
He likely needs to stay up the middle defensively to be an everyday player.
Florida State left-hander Trey Beard (5) has an over-the-top delivery with a 55 changeup and 55-60 slider.
His low-90s fastball doesnt play well, and he has to lean on his secondaries.
He did miss a ton of bats with those pitches this year, even after not being able to make a couple of starts early due to a bad bout of food poisoning.
Advertisement Auburn infielder Eric Guevara (7) has plus-plus raw power but doesnt get to it enough in games because he crushes fastballs and is vulnerable to anything else, whiffing a third of the time on secondary stuff with a high chase rate.
Stanford first baseman Rintaro Sasaki (8) has been overhyped since high school, but in the eighth round, why not take a shot at 70 power? He struggles with spin and he might be a DH, so he does really have to get to that power more frequently to have any shot to be a big leaguer.
The Marlins also took junior college right-hander Fabio Bundi (11), who was born and raised in Switzerland.
He has a compact delivery, up to 93-94 with feel for a changeup and an average cutter.
New York Mets: Wiggins has plus stuff but is he a reliever? Note: The Mets received a 10-pick penalty so their first-round pick came after the first round ended (pick 27).
The Mets led off their draft with a college reliever, I think, although well see what they plan for Arkansas right-hander Carson Wiggins (1), who didnt pitch this spring after 2025 elbow surgery even though by all accounts he was ready to go.
Wiggins was 99-101 with a hellacious slider and below-average command before he got hurt.
He barely pitched in 2025, throwing only 14 innings for the Hogs.
Either the Mets think they can bring him to the majors this year, since he has a full tank, or maybe they think they can develop him into a starter.
Texas outfielder Aiden Robbins (3) started lifting the ball more this year after transferring from Seton Hall and translated his raw power into in-game power with 24 homers.
Its a complicated setup at the plate, and he doesnt hit off-speed stuff at all, but theres bat speed and enough athleticism to see defensive value in an outfield corner.
Texas A&M left-hander Shane Sdao (4) was one of the best seniors in the class.
He returned this year from Tommy John surgery to see his velocity drop a little but command and control stay mostly intact.
He can flash a plus slider and offers a curveball and changeup.
Check back in March to see if he has his velocity back.
Florida right-hander (5) Luke McNeillie is a slider-heavy reliever, throwing that pitch more than half of the time this spring, with below-average control.
Advertisement Auburn right-hander Alex Petrovic (6) is a 22-year-old redshirt sophomore who has a 55 changeup and throws plenty of strikes, but the fastballs a light 92-94 and he doesnt have great breaking stuff.
Hes had a stress fracture in his elbow but was healthy all this spring.
Stanford right-hander Aidan Keenan (7) walked 21 in 21 2/3 innings this spring, and he missed time with an oblique strain.
Hes up to 99, sitting 94-95, all in short outings, with a plus slider and a delivery that does not explain the walk rate at all.
Mississippi right-hander Landon Koenig (8) is giant, listed at 6-6, 245, and sits 96-98 with a dead-straight fastball.
His upper-80s slider is short but sharp and does miss a lot of bats, and he has enough changeup to be a full-inning reliever if he figures out the fastball.
He walked only roughly 5 percent of batters this spring.
Philadelphia Phillies: Spangler, Bogenpohl risky but talented first picks Note: The Phillies received a 10-pick penalty so their first-round pick came after the first round ended (pick 36).
The Phillies started their draft with a surprise pick, Northern California high school shortstop Tyler Spangler (1), who didnt play all spring due to a lower back injury, and whose team (De La Salle High School) forfeited its first five games this season due to a hazing incident.
Spangler is a hit-first prospect who might come into some power as he fills out, especially if he tries to pull the ball more.
Hes a solid shortstop now who could end up at third base as he matures.
A teenager with a back injury serious enough to cost him a whole spring seems like a perilous pick to me, although to be clear I dont see players medicals and wouldnt be qualified to interpret them if I did.
Missouri State outfielder Caden Bogenpohl (2) has otherworldly power, with a 90th percentile EV of 112 mph, which put him in the top 10 among Division I hitters.
He has all kinds of contact issues, though, with huge swing-and-miss in the zone (over 22 percent) and poor pitch-type recognition.
Hes very strong and moves well for 6-6, 245, so theres quite a bit of upside beyond just lumberjack, if the Phillies can help improve that approach.
Advertisement Texas senior right-hander Ruger Riojas (3) saw his velo bump this year, sitting 94-96 with a 55 changeup along with a cutter and a short curveball.
Hes pretty aggressive and throws strikes, so he could be a backend starter, although I think hes more likely a reliever in the end.
LSU right-hander Deven Sheerin (4) was 96-100 out of the bullpen this season, returning from a year lost to a torn ACL, but needs a better second pitch to profile as a late-game relief option.
Jaxon Jelkin (4C) is another player with some makeup questions, as he was dismissed from the Nebraska team as a freshman in 2022.
The right-hander transferred twice, missed a year with Tommy John surgery and had his first full, healthy season on the mound this spring for Kentucky.
Hes 94-96 with a hard slurve as his out pitch and walked less than 5 percent of hitters he faced this year.
He could be a back-end starter.
UCLA outfielder Will Gasparino (5) has huge power and played a very solid center this year for the Bruins while hitting a career-high 20 homers and cutting his strikeout rate, although moving from the SEC to the Big Ten certainly helped.
I thought this was the best pick for value in the Phillies draft.
UNC catcher Macon Winslow (6) is probably a backup.
He never hit .300 in any year in college and finished this year with a .282/.417/.466 line.
Tennessee right-hander Bo Rhudy (7) is a pure reliever who never walks guys, sitting 92-94 with an above-average slider.
Its not a great delivery, but he throws a ton of strikes, with a walk rate under 5 percent this spring.
Washington Nationals: Two top college hitters at the top; upside with later picks The Nationals took Texas A&M infielder Chris Hacopian (1) with the No.
11 pick, taking one of the best college bats.
He mostly DHd this season due to a lower-back issue.
He has a fantastic swing and makes a ton of contact, with a 10.8 percent strikeout rate and 13.8 percent whiff rate, while showing above-average raw power.
He was Marylands primary shortstop in 2025 before transferring and could profile at second base if the back injury is a temporary issue, with enough upside as a hitter to project as an above-average regular.
TCU outfielder Chase Brunson (2) was the Nationals best value pick based on my pre-draft rankings, as hes an athletic center fielder with enough power and speed to project as a 20/20 guy.
He hits off-speed stuff better than he hits fastballs, and his bat speed is just average.
Brunson has great bat-to-ball skills, however, and if he can get to good velocity more consistently I think hes an above-average or better regular who stays up the middle, with above-average defense.
Advertisement Pittsburgh-area high school shortstop Luke Williams (3) is a toolshed, with plus-plus speed, a 60 arm and excellent bat speed, which produces strong exit velocities.
The hit tool lags the rest of the package, however, and he missed most of last summer with an ankle injury, meaning he didnt get to face the best pitching in the class.
Its big upside if he hits, which is probably going to mean getting him more consistent mechanically in the box.
Texas high school right-hander Cooper Harris (4) has one of the best fastballs in the class by how hitters react to it, as its 90-94 with late ride that had high school hitters cutting through or under it all day long.
He has a potential out pitch in the slider and can spin a traditional curveball as well.
I like the delivery, although it needs some modest cleanup.
High school pitchers will break your heart, but I do like Harris a ton at this spot in the draft.
Miami infielder Daniel Cuvet (5) missed the last half of the season with a stress fracture in his lower back.
Hes a big power-over-hit guy, with at least 70 raw power, showing some improvements in his swing decisions this spring before the injury.
Hes played third base but is more likely to end up at first.
UNC Wilmington right-hander Cooper Allen (6) is a cutter/sinker/slider guy with good control and a pretty repeatable delivery, topping out at just 93.
If he gets to some more velocity, he could be a back-end starter.
Appalachian State right-hander Gage Peterson (7) throws over the top at 90-94 with enough changeup and ability to spin the ball to see a back-end starter if, again, he gets to some more velocity.
UCLA catcher Cashel Dugger (9) turns 21 in late July and is a strong defensive catcher whos shown he can handle receiving premium stuff.
Nats fans might see some similarities to Spencer Kieboom.