Category: Baseball

The Red Sox draft team is done for the day and is now free to enjoy the World Cup. With the 96th overall pick, they selected Jace Mataczynski, a high school shortstop out of Hudson, Wisconsin.

With the major caveat that one of them came out of college and the other high school, there are some interesting similarities between Mataczynski and Jake Schaffner, whom the Sox selected 20th overall. Like Schaffner, Mataczynski is an outstanding athlete with speed to spare and a good defensive reputation as an infielder. And, like Schaffner, there are questions about his bat. Here’s what the evaluators at MLB Pipeline had to sayabout him:

Though Mataczynski has plenty of bat speed, his swing isn’t smooth and has some length to it. He operates out of a wide base and didn’t spend a lot of time on the showcase circuit, leading to questions about his ability to make consistent contact when he faces quality pitching. He does hit balls hard and should continue to add strength to his projectable 6-foot-3 frame, so he could have plus raw power once he matures physically.

I’m not going to even pretend to be someone who can scout a hitter’s swing. But I do know when a swing looks… interesting. And this swing does:

So the Red Sox still have not used the savings they got from going way under slot in the first round. There is still plenty of time to do that tomorrow, though. In the meantime, the Sox’ Day 1 picks followed a clear pattern: interesting athletes who need some swing tweaks.

The Rays took a balanced approach with their first five picks in the 2026 MLB Draft, blending polished talent with high-upside prep prospects. Headlined by second overall pick Grady Emerson, the class is already shaping up to be another strong haul for one of baseball’s best player development organizations.

It all starts with Emerson, whose combination of a plus hit tool, defensive ability, and athleticism makes him one of the premier prospects in this year’s class. He has the actions to remain at shortstop long term and the physical projection to grow into above-average power, giving him legitimate star potential if everything comes together. Assuming he signs quickly, it shouldn’t be long before he’s making his professional debut in Charleston. He’ll immediately slot among the Rays’ top prospects and should comfortably earn a place within the top 20-30 on every major Top 100 list.

The Rays followed that selection with another prep shortstop in Taj Marchand. While he isn’t as polished as Emerson, Marchand offers many of the same athletic traits and has built a reputation for consistently finding the barrel thanks to his quick hands. His swing contains more moving parts than Emerson’s, making it interesting to see whether the Rays make mechanical adjustments early or allow him to face more advanced competition before altering his approach – a strategy they’ve often employed throughout the system. Defensively, Marchand’s plus arm gives him plenty of versatility if he eventually moves off shortstop, with third base looking like the most natural fit while second base or an outfield corner could also be possibilities.

My favorite selection of the day was Liberty RHP Ben Blair at No. 49 overall. Beyond simply liking the player, I find the pick fascinating because it’s the highest the Rays have selected a pitcher since 2020. Tampa Bay has largely prioritized position players early in recent drafts, making this a notable investment in an arm. Blair’s low-slot delivery creates exceptional deception, allowing his arsenal to play above its raw velocity in a manner reminiscent of Ty Johnson. He already throws enough strikes to project as a starter, and if the Rays can help him improve the quality of those strikes by consistently locating to optimal areas of the zone, there’s room for another step forward. I’ll also be interested to see how the organization develops his secondaries given Blair’s feel for spin and the Rays recent success in designing offspeed pitches and optimizing their usage.

The Rays then took an intriguing high school pitcher in Gavin Giese. Prep pitchers are among the riskiest draft demographics, but Giese offers the size, athleticism, and clean delivery teams covet. His fastball has steadily climbed into the low-to-mid 90s, and there could be additional velocity coming as he continues to mature physically. The standout pitch is his changeup, which features outstanding velocity separation from his fastball along with late fading action – exactly the type of offspeed profile the Rays have consistently targeted in recent years. His present projection is that of a back-end starter, but there’s plenty of developmental runway for an 18-year-old with his physical traits, strike-throwing ability, and feel for pitching.

Tampa Bay closed out Day 1 by selecting prep slugger Collin Bland, adding another high-ceiling bat to the class. The 6’3 left-handed hitter possesses some of the best raw power in the draft, generating impressive loft without sacrificing the ability to drive the ball to all fields. There is some swing-and-miss risk because of the length, grooved nature, and uppercut in his swing, but that’s a tradeoff many organizations are willing to make when the power upside is this significant. The challenge for the Rays will be refining his approach enough to maximize that power against professional pitching.

Overall, it was an impressive first day for Tampa Bay. Landing Emerson at No. 2 gives the class a potential franchise cornerstone, but the rest of the group’s construction is equally compelling. The Rays added premium athletes up the middle, invested meaningful draft capital in two pitchers whose profiles align with their development strengths, and finished the day with one of the biggest power bats in the prep class. It’s a group that combines relatively high floors with substantial upside, making it easy to see why the organization is excited about this year’s haul.

The Dodgers have 16 selections in the 20 rounds of the 2026 MLB Draft, beginning with high school shortstop/third baseman Bo Lowrance at 40th overall in the first round all the way through to pick number 613 in the 20th round, the very last pick in the draft.

For signing free agents Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker in the offseason, the Dodgers forfeited their draft picks in the second, third, fifth, and sixth rounds. That thinned their total bonus pool — the amount of money they are permitted to spend — to just over $3.95 million.

The total bonus pool is derived from the total of the recommended slot value of every pick through the first 10 rounds. For any picks from the 11th through the 20th round, as well as for any undrafted free agents, any signing bonus amount over $150,000 will count toward the bonus pool.

The deadline to sign draft picks is Monday, July 27 at 2 p.m. PT.

Note: On a mobile device, this table will show up best in landscape mode.

Round	Pos	Player	B/T	Age*	School	Slot value
1	3B/SS	Bo Lowrance	L/R	18	Christ Church Episcopal HS (SC)	$2,504,200
4	RHP	Russell Sandefer	R	21	Florida	$575,300
7	LHP	Charlie West	L	20	Connecticut	$260,300
8	LHP	Miles Gosztola	L	20	Oregon	$218,500
9	OF	Kyeler Thompson	R/R	21	Texas Tech	$201,700
10	RHP	Devin Bell	R	22	Oregon	$191,900
11	LHP	Cody New	L	21	Cal Baptist
12	RHP	Gavin Van Kampen	R	21	East Carolina
13	SS	Caleb Johnson	S/R	22	Jacksonville State
14	LHP	Ryne Rodriguez	L	22	Houston
15	OF	Aemed Nasser	L/L	18	Central Pointe Christian Academy (VZ)
16	RHP	Ethan Sutton	R	21	South Florida
17	RHP	Camden Wimbish	R	21	Campbell
18	SS	Max Irving	S/R	18	Montverde Academy HS (FL)
19	C	Luke Bard	R/R	22	Houston Christian
20	LHP	Zach Bates	R	21	Illinois

The Mets selected right-handed pitcher Carson Wiggins with the 27th overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft.

Wiggins, 21, did not pitch this past collegiate season after he underwent Tommy John surgery with an internal brace in May 2025, which ended his freshman year at Arkansas. 

"Thank y'all for taking a chance on me. I appreciate the Mets very much," Wiggins said in a Zoom with members of the New York media Saturday. "Excited to get things rolling for sure."

Before the season-ending elbow injury, he pitched 14 innings in 14 games out of the bullpen for the Razorbacks, allowing six runs (five earned) on seven hits and nine walks with 20 strikeouts. 

The 6-foot-5 righty is a hard-thrower, averaging 98.7 mph on his fastball and topping out at 102 mph during his lone collegiate year. Wiggins threw 15 pitches at the MLB Draft Combine in late June, with his fastball peaking at 97.4 mph and a slider averaging 85 mph. He's also featuring a curveball and a changeup.

"Velocity is back up to where it should be, no issues there," Wiggins said when asked about his rehab. "Got rid of a lot of the big misses, haven't had any hiccups, so I'm excited to just get things rolling."

Wiggins said he thought the combine appearance was "very helpful" for him, not only showing his velocity, but also "showing that I'm healthy, my stuff is good, I've added pitches, and I'm a different pitcher than I was two years ago."

He added that he improved by "thinking more like a pitcher and not just like a thrower" now than he did during his injury-shortened time in college.

Coming out of high school in Oklahoma, he was rated the No. 35 prospect by Perfect Game and the No. 10 righty prospect of the 2024 high school class.

The pick carries a slot value of $3,466,500.

"The Mets took a home run swing in drafting Arkansas right-hander Carson Wiggins with the No. 27 pick of the 2026 MLB Draft," SNY prospects writer Joe DeMayo says. "After 14 innings in the 2025 season, he underwent internal brace surgery and missed all of the 2026 season. When he is right, he has some of the best pure stuff in the entire class, headlined by two elite offerings in the best fastball in the entire class that averaged 99 mph and touched 102 and an upper-80s slider that is almost untouchable. He has also thrown a curveball, splitter and cutter.

"He is healthy now, having thrown at last month’s MLB Combine, touching 97 mph in his bullpen session there. There are some real questions with his command, as he walked 15.3 percent of the batters he faced as a freshman for the Razorbacks. If the Mets can find a way to get him to average command, he has at least No. 3 starter upside; if not, he has the type of stuff to be an elite reliever at the next level. Assuming he signs, Wiggins will be the first pitcher the Mets drafted and signed in the first round since David Peterson in 2017."

The Mets' first-round selection came at No. 27 as they received a 10-pick penalty for exceeding the second surcharge threshold of the Competitive Balance Tax, meaning their first selection came amid the Prospect Promotion Incentive Picks round.

"As we pick 27, we'll just cast a wider net, have multiple plans -- Plan A, B, C and D -- in case certain players are there, numerous options to pivot to," Kris Gross, Mets’ vice president, amateur scouting, said before the draft about not getting a shot until late in the first round. "Throughout the spring, we just kind of sent out our scouts knowing that the crop is very deep this year and we could have a wide range of outcomes. So I feel like we're in a good spot as far as coverage, and we know these players that are going to be in our range very well."

The Mets weren't the only team dinged with the 10-slot penalty, as the Yankees, Blue Jays, Dodgers, and Phillies were also penalized.

New York has two more picks on the first day of the draft: No. 92 (third round) and No. 120 (fourth round).

Carson Wiggins threw 15 pitches during a mound session at the Draft Combine after missing game action in 2026.

MLB's No. 84 prospect (@RazorbackBSB) dialed up his first three fastballs at 96+ mph -- topping out at 97.4 -- and averaged 2,719 RPMs on his curveball: pic.twitter.com/GkW83O4LFj

— MLB Draft (@MLBDraft) June 25, 2026

More Day 1 picks....

With their second pick (No. 92) in the 2026 draft, the Mets selected Texas outfielder Aiden Robbins. 

Robbins, 21, had a very strong season with the Longhorns. He slashed .333/.426/.696 with an OPS of 1.122 to go along with his 24 home runs and 64 RBI across 60 games during his third collegiate year. 

And in the fourth round, the Mets selected LHP Shane Sdao with their third selection (No. 120) of this year's draft. 

Sdao, 22, has played three seasons with Texas A&M, amassing a 13-6 record to go along with his 5.22 ERA across 59 games (20 starts). This past season, he has pitched to a 7.03 ERA, but that's after having Tommy John surgery that knocked him out for the 2025 season. 

The season prior to surgery, Sdao pitched to a 2.96 ERA across 20 games (five starts) in 2024.

 

With their second and final pick on the first day of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Dodgers selected Florida Gators pitcher Russell Sandefer in the fourth round, with the 132nd overall pick in the draft.

The 6’1 junior right-hander had a 4.42 ERA in 19 games for Florida this season, including 12 starts, with 60 strikeouts and 22 walks in 57 innings. His season highlight was striking out 11 in seven scoreless innings against Ole Miss on April 4.

1️⃣1️⃣ Ks for Sandefer!

🎥 SECN pic.twitter.com/LFdUpRkQ47

— Florida Gators Baseball (@GatorsBB) April 5, 2026

MLB Pipeline rated Sandefer as the No. 177 prospect in the draft, while Baseball America had him 182nd.

“Listed at 6-foot-1, 200 pounds, Sandefer has a deceptive look with a slingy, sidearm slot and a crossfire landing that creates some unusual angles for hitters,” said the BA scouting report. “Sandefer is typically a fastball/slider pitcher against righties, and a fastball/changeup/cutter pitcher against lefties. He’s a solid strike-thrower who might be more reliant on inducing weak contact than racking up strikeouts, but has a chance to profile as a backend starter.”

The 132nd overall pick comes with a recommended slot value of $575,300.

The first day of the draft is now complete for the Dodgers, who don’t pick again until the seventh round, having lost their second, third, fifth, and sixth-round draft picks this year for signing free agents Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker during the offseason. Day 2 of the draft begins on Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m. PT, streaming on MLB.com and MLB.tv.

We might have to start calling them the cardiac kids!

After a big, ninth-inning comeback to beat the Nationals on Friday night, we got a sequel on Saturday afternoon. Starter Cam Schlittler didn’t pitch well while managing an extraordinary start, and seven-plus innings of maddening offense gave way to a trio of eighth-inning home runs. The Yankees have a win streak going, taking today’s game 4-2 over the Nationals.

Cam Schlittler is making me think about Roy Halladay a lot. I’ve told this story before here, but Halladay was the standard of baseball excellence in my home growing up; my dad would hand 10-year-old me a pocket Blue Jay schedule and have me mark off the home games that Doc was most likely to be starting, and those games became the priority options for family trips to Toronto. The day Roy was traded was a small celebration in our house, because he sure as hell wasn’t getting anything out of the late-2000s Blue Jays. At least the Phillies gave him a real shot.

But the thing that always stuck out to me about Halladay, specifically his time in Toronto where he was the best or second best pitcher in the AL depending on what Johan Santana had done lately, was that he didn’t often dominate lineups the way his counterpart in Minnesota would. Halladay ground you down, taking advantage of his formidable conditioning and his manager’s reluctance to go to anyone in the bullpen to throw 130 cutters and sinkers and shatter your bat and watch you jog 75 feet to your right on a basic groundout to second. And he would do that for eight innings every five days — sometimes more, as no less a juggernaut than the 2009 Yankees learned.

Indeed, even on days where Halladay wasn’t the best pitcher available, he seemed better than anyone at finding some way to make it work. When he was losing, and boy he was losing a lot with those teams, it seemed there was nobody on the planet more dead-set at not being the reason why we lose today.

Cam certainly did not dominate today — the first pitch he threw was deposited in the right field seats by James Wood, and a batter later another ball was launched by Curtis Mead to put the Yankees down 2-0. Dreams of that disastrous Detroit date were dancing in our heads, but while Schlittler wasn’t at his best, he was able to figure it out. His 6:4 K:BB ratio is shocking for a player of his calibre. He needed a huge double play to get out of a tricky second, and walked the bases loaded in the fourth before getting a soft fly out to end the inning.

He was not the best pitcher going on this full Saturday slate of games, but he was able to ground down the bats of the Nationals for 6.2 innings. He was dead-set at not being the reason why we lose today, and for a couple of hours on a warm Saturday afternoon, Cam Schlittler made me feel like I was 10 again.

Unfortunately for most of the game the Yankee offense was also revisiting the mid-2000s Blue Jays standard operating procedure. PJ Poulin and Miles Mikolas — yes, him — held them scoreless through the sixth inning. But hey, if you watched last night’s win, you know you just need to find a way to screw into Washington’s bullpen.

Introducing screwworm Ryan McMahon:

Yes, Washington’s relief corps is chopped, but it does feel like the Yankees have been squeezing their bats a little too tight for a while now. McMahon’s homer, like Jazz’s last night, kinda seemed to remind everyone that they can hit.

Ben Rice was walked, reaching base all four times today, and with a chance at the lead, in came Trent Grisham:

And, broadly speaking, there went Trent Grisham.

Even the old man got in on the fun. Paul Goldschmidt looked pretty bad today after snapping that long hitless streak on Friday, but unc changed all that around as we moved into the (relative) tack-on portion of the game:

There’s a reason why we play nine innings, folks.

Given the lead, Fernando Cruz and David Bednar worked an inning apiece, with Bednar allowing a single to Wood — he’s pretty good folks — but nothing else in locking up another come from behind win. Both relievers have put in excellent work over the past two days, with the duo combining for 4.2 innings of one-hit ball.

We’ve got one more game to go before the break, and the Yankees would sure rinse off a lot of the stink around them this past month by completing the sweep tomorrow. Will Warren is tapped for the start, with a 1:35pm Eastern first pitch. The Nats have not announced a starter of their own yet, though Cade Cavalli’s suspension is supposed to be over, so he is a candidate to get the ball for Washington.

Box Score

The Mets were shut out by the Boston Red Sox on Saturday, losing by a score of 4-0.

Here are the key takeaways...

-- Facing rookie pitcher Eduardo Rivera, who was making his first career start and just second career appearance in the majors – his first coming on April 22 against the Yankees, the Mets’ offense was befuddled all day.

Against Rivera, recalled from Triple-A before the game to start in place of the injured Ranger Suarez, New York mustered one hit during the lefty’s 3.2 innings. The brilliant Boston pitching didn’t stop there as four Red Sox relievers combined to pitch 5.1 scoreless innings while allowing just two hits.

-- The Mets had chances to score, though, mostly thanks to seven walks on the day. In the second, Carson Benge led off with a walk and stole second base, but was left stranded. New York loaded the bases in the seventh following two walks sandwiched in between a single, but A.J. Ewing struck out looking to end the threat. An inning later, Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor had back-to-back walks, but the Mets couldn’t score after a flyout and a double play.

-- Francisco Alvarez had two of New York’s three hits on the day, one of them an infield single in the fifth. Meanwhile, Brett Baty’s 10-game hitting streak came to an end after an 0-for-3 day, although he reached base safely with a walk.

-- Freddy Peralta’s string of short outings continued with the right-hander lasting just 4.1 innings. It’s the third consecutive start he hasn’t completed five innings and the sixth straight start he hasn’t completed six.

Peralta’s day was hamstringed by five walks, which forced his pitch count up. Aside from the walks, his only blemish came in the fourth inning when Andruw Monasterio took him deep for a two-run shot. Monasterio had a big day at the plate, adding a triple in the sixth inning.

-- After Peralta left the game, the Mets’ bullpen held the Red Sox in check and kept New York in the game. A.J. Minter did some heavy lifting in the sixth, stranding Monasterio at third base after his leadoff triple with a couple of strikeouts.

Brooks Raley pitched a clean seventh and handed it to Tobias Myers, whose struggles continued after coming in and immediately giving up a two-run shot to Masataka Yoshida that doubled Boston’s lead. Myers has been up and down between the minors and majors recently and has a 13.14 ERA in his last seven appearances. For the season, it’s at 6.26.

-- The Mets went 0-for-8 with RISP and left nine men on base.

Game MVP: Eduardo Rivera

The 6-foot-7 lefty dominated in his first major league start, even if it was just for 3.2 innings.

Highlights

Freddy Peralta strikes out the side pic.twitter.com/M8wwcouWRr

— SNY (@SNYtv) July 11, 2026

Francisco Alvarez is successful on a close challenge! pic.twitter.com/3M7HHdroWl

— SNY (@SNYtv) July 11, 2026

A.J. Minter gets two strikeouts! pic.twitter.com/9gYfdyKQ1U

— SNY (@SNYtv) July 11, 2026

What's next

The Mets close out their series against the Red Sox with a Sunday matinee starting at 1:40 p.m.

New York has yet to announce a starter, although rookie LHP Zach Thornton (0-1, 4.35 ERA) is with the team and will likely get the start, while Boston will go with LHP Payton Tolle (5-6, 3.14 ERA).

After drafting Zion Rose and Taylor Rabe with the sixth and 30th picks, respectively, in the 2026 MLB Draft, the Royals made three additional selections to round out the first day. Kansas City chose two high schoolers and another college pitcher with those selections.

56th pick: Jack Slightom, right-handed pitcher from Lyons Township High School

With the 56th pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, we have selected Jack Slightom from Lyons Township High School (IL). pic.twitter.com/5kbudRgCFM

— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) July 11, 2026

With the 56th pick, the Royals drafted a player who will also get some of the signing bonus savings from picking Rose: Jack Slightom, a right-handed pitcher from a Chicago area high school. Slightom ranked as the 89th best prospect per MLB and the 60th prospect per ESPN, and was outside the top 100 from The Athletic and Fangraphs.

From Fangraphs:

This year’s Midwest pop-up arm, Slightom is a Cincinnati commit whose fastball velocity climbed from the upper 80s to the mid-90s over the last year. He is built like a human/whooping crane hybrid at a skinny 6-foot-5, and he works east/west with a tailing fastball, changeup, and lateral slider. Inconsistent mechanics and worry about fastball playability are why Slightom is viewed here as more of a dev project than a guy who comfortably projects to have multiple plus pitches.

From MLB.com:

Slightom worked with an 88-91 mph fastball as a junior, touched 95 at the World Wood Bat Association World Championship in October and has reached 98 with carry and armside run this spring. His 77-81 mph slider could use some power and lacks consistency, yet he’ll spin some solid breaking balls at times. He doesn’t use his changeup very often but shows some aptitude for the mid-80s offering, which flashes some nice tumble and fade.

Slightom works with a side-step delivery and a low arm slot that provides some deception. A Cincinnati recruit, he’s athletic and should add some needed polish once he focuses on baseball. With room to add plenty of strength to his 6-foot-5 frame, he could develop an upper-90s heater and a mid-80s slider.

2.56 KCR

RHP Jack Slightom (@Lyons_Baseball)
R-R, 6-4/200

Projectable righty with a four-pitch mix. Low-to-mid-90s FB and adv. SL. Big upside arm.@PG_Illinoispic.twitter.com/kGjFL8W2hl

— Perfect Game Draft (@PG_Draft) July 11, 2026

91st pick: Maxx Yehl, left-handed pitcher from the University of West Virginia

With the 91st pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, we have selected Maxx Yehl from West Virginia. pic.twitter.com/6RGc8jW3UA

— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) July 11, 2026

Maxx Yehl dominated in the Big 12, striking out 27.9% of batters en route to a 2.13 ERA. He only walked 6.5% of batters, too. Yehl is another pitcher whose previous college time impacted by Tommy John surgery (again, this is a common thing now). Yehl ranked as the 217th best prospect per MLB and the 161st best per ESPN.

From Fangraphs:

Yehl thrives on deception. He gets on top of the ball even with a three-quarters slot, and with his back foot in the middle of the rubber, he strides at nearly a 45 degree angle toward the first base dugout. He lands clean and straight on, and is able to command the ball effectively even with the huge crossfire. Hitters, lefties in particular, looked uncomfortable. His fastball generates above-average to plus carry even with a relatively low slot, and he missed a ton of bats upstairs last year. His slider is mostly horizontal, and he has pretty good feel for spinning it. Yehl can find the back foot and back door against righties, and he likes to run it off the barrels of a lefty. He’ll flash an average curve as well. A changeup isn’t currently part of his equation but will likely need to be if he’s going to start.

I don’t know how well this will work against hitters more accustomed to outlier release points, but college bats can be rough on smoke and mirrors types, and they barely touched Yehl this year; he may just have the juice, deception wise. He isn’t particularly physically projectable, but developing a change is a potential path forward, and he looks like an intriguing early-round flier. You can dream on a backend starter.

From MLB.com:

While he only has this season as a starter on his resume, Yehl’s size and pure stuff should at least give him a chance to stick in a rotation at the next level. The 6-foot-6 lefty has shown the ability to get his fastball up to 96-97 mph, especially early in the season. As the Mountaineers were preparing for Omaha, Yehl showed some signs of fatigue and a loss of a tick or two of velocity, but that’s understandable given he’s just a year removed from elbow surgery, and he’s well beyond any innings total previously accumulated in his career. 

Yehl’s best secondary pitch is his slider, which flashes above average and has been up to 87 mph and more around 83-84 mph late. At times he’ll show signs of a distinct cutter and curve, but they do run into each other a bit. He has an upper-80s changeup that doesn’t get called much but could be solid with pro development. Even when fatigued, the 22-year-old Yehl has shown improved strike-throwing and is a plus competitor. If starting doesn’t work out, his fastball-slider combination should work out of a bullpen.

3.91 KC

LHP Maxx Yehl (@WVUBaseball)
L-L, 6-6/235

Physical lefty with a low-to-mid-90s FB, swing-and-miss SL, and success as a starter@PGCollegeBallpic.twitter.com/28d7mAmyQ9

— Perfect Game Draft (@PG_Draft) July 11, 2026

119th pick: Dominic Battista, outfielder from Oswego East High School

With the 119th pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, we have selected Dominic Battista from Oswego East High School (IL). pic.twitter.com/hjQYv75zb0

— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) July 11, 2026

For the final pick of day one, the Royals selected their first high school hitter: Dominic Battista, whose high school is located just 30 miles southwest of Slightom’s. ESPN ranked Battista 119th overall, though was outside the top 250 for other outlets.

Battista is a left-handed hitter with some speed. From the Prospect Porch:

That raw power was on full display at the Super 60, where Battista posted an impressive 108.5 mph max exit velocity, while also boasting an 104.1 average mark. His max exit velocity ranked 4th out of the whole event, even more impressive considering 2 of the 3 ahead of him weighed in at north of 220 lbs, more than a 30-pound difference. To go with the raw power, Battista is an excellent runner who’s quick out of the box and has posted plus run times. Pair that with at least above-average arm strength, and you’ve got a profile some consider fit for center field long-term.

Battista will need to continue to assure scouts on the hit tool this spring, considering he doesn’t possess the same track record of hitting higher-caliber arms compared to some of his peers and has struggled with strikeout woes in the past. He struck out in 22 of his 81 plate appearances his junior spring, while also hitting for a .242 average. Though those issues have seemingly improved in his summer stints, it’s still a skeptic part of his profile, even with a fluid left-handed swing that looks quite “hitterish.”

4.119 KC

OF Dominic Battista (Oswego East HS)
L-R, 6-0/180

Athletic prep OF with plus speed and a chance to stick in CF. Added strength has improved impact@PG_Illinoispic.twitter.com/LX5omfwCLX

— Perfect Game Draft (@PG_Draft) July 11, 2026

Rutgers Baseball continues to send players on to the next level.

On Saturday, Peyton Bonds was selected 90th overall in the third round of the 2026 MLB Draft by the San Francisco Giants. Bonds is the nephew of all-time home run leader and former Giants’ great Barry Bonds.

Bonds is the first Scarlet Knight selected in this year’s draft but makes the total number of picks 12 since 2022 for Rutgers.

The right-handed outfielder starred at Franklin High School in New Jersey before moving to the collegiate level. He hit .429 in high school before heading to Campbell. Bonds then transferred to Rutgers where he spent two years.

Bonds played in 36 games this past season. He hit .352 with six home runs and 29 RBI. He logged an on-base percentage of .436 as well. In 2025, Bonds hit .300 with the Scarlet Knights including five home runs and 40 RBI. He also showed off his ability in centerfield as well as the base paths, where he stole 13 bags in 2026.

The Detroit Tigers first day of the 2026 MLB draft is in the books. With their fourth round pick, they took prep shortstop Dominic Pellegrin out of Holy Cross High School in Louisiana. We were waiting for a prep shorstop pick all through Day 1, and the Tigers delivered, finding an underviewed, though older, right-handed high school shortstop who performed well in the MLB Draft League.

Pellegrin is a twitchy defender with good speed and strong bat-to-ball skills. The Tigers love them a prep shortstop, but they changed it up this year by not reaching for one, and instead taking a player who wasn’t a big name on the junior circuit and only late in the season started getting more notice after posting well in the pre-draft league showcase.

A Tulane commit, the Louisiana native stands six-foot-one, weighing in a 175 pounds. He has developing power via a fairly prominent leg kick, but his swing is actually pretty simple and efficient, producing plenty of hard contact although his power projections top out around average. Still, the Tigers have proven themselves quite adept at developing young hitters’ batspeed, so it’s easy to have some confidence in their projections on Pellegrin.

He’s a bit older, as he just turned 19 and would technically be an eligible sophomore if he decided to go to Tulane, but at this point in the draft, signing bonus expectations are generally known and we’d be surprised if the Tigers didn’t end up landing him, especially as they can probably trim a little off the bonuses to Flukey and LeBlanc. Pellegrin’s defense and contact skills have really started to turn heads more recently, and he has a shot to be a plus shortstop with speed on the bases and a solid hit tool and power combination.

The Texas Rangers, with their fourth round pick in the 2026 MLB Draft, selected righthanded pitcher Hudson Calhoun from the University of Mississippi.

Calhoun, who turns 22 in August, is a 6’4”, 210 lb. righthander who has pitched almost exclusively in relief in his three seasons at Old Miss. After making just two appearances in 2024, Calhoun threw 24 innings over 21 games as a sophomore, striking out 37 and walking 18 while putting up a 5.11 ERA. In 2026, he threw 46 innings over 22 games, with 67 Ks and 26 walks.

Calhoun was ranked #235 by MLB Pipeline and #197 by Baseball America.

Calhoun has a five pitch mix, and his build and repertoire are such that the Rangers will likely be looking to try him out as a starting pitcher, at least initially. He has a mid-90s fastball that is high spin, giving it good rising action as well as armside run. It is a pitch that can generate whiffs when its located — Calhoun, however, has struggled with his command and control throughout his college career. Along with his fastball, Calhoun throws a cutter, a curve, a slider and a changeup.

After chasing power in the second round of the MLB Draft with Caden Sorrell, the Cubs doubled down on power with Florida State first baseman Myles Bailey with their compensation pick in the second round. This is the pick the Cubs got for losing Kyle Tucker to free agency.

Like first-round pick Cade Townsend, Bailey is a draft-eligible sophomore from a power conference, this time the ACC rather than the SEC. Bailey was one of the best power hitters in college baseball in 2026. He hit 19 home runs in 56 games as a freshman and 13 in just 26 games as a sophomore before he injured his ankle sliding into second base and was out for the rest of the season.

Some scouts put an 80, the highest possible grade, on Bailey’s raw power, although contact issues make his “in-game” power grade lower. He’s a big, powerful man at 6’4”, 255 with a big, long uppercut swing. He can hit it out of the park to all fields, but when he pulls it, the ball goes a very long ways. The exit velocities generated by Bailey’s bat are elite.

The downside, as alluded to earlier, is that Bailey strikes out a lot. He did cut his strikeout rate from a very troublesome 31 precent as a freshman to a concerning but not completely disqualifying 24.6 percent. Although he did only play eight conference games and presumably, his strikeout rate would have gone up against better ACC pitchers. (Although his non-conference schedule did include two games against Florida, one against Auburn and one versus Nebraska.) The general consensus is that Bailey did improve his swing his sophomore season, so that’s a positive sign. The one other piece of good news is that while Bailey does have a good deal of swing-and-miss, he also has the patience to take bad pitches and grab a walk. He certainly has a real three-true-outcomes (home run, walk, strikeout) potential.

While Bailey actually runs well for a guy his size, he’s also probably purely a first baseman. The good news is that he’s shown himself to be quite nimble there and he could be an above-average defensive first baseman.

The Cubs almost never take a pure first baseman in the draft and when they do, they usually wait until late on the second day. That they took Bailey with a second round pick means that they must really believe in that power potential and that they can get him to make enough contact that he can get to that impressive power.

MLB Pipeline had Bailey as the 83rd-best draft prospect and Baseball America had him at 96, so generally in line with the 75th overall pick. Keith Law of The Athletic did not have him among his Top 100 picks, which makes sense as Law is much more wary of contact issues than many other evaluators.

Bailey is the kind of roll-the-dice pick that some wanted the Cubs to make with their first or second pick. There’s a real All-Star upside with Bailey. There’s a perfect world where Bailey hits 30+ home runs with an OBP of around .340 thanks to a lot of walks, even if the batting average remains low. There’s another world where Bailey is unable to overcome his contact issues and he washes out in Double-A. It’s a pick I’d feel better about in the third round than the end of the second, but if the Cubs really believe in the power and don’t think he’d have lasted until their next pick, I guess they had to take him here. It is a real departure from their normal approach, which I think is a good thing, at least.

The Cubs saw the medical reports on his ankle at the Draft Combine, so that’s clearly not something that bothers them. It seems unlikely to be chronic and if he remains at first base, any loss of foot speed would have a minimal impact.

First, watch Bailey hit this ball 468 feet as a freshman. This is one of the most impressive home runs you’ll see.

And here are some general highlights of Bailey as a sophomore, including some good defense at first base.

The Yankees lineup was asleep for most of the game, but three late home runs pushed them to a 4-2 win over the Nationals on Saturday afternoon.

Just like the opener, the Yankees leaned on the long ball to drive in runs. Ryan McMahon, who didn't start but pinch-hit early for AmedRosario, smashed a 416-foot shot to get the Yankees on the board in the eighth. Two batters later, Trent Grisham gave the Yankees the lead with a two-run shot. 

Paul Goldschmidt went back-to-back with Grisham to cap off the comeback as the Yankees run their winning streak to three games.

Here are the takeaways...

-Cam Schlittler's day got off to a tough start. JamesWood smashed Schlittler's first pitch over the wall. Curtis Mead would also go deep, putting the Yankees in an early 2-0 hole. Both homers came on fastballs up in the zone.

It was an uncharacteristic game for Schlittler, who walked four batters, which forced him to pitch out of trouble multiple times. But the first-time All-Star settled down, leaving after two outs in the seventh. 

Schlittler allowed two runs on four hits, four walks while striking out six across his 6.2 innings of work. 

-The bullpen immediately got into trouble. Brent Headrick came in with two outs in the seventh for Schlittler and allowed back-to-back singles and a walk to load the bases. Headrick struck out CJ Abrams to end the Nationals threat and preserve the two-run deficit.

-The Yankees had trouble with RISP for the second game in a row. After going 0-for-5 in those situations on Friday, they went 0-for-8 with RISP and left seven on base.

-David Bednar, after pitching two innings on Friday, locked down the save, allowing one base runner in an otherwise clean ninth.

-Ben Rice continued his hot streak, going 2-for-2 with two walks. 

Game MVP: Trent Grisham

Grisham's blast put the Yankees up for good.

Highlights

Ryan McMahon homers to get the Yankees on the board! pic.twitter.com/SEcZNQMfCV

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) July 11, 2026

Two-run shot for Trent Grisham and Yankees take the lead! pic.twitter.com/WWr56sS4qY

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) July 11, 2026

Paul Goldschmidt home run! Yankees take a 4-2 lead!pic.twitter.com/TAy5SvhGlR

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) July 11, 2026

What's next

The Yankees wrap up their series with the Nationals on Sunday afternoon. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m.

Will Warren (7-4, 4.15 ERA) will take the mound. The Nationals have yet to name a starter.

The Thome legacy continues on the South Side, as Chicago used their newly-acquired 34th overall pick to select infielder Landon Thome, the son of White Sox legend and Hall-of-Famer, Jim Thome.

In a swap on Friday evening, GM Chris Getz traded IF Jacob Gonzalez and RHP Brandon Eisert to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for the 34th overall pick, giving the South Siders an extra pick. It seemed that the motive behind the trade was that they didn’t believe Thome would still be around by their second round pick (No. 41), and their plan worked.

Thome is 18 years old, hailing from Nazareth Academy — roughly 18 miles from downtown Chicago — and is the top-ranked shortstop in Illinois, and 19th-best in the nation according to Prep Baseball. While the White Sox did just select SS Roch Cholowsky as the first overall pick, Thome’s versatility across the infield, with the ability to play second and third base, gives him an advantage to slot into other positions while still adding a lefty power bat in the lineup. It also certainly doesn’t hurt to have a HOF dad as a mentor to the game and to help guide Landon’s approach at the plate.

Not only did the lefty highlight his power in his senior season with the Nazareth Roadrunners, but he also showcased his capability at getting on base at an insanely high rate with a .630 on-base percentage, walking 30 times compared to just 12 strikeouts. Not too shabby at all, and unsurprising considering his dad walked quite a bit (16.9% average BB%), and didn’t have a crazy strikeout rate by any means. Landon posted a .533 batting average at the plate, amounting to a whopping 1.676 OPS including eight home runs, 35 RBIs, and 49 steals, also showing his speed and ability to cause trouble on the base paths.

Something that is not completely apparent in Thome’s stats is that he is always working hard to perfect his game, and holds himself to a high standard both on and off the field. The Thome family has always been such a lovely part of the larger White Sox family, and having Landon join the organization while following in his dad’s footsteps is a great story in the making.

When we spoke with Andrea Thome — Landon’s mom — last Spring, she only had glowing things to say about her son, highlighting his work ethic and positive attitude.

“Landon is a special person, and I’m not just saying that because he’s our son. He works hard on the field and in the classroom, and thanks to the example set by his head coach and mentor, Lee Milano, he’s also made service to others a huge part of who he is. We are honored to be his parents and can’t wait to see where his path leads.”

With the great vibes that are already flowing through the White Sox clubhouse, and within the larger organization, Thome seems like the perfect player to add to the mix in the future of the team. Welcome to the South Side, Landon!

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The 2026 White Sox draft storystream contains all of our draft content.

With most eyes on the MLB Draft in Philadelphia, the Rockies fell in San Francisco on Saturday.

Casey Schmitt hit a three-run homer in the sixth that ended up being the game-winner and ruined an otherwise decent day on the mound from Kyle Freeland. The Rockies offense was held to six hits and their eighth-inning rally came up short.

The win put the Giants (40-55) up 2-1 in the series and dropped the Rockies to 39-58.

Freeland fab for 4 before trouble hit

Freeland (2-8, 7.36 ERA) was on his game for the first four innings. He only allowed a single from Luis Arraez in the first four frames, retiring the first nine he faced. He even posted five strikeouts in the first four innings. Freeland was pretty effective even through the fifth inning when he gave up a pair of doubles to Bryce Eldridge and Jesus Rodriguez that allowed the Giants to tie the game at 1-1.

It was the three hits in the six that hurt the most. Not so much the back-to-back singles from Heliot Ramos and Arraez, but it was the homer from Schmitt. Schmitt took advantage of a knuckle curve that hung up too high and sent it flying 415 feet to left center field for his 19th homer of the year.

Freeland bounced back with three straight strikeouts — raising his total for the day to nine — to end the inning. One of those included striking out Arraez, the talented hitter who rarely strikes out. The first-inning K was only Arraez’s 16th strikeout of the season.

“I thought Kyle was excellent today. He was efficient, attacked the strike zone, his fastball was really good and his changeup was really good,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said. “I just felt like he was in command of the game. Other than the one swing from Schmitt, it was a really good outing.”

But in a low-scoring affair, a 4-1 deficit seemed insurmountable. Freeland left the game after the sixth inning, having given up four runs on six hits with no walks and nine strikeouts.

Eighth-inning scoring continues

The Rockies entered the eighth inning trailing 4-1, but in true Colorado fashion, managed to shrink the lead. With two outs, Kyle Karros crushed his ninth homer of the year, a 435-foot blast to left center field.

Hi Kyle 👋
Bye Kyle 🤟 pic.twitter.com/D6hdRk3WaW

— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) July 11, 2026

Unfortunately, that’s all the Rockies could muster. After only striking out three times in the first six innings, the Rockies struck out four times in the final three innings. Brett Sullivan and Hunter Goodman each doubled in the game. Schaeffer tried to spark the offense when he put in pinch hitters Cole Carrigg and Willi Castro in the ninth, but both came up empty.

Zach Agnos threw two scoreless innings with one walk and one hit in another solid outing from the Rockies bullpen.

A strange series of off events

The Rockies scored first in a very unusual way. It happened in the third inning when Sullivan, who grew up an hour and a half outside of San Francisco, led off with a double. After Jack McCarthy moved Sullivan to third on a grounder, Mickey Moniak came to the plate. Tyler Mahle was then called for a balk. The umpires met, confirmed the call and sent Sullivan home, putting the Rockies up 1-0.

It got even weirder when Moniak appeared to strike out swinging on a high fastball. Moniak went to take a seat in the dugout, only to be called back because the pitch Mahle threw after the balk didn’t count. Giants manager Tony Vitello argued the call and got ejected in the process. Moniak returned to the plate and hit a single. The Rockies were unable to take advantage, however, as Goodman lined out and TJ Rumfield flied out.

Mahle pitched a gem, giving up only that one run on five hits with three walks and four strikeouts in seven innings.

“He mainly pitched with his fastball. He was really good,” Schaeffer said of Mahle. “He had hop at the top, his splitter vs. the left-handers was good and he just pitched. He used his fastball a ton. We had no answer for him today.”

Other than the homer to Karros, JT Brubaker continued to keep the Rockies quiet to earn his first save of the season.

Up next

The Rockies and Giants will conclude their four-game series on Sunday at 2:05 p.m. at Oracle Park. In their final contest before the All-Star Break, the Rockies will send Michael Lorenzen (3-9, 6.46) to the mound, while Trevor McDonald (3-7, 5.46 ERA) will get the start for San Francisco.

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