Major League Baseball’s draft is still more than eight months away. Yet after the Dec. 9 draft lottery determined the selection order, you could say the Chicago White Sox are ready to Roch.
The White Sox earned the No. 1 overall selection among eligible teams, earning them first crack at UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky – the overwhelming choice to top the draft board come July.
Cholowsky, who turns 21 in April, offers a virtual plug-and-play option at the top of the draft, coming off a 23-homer season with a 1.190 OPS for the Bruins. His advanced skill set is undeniably additive for any team, even those with established shortstops like the White Sox, who saw Colson Montgomery hit 21 home runs in just 71 games last year.
Cholowsky provides a much surer No. 1 overall pick than last year, when the consensus top dozen players were filled with high school prospects and 17-year-old Eli Willits ultimately went 1/1 to the Washington Nationals.
Beyond Cholowsky, though, the guesswork begins. While prep and college seasons and private workouts will greatly reshape the board, USA TODAY Sports breaks down the draft order and takes a look at 17 top prospects who might slide into the pool of lottery and non-playoff clubs:
Top MLB draft prospects 2026
1. (White Sox) Roch Cholowsky, SS, UCLA: Reigning collegiate player of the year combines 6-2, 205-pound frame with elite speed and Gold Glove-caliber defense.
2. (Rays) Grady Emerson, SS, Fort Worth Christian HS: The consensus top prep player available, he’s a Texas commit who recently batted .346 with a .949 OPS in a stint for Team USA, earning All-World honors.
3. (Twins) Derek Curiel, OF, LSU: Possibly the best pure hitter in the draft, Curiel batted .390 during LSU’s run through the NCAA playoffs and a College World Series title and will move to center field in his second season at Baton Rouge, which should enhance his stock.
4. (Giants) Justin Lebron, SS, Alabama: Displayed 18-homer pop as a sophomore and led the SEC in RBIs to go along with a very sound skill set at shortstop.
5. (Pirates) Tyler Spangler, SS, De La Salle (Calif.): Like your shortstops big and physical? Spangler may be your man. The Stanford signee, 6-3 and 195 pounds, has a consummately projectable long, lean build, a clean left-handed swing and 6.56 60-yard dash speed.
6. (Royals) Jacob Lombard, SS, Gulliver Prep (Fla.) HS: George Lombard Jr. could be the Yankees’ shortstop by 2027 and his little brother may also beat a hasty path through pro ball. Son of Tigers bench coach George Lombard, Jacob possesses the expected coach’s son profile in a 6-3 frame.
7. (Orioles) Jackson Flora, RHP, UC Santa Barbara: Could the Gauchos produce the first pitcher drafted in consecutive drafts? Flora gave scouts who came to see Tyler Bremner (chosen No. 2 overall by the Angels) something to dream on this year, including an upper-90s fastball and command that produced a 5.06 strikeout-walk ratio and just seven home runs allowed in 75 innings.
8. (Athletics) Sawyer Strosnider, OF, TCU: He finished his freshman year on a tear, batting .386 over his final 45 games and becoming just the fourth NCAA player since 2002 to produce a quadruple-double: 13 doubles, 10 triples, 11 homers, 10 steals).
9. (Braves) Cameron Flukey, RHP, Coastal Carolina: Consummate massive college righty (6-6, 200 pounds) who struck out 118 in 101 ⅔ innings last season.
10. (Rockies) AJ Gracia, OF, Virginia: Followed his coach from Duke to Charlottesville after two seasons in which he hit 29 home runs. There’s more where that came from with a 6-3, 195-pound build.
11. (Nationals) Gio Rojas, LHP, Marjory Stoneman Douglas (Fla.) HS: A paucity of top prep arms in this class, but Rojas could go high enough to coax him away from a Miami commitment. While his baseball-factory high school is more known for producing hitting talent, Rojas has touched 98 mph with his fastball.
12. (Angels) Drew Burress, OF, Georgia Tech: Though just 5-9, 180 pounds, he ripped 25 and 19 home runs in his first two seasons with the Yellow Jackets.
13. (Cardinals) Chris Hacopian, SS, Texas A&M: Dominated Big Ten pitching in two seasons at Maryland – 29 homers and a career 1.080 OPS – and will get a nice showcase run in the SEC this season.
14. (Marlins) Eric Becker, SS, Virginia: Remarkably sound player with gap-to-gap power and surprising opposite-field pop.
15. (Diamondbacks) Tyler Bell, SS, Kentucky: A draft-eligible sophomore, Bell turned down second-round money from Tampa Bay out of high school and banged out 29 extra-base hits with a .907 OPS as a Wildcats freshman.
16. (Rangers) Ace Reese, 3B, Mississippi State: A left-handed bat standing 6-foot-4, he ripped 21 home runs for the Bulldogs after transferring from Houston.
17. (Astros) Gabe Gaeckle, RHP, Arkansas: Gone from short reliever to lights-out starter to, presumably, 2026 ace after Gage Wood’s departure. Gaeckle touches 99 mph with his fastball and has a 31.7% strikeout rate in two seasons.