We have officially made it to draft season. As some may say, this is the most glorious time of the year. Fantasy baseball fever is at an all-time high as the itch to draft, and draft, and then draft again grows stronger. What about for dynasty managers? Sure, you get an FYPD, but that is it. To spice things up, some of the staff at Pitcher List, along with a few Discord members (join PL Pro!) started a 12-team prospect draft. This draft is solely for players with prospect eligibility, and was 20 rounds. A total of 240 prospects were taken, with position and team build being completely ignored. Now, the PL Dynasty staff are going to be breaking down these drafts with insight and analysis for the community.
2026 Prospect Draft Recap
Breaking Down Our Teams
Matt Heckman
For this prospect draft, I was picking from the 10th spot. Going into the draft, I knew that the elite of the elite prospects would all be off the board. However, there were still plenty of options for me by the time the 10th pick came around. At 1.10, I debated Max Clark, Leo De Vries, Carson Benge, and Trey Yesavage. I wound up going with Clark, who has already proven to be amongst the most polished hitters in minor league baseball despite his young age. His game power is a step above De Vries despite both having extremely high ceilings. At the 2.03, I was able to grab Trey Yesavage after seeing both Carson Benge and Aidan Miller go right before me. In fact, I wound up going three pitchers in a row with Yesavage, Robby Snelling, and Tatsuya Imai.
Seven of my next eight picks were hitters, including two FYPD players. Ethan Holliday feels underrated right now, and I was able to grab him at 5.10. He was the eighth FYPD player taken. The other was Aiva Arquette, whom I grabbed at 9.10. Arquette going behind players like Ethan Salas, Angel Genao, Antwone Kelly, Spencer Jones, and Tommy Troy feels like a mistake. Going deeper, I really loved being able to grab Kash Mayfield at 15.10. LuJames Groover is always underrated, and I got him at 17.10. Then, two of my breakout picks for 2026, Tyson Hardin and Griff O’Ferrall, were my final two selections of the draft and are two players I plan to write up more as the off-season moves along. Overall, I could not have been happier with how my roster turned out. Every prospect I drafted ranks inside of my Top-175 despite 240 prospects being selected.
Jack Mueller
This was my first prospect draft, and my lack of experience showed at times. Picking from the #7 spot, I knew I was going to miss out on the “elite” tier of prospects, so my strategy was to maximize upside in the early rounds. I did well in that regard by picking Sebastian Walcott and Thomas White in the first two rounds. Both guys have the potential to be franchise cornerstones. In later rounds, my pitching picks fit the bill of high upside options (Gage Jump, Seth Hernandez, Travis Sykora). My hitting selections (Alfredo Duno, Nate George, Owen Caissie) were all guys I’m high on, but there may have been better value on the board.
In the second half of the draft, I went “value hunting”. I was able to snag some post-hype hitters (Ethan Salas in the 9th, Kevin Alcantara in the 19th), while mixing in some position players I think will break out in 2026 (Josh Adamczewski, Josiah Hartshorn). In retrospect, I went pitcher-heavy, selecting four straight arms in Rounds 15-18. I liked getting Tanner McDougal and Adam Serwinowski in this range, but I could have done better with my other selections. I’d give myself a 6.5/10 in this draft. I picked up some high-upside names and found value in later rounds, but there were areas where I could have made more advantageous decisions.
John Villavicencio
Holding the third pick effectively removed me from the Konnor Griffin and Kevin McGonigle sweepstakes. Most prospect rankings slot Jesus Made firmly in that next tier behind those two stalwarts, but I ultimately chose to go in a different direction. Made is widely scouted as a potential impact power bat thanks to his elite bat speed and athleticism. However, that power hasn’t consistently shown up in game action. With that in mind, I selected JJ Wetherholt with the third pick.
While Wetherholt’s ultimate ceiling may not rival some of the more volatile upside plays, the appeal lies in how quickly he can access most of his value. There’s legitimate 20–20 upside as early as 2026. I leaned his way largely due to the strong likelihood that he breaks camp as an Opening Day starter this season, combined with the tangible power gains he showed after reaching Triple-A. In an era dominated by elevated fastballs, it’s encouraging that Wetherholt consistently punishes pitches on the inner half and in the upper-middle of the zone. The results back that up: 10 home runs with a .952 OPS against right-handed pitching, and seven home runs with an .880 OPS versus lefties. Even though he didn’t fully optimize his 45% pull rate in Triple-A, he still posted a 12% barrel rate, a 48% hard-hit rate, and a manageable 12-degree average launch angle.
In the second round, I went with Ryan Sloan over the fast-rising Edward Florentino. Florentino is a good player, but his profile—and the speed of his rise—feels reminiscent of Kristin Campbell’s rapid ascendance, which made me hesitant to invest at that spot. Sloan is one of the safest upper-tier pitching prospects in the minors. My other consideration was Joshua Baez, who ultimately fell to me in the third round. After selecting Kaelen Culpepper, Andrew Fischer, and Muneteka Murakami in rounds 4-6, Jamie Arnold was an easy selection in the seventh round. I stuck with my run of FYPD players and selected Ethan Frey in the eighth round. Frey’s ability to limit swinging strikes while maximizing the swings he does take speaks to a mature, intentional approach at the plate.
Tyson Lewis was my swing at a “what-if” pick in Round 9. The 6’2” left-handed hitter flashes enormous raw power, but his all-fields approach has limited how often that power plays over the fence. A 30% line-drive rate points to plenty of doubles, though adding more loft would better leverage his long swing. Shifting down the draft board a bit, I was able to grab five intriguing pitchers with my last five picks. Michael Forret, Christian Zazueta, and Daniel Eagen should not have fallen as far as they did. Wei-En Lin and Eliazar Dishmey could also be big risers in 2026.
Jacob Milham
Picking atop the draft made my first overall selection the easiest of any slot. Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Konnor Griffin is undoubtedly the top prospect in the game, and he is already firmly on the minds of dynasty managers and Pirates fans alike. He is not without blemish, but his trajectory after a red-hot 2025 season has him sitting pretty in nearly every evaluator’s eyes.
I tried to keep some balance in where I invested picks, and I planned to go with Ryan Sloan or Kade Anderson if they were available. After both went off the board earlier in the second round, I found a prime prospect sitting there for the taking in Kansas City Royals catcher Carter Jensen. The former LSU commit is set to get his first extended shot at the big leagues in 2026, and his expected numbers in his September run not only put him among the best rookies, but among the best sluggers, period. Even if he regresses, Jensen has the playing-time path and the talent to be a gem of a fantasy asset.
Down the stretch, I got better about alternating pitchers and position players, usually defaulting to the PLV darlings I liked from my work last season. Philadelphia Phillies prospect Andrew Painter, Toronto Blue Jays prospect Johnny King, and Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Brody Hopkins come to mind in that vein.
Favorite pick from our rosters
Matt Heckman
Robby Snelling– SP, MIA Pick 3.10
Robby Snelling has quickly turned into one of my favorite pitching prospects. In what feels like an eternity ago, I actually debated Snelling’s value with Martin Sekulski, making the argument that his lack of a changeup created an unsustainable profile. Well, Snelling has developed that changeup and has refined the rest of his arsenal. While Thomas White grabs all of the attention, Snelling is actually my preferred Marlins pitching prospect. In fact, Snelling ranks as my top pitching prospect yet to debut in all of baseball. To be able to grab him at pick 34 is a steal in terms of value.
Why is Snelling my top pitching prospect in baseball? The combination of floor and ceiling. High-floor, high-ceiling players are the best prospects to target. Although Snelling’s ceiling may not be as high as some prospects like Andrew Painter and Thomas White, he makes up for it with incredible consistency. Snelling’s command and ability to locate pitches are some of the best in all of minor league baseball. He walked just 7.1% of the batters he faced while only surrendering 10 home runs all season. Snelling is not all floor, though. He has a mid-90s fastball that generates significant late life up in the zone. His curveball and changeup are both plus offerings and should lead to strong strikeout rates at the major league level. Pitching his future home games in Miami is only an added bonus to an already exciting profile. After passing on Snelling at 2.03, landing him at 3.10 felt incredible.
Jack Mueller
Travis Sykora – RHP, WSN (Round 8, Pick #6)
Grabbing an arguably top-50 prospect in the game after pick 90 felt like great value with my eighth-round selection. An injury ended Sykora’s dominant 2025 season prematurely, but he still put up immense numbers. Sykora struck out 46.7% of batters with a 1.79 ERA and 1.87 xFIP. His 6’6″ frame, in tandem with his funky release, gives hitters a unique look that they haven’t been able to figure out as of yet. His arsenal is MLB-ready, too, as long as he throws enough strikes. Sykora sits comfortably in the upper-90s with a nasty splitter/slider combination. Nationals’ #3 prospect saw his value diminish in this Draft due to a mid-season injury, but he has the upside to be a top-of-the-rotation piece and a high-level dynasty asset.
John Villavicencio
Joshua Baez, OF, St. Louis Cardinals, Pick 3.03
The biggest riser in the Cardinals’ system is Joshua Baez, who finally translated his above-average raw power into game production. After torching High-A pitching to the tune of four home runs, 20 steals, and a .317/.404/.483 slash line across 168 plate appearances, Baez earned a promotion to Double-A, where he kept hitting. In his first month at Springfield, he added six home runs, six steals, and a .900+ OPS.
Curiously, Baez didn’t access power through conventional means. Compared to 2024, he hit fewer balls in the air and pulled the ball less, instead spraying contact to all fields. The key improvement was contact quality and pitch selection. His contact rate jumped from 65% to 76%, whiff rate fell below 11% in Double-A, and his HR/FB rate doubled to 18%. He was clearly getting pitches he could drive.
Even more impressive was the growth in plate discipline. Baez swung slightly less, cut his strikeout rate by 15 percentage points to 20%, and showed better overall command of the zone. Baez absolutely smokes left-handed pitching, while posting above-average rates against righties. If these adjustments hold, Baez profiles as a legitimate 20-homer, 40-steal threat—an impact fantasy profile backed by real skill growth.
Jacob Milham
Brody Hopkins, SP, Tampa Bay Rays, Pick 7.01
Any prospect draft is all about upside, and landing a player with Brody Hopkins’ ceiling this late felt criminal. I loved what I saw from the right-hander in Double-A last year, and hopefully he draws more eyes in big-league camp this spring. With a big four-seam and sinker that play from different looks, Hopkins has an array of breaking pitches that get hitters out. That mix helped fuel a 2.72 ERA and 141 strikeouts in 116-plus innings.
Hopkins’ biggest red flag is command, but the strike-throwing took an underrated step forward in 2025. The Rays’ top pitching prospect will be one to watch in 2026, hopefully in a Durham Bulls uniform.
The picks that hurt the most
Matt Heckman
TJ Nichols- SP, TBR Pick 11.05
This is a random one. I had plenty of chances to take TJ Nichols. In terms of overall prospect ranking, I have TJ Nichols right around 120th in yet to debut, so his going 125th is pretty neutral value. However, Nichols is a player that I really wanted to add to my roster. Instead, PL staffer Christian Mack added him. Ultimately, I blame Chris Clegg for walking out of this season with the same analysis as I did. A name nobody was paying much attention to came in 11th on the PL Rays top prospects list, but came in much higher on Clegg’s rankings. The hype is starting to catch on, and dynasty managers need to add him now if they want any chance at buying low.
Nichols has the arsenal of a dynasty-relevant prospect. His fastball sits in the mid to upper 90s with great life and movement. His sweeper is a true strikeout pitch with good command. He even mixes in a plus changeup that has great disappearing action. Nichols’ delivery is smooth and repeatable. The strong command over his arsenal resulted ina. 5.7% walk rate last year. The Rays seem to have found something in Nichols, and he is likely to be a fast-rising prospect in 2026. This was a great pick by Christian. I thought I could get away with waiting a bit longer on him. That gamble did not pay off.
Jack Mueller
Mike Sirota – OF, LAD (Round 5, Pick #12)
Mike Sirota going at the end of the 5th round stung. I was convinced I could snag him in the middle of the sixth. In hindsight, given that all of the picks in between 5-8 and 6-6 were hitters, there was no chance of that happening. Sirota has been one of my favorite players to track since his days on Cape Cod in 2022. Sirota has a lean frame, yet still generated a .282 ISO and 13 home runs in 59 games. His batted ball profile indicates he’s able to spray the ball to all fields, and his quality of contact is excellent (62.4% FB+LD%). Sirota also recognizes pitches to hit well (9.4% SwStr) and doesn’t expand the zone at a troubling rate. His current skill set is good enough to make an impact as a big leaguer, but there could be another level of power output for Sirota to tap into with some approach changes and additional strength.
John Villavicencio
Rainiel Rodriguez, C, St. Louis Cardinals, Pick 2.09
My upside pick went one spot before my turn in the second round. Rainiel Rodriguez has rapidly emerged as one of the most exciting young hitters in the system. The 18-year-old Dominican backstop followed his 2024 DSL breakout by launching 20 home runs in just 368 plate appearances in 2025, firmly establishing his above-average raw power.
In 2025, Rodriguez pulled over 50% of his contact, lifted 47% of his balls in play, and posted an elite 29% pulled air rate alongside a 104 mph EV90. Simply put, the power is loud and unmistakable. Even more encouraging, Rodriguez isn’t overly swing-and-miss prone when he fails to square the ball. His plate discipline has been excellent, with walk rates matching or exceeding strikeout rates at every stop.
His splits show no platoon concerns: four home runs and a 1.167 OPS against lefties, and 15 home runs with an .886 OPS against right-handers. With elite power indicators, mature plate discipline, and strong pitch recognition, Rodriguez is rapidly ascending into true cornerstone territory. He is operating in line with Ivan Herrera’s profile and should have a solid runway for a major league promotion as early as 2027.
Jacob Milham
Moisés Ballesteros, DH, Chicago Cubs, Pick 8.11
After investing heavily in prospects I felt were close to big-league impact, I thought I was going to get away with passing on Moisés Ballesteros the previous round and still land him to close out the eighth. Do I like catchers too much? A byproduct of watching Salvador Perez so much, I guess.
Ballesteros profiles as an everyday designated hitter with plenty of protection in the Cubs lineup. His outlook behind the plate is not ideal, and he offers little to nothing on the basepaths, but his first taste of The Show looked like a hitter who can draw walks and hit homers. It is hard to ask for much more from a 21-year-old rookie.
Prospects we were surprised to see go so high
Matt Heckman
Andrew Fischer– 3B/1B, MIL Pick 5.03
Sorry to fellow Pitcher List writer John Villavicencio for this one. Following the 2025 MLB Draft, I was excited for what scouts were saying about Andrew Fischer. Fischer put up big numbers in three collegiate seasons for three different schools. His final year at Tennessee was especially impressive as he crushed 25 home runs while batting .341. Those numbers, and the post-draft hype, landed Fischer at 5.03 (51st overall) in the prospect draft. In fact, Fischer was the first FYPD player taken outside of Tatsuya Imai. That was a major surprise to see.
Fischer is not a bad prospect. He has substantial power upside thanks to lightning-quick bat speed. However, Fischer also ranked only 10th in my Brewers’ Top 20 prospects released last month. The reasoning behind that is a disbelief in Fischer’s hit tool. To be the first true FYPD player taken, you need to have a floor and a ceiling. I struggle to see Fischer’s floor. Fischer’s swing is incredibly loud. He moves a lot in his stance and his powerful swing comes at a significant upper-cut. This produces significant pull-side pop, but also results in struggles against quality pitchers. Fischer is overly aggressive and struggles with pitch recognition. His contact rate sat at just 70.2% in High-A last season despite playing in the SEC. Fischer deserved to be drafted; it is just difficult to justify taking him over some of the other players still on the board at that time.
Jack Mueller
Tommy Troy – INF, ARI (Round 5, Pick #6)
Don’t get me wrong, I like Tommy Troy as a prospect. There were 26 players with 15+ homers, 20+ steals, and a walk rate above 10% last year. Troy ranked 6th with a .289 AVG and 11th with a .833 OPS. He’s a player with good power, plus speed and the ability to play multiple positions. That said, he went before the players like Braden Montgomery (6-1), Joe Mack (7-6), and Franklin Arias (8-1), all top-100 guys. Being a top-100 player does not immediately translate to dynasty value, but there was a lot of high-level talent on the board when Troy was taken. Considering Troy’s 5’9″ frame, the lack of track record (92 wRC+ in 2024), and the blockage he faces in Arizona’s infield, it seemed like a high-risk, medium-reward selection in a spot where there was more upside available.
John Villavicencio
T.J. Nichols, SP, Tampa Bay Rays, Pick 11.05
After taking a bunch of hitters in a row, I started adding pitchers to the queue. I loaded in some of my favorites as well as the top remaining choices from James Anderson’s Top 400 prospect rankings at Rotowire. He had T.J. Nichols at 151, so I thought I was safe for at least a few rounds, but then Nichols was snatched up, and tremendous disappointment entered my mind.
In 2025, all Nichols did was win. The 6’5″ righty went 14-3 while posting strong ratios across two levels and 133.2 innings. The fastball revs up to 97 mph, while he gets a hard drop from his plus slider. Some may be worried about the high release, but Nichols is still able to land the fastball up in the zone. He has a fluid delivery and is athletic enough to forget how tall he is. The changeup is his main weapon against left-handed hitters, something that I hope continues to get him the strikeouts (33% strikeout rate vs LHB), but does a better job limiting their hard contact against it (16 home runs vs LHB).
Nichols was promoted to Double-A Montgomery in August, where he reached the sixth inning in five of eight appearances and posted an ERA and WHIP below 1.00. The 23-year-old starter should continue seeing above 20% K%-BB% as he has a real chance to make it to Triple-A Durham by the end of 2026.
Jacob Milham
Felnin Celesten, SS, Seattle Mariners, 10.11
I am torn on this one. Felnin Celesten has projection for days, a smooth swing from both sides of the plate, and ample speed on the basepaths. But injuries have really held the 2023 signee back, and 2026 feels like an early make-or-break season for his prospect stock.
After inconsistent production in a fully healthy season, I had Celesten lower on my board with plenty of position players ahead of him. I was surprised to see him go in the top 10 rounds with such a volatile range of outcomes and so little track record to calm concerns. He still has time to put it together and should start 2026 in High-A.
Prospect that probably went too low
Matt Heckman
Harry Ford, C- WSN Pick 12.12
Sometimes a prospect loses their shine once they make their major league debut. That seems to be what happened here as Harry Ford fell to the 12th round. Credit to fellow Pitcher List writer Jacob Milham, who was able to snag him that late. The thought of Harry Ford never even crossed my mind. I am sure many others in the draft felt the same. Ford, who was traded to Washington this offseason, could easily usurp Keibert Ruiz as the team’s everyday catcher. He hit .283 with 16 homers in Triple-A last season before getting the call to the big-leagues.
Ford is an elite athlete with plus speed for a catcher. He stole 35 bases in 2024 and will be a younger JT Realmuto moving forward. He hits a ton of line drives, has shown great plate discipline, and makes contact at an above-average rate. There is significant dynasty appeal here. His late selection in this draft speaks to how he is being valued in dynasty circles now. He is an afterthought. That is a mistake. Ford is a great buy-low target right now in dynasty leagues.
Jack Mueller
Xavier Neyens – INF, HOU (Round 12, Pick #9)
When I said there were areas I could have been more advantageous, this is what I’m talking about. At the start of the 2025 Draft cycle, Neyens was being floated as a sleeper #1 overall pick option. His high school/showcase season was good, but it wasn’t outstanding, which allowed Houston to grab Washington’s best prep product in recent memory. Neyens possesses loud tools. He’s got smooth swing mechanics with plus bat speed coming from a physically imposing 6’4″ frame. Pair that with good plate discipline, and it’s a coach’s dream. Houston’s player development has done a good job building young hitters into big league talent, and Neyens could be next. If I could have a do-over, I would have taken Neyens in the 10th round (assuming he’s still on the board in this scenario).
Outside of him, there were plenty of other names that slid. Tatsuya Imai (4-3) and Munetaka Murakami (6-10) both fell out of the top three rounds, despite both starting the year as focal points of their new teams. Cam Collier (11-6) and Arjun Nimmala (10-8), who are both immensely talented, may be suffering from prospect fatigue despite both being just 20 years old. Devin Taylor (12-10) is another FYPD player who could have made a case for being a much higher pick than he was.
John Villavicencio
Tanner McDougal, SP, Chicago White Sox, Pick 16.06
Tanner McDougal is one of three Chicago White Sox starters who could leap in 2026. Hagen Smith, Noah Schultz, and McDougal all have Major League stuff, but display inconsistent control. McDougal actually dialled up the command as the season wore on, going from a 13% walk rate to under 8% during his time in Double-A. He has easy 100 mph gas on the fastball, while serving up high spins with the curveball and slider. The batted ball data looks good, with a 45% ground ball rate and no major differences between how he performs against both sets of hitters. The next challenge will be to extend the solid command during longer stints against higher-level competition.
Aiva Arquette, OF, Miami Marlins, Pick 9.10
Many of my picks were built around power and speed. Or at least I attempted to do so. Aiva Arquette has plus-plus power and speed, so I am surprised that he isn’t getting more love from the 2025 draft class. In limited time at High-A, he has hit for above-average exit velocities, demonstrated solid defense at shortstop, and put together a disciplined approach at the plate. A 6’5″ shortstop is a rarity, but it would create benefits downstream if he were to be moved off the position. His athletic prowess would translate well to the corners or possibly to the outfield. Given that he showed well during his first stint in professional ball, I am expecting to hear about his elite bat speed and barrels in 2026 at Double-A from the shortstop position.
Jacob Milham
Blake Mitchell, C, Kansas City Royals, 20.11
Call me a Kansas City homer, but I was about to draft another catcher if Mitchell slipped one more pick. The former first-rounder had a 2025 season to forget, but one that is fairly easy to explain away after a broken hamate in spring. His stat line was lackluster at High-A Quad Cities and in the Arizona Fall League, but he still hit the tar out of the ball, including elite max exit velocities in AFL action. The swing-and-miss is a concern, but he has a higher offensive ceiling than most catching prospects.
Prospects that we could not leave the draft without
Matt Heckman
Brendan Summerhill, OF- TBR Pick 18.03
Brendan Summerhill is the FYPD player that I think dynasty managers cannot leave their draft without. Summerhill was featured in the Tampa Bay Rays‘ Top 20 prospects article released this offseason and only ranked eighth. Do not let that fool you in a deep Tampa farm system. Summerhill has substantial dynasty potential, and I was thrilled to be able to grab him in the 18th round of the draft.
While it was hit on in the Rays article linked above, the love for Summerhill is projection-based. During his three seasons at Arizona, Summerhill hit only 14 total home runs. That being said, he stands at 6’3″, has a pretty left-handed swing, and quick hands that help him to drive the ball. Although the game power has not shown up, the hope is that a professional organization can help him unlock it. The same goes for Summerhill’s speed. He is an elite defender in center with great instincts and good speed. That has not shown up in terms of steals, but it should translate nicely. The part of Summerhill’s game that he already excels at is hitting. Summerhill has elite contact skills. His swing is as consistent as they come, driving balls into the gaps. He walked more than he struck out in his final collegiate season, and those plate discipline skills should help him hit for average and power at the next level. Summerhill is an athlete. Athletes are worth taking chances on at the price Summerhill is going at.
Jack Mueller
Josiah Hartshorn – OF, CHC (Round 13, Pick #7)
As the title says, I simply could not leave this Draft without taking Josiah Hartshorn. As a result of my research for the Pitcher List prospect ranking series, I am all in on the 18-year-old out of California. The Cubs paid a record signing bonus of $2 million to secure his services in the sixth round, $1.7 million over the slot value of the pick. Considering the club’s acumen for identifying talented position players over the past half-decade, that’s an endorsement in itself. The video speaks for itself. Hartshorn shows plus bat speed from both sides of the plate and has the frame of a future slugger. At 6’2″, 200 pounds, Hartshorn’s frame will allow him to fit in with more mature competition, a task he’ll confront in full-season ball in 2026. He needs more polish in his swing mechanics, which can be addressed with coaching, but the raw ingredients are there for a premier power prospect. Were there more established options on the board? Yes. Did I take a big gamble on an unproven teenager? Yes. Do I regret it? Absolutely not.
John Villavicencio
Kaelen Culpepper SS, Minnesota Twins, Pick 4.10
Here’s another first-round pick, taken a year later by Minnesota. Kaelen Culpepper leaned into more power in 2025, consciously trading some contact for a more explosive swing. Reports indicate his bat speed ticked up, and the results followed—most notably in May, when he crushed five home runs, stole 11 bases, and posted a .302 / .413 / .491 slash line.
The 6’0″ right-handed hitter can be prone to chasing pitches, so the next step in his development will be refining pitch recognition while keeping those aggressive, high-impact swings under control. If he can strike that balance, the power gains should stick.
Culpepper’s glove gives him plenty of runway. A strong defender, he’s settling in at shortstop while also gathering experience at second and third base, ensuring Minnesota can afford him the time and flexibility needed to let the bat fully catch up to the tools.
Jacob Milham
Konnor Griffin, SS, Pittsburgh Pirates, 1.01
There were plenty of prospects I liked later in the pool, and I had a few names circled that I felt good about in the middle rounds. But the only real mistake I could have made at 1.01 was not taking Griffin.
I rostered him in the PL Dynasty League, and he quickly turned me from a skeptic during the draft process into a believer. Hoping that much on one prospect is always dangerous, but Griffin has a road to the everyday shortstop job once the Pirates decide he is ready. He may need a year or two to acclimate, but the long-term dynasty outlook is a top-10 player in baseball.
If not my own, my favorite draft was from…
Matt Heckman
Christian Mack: 5th pick, PL Staffer
To take any bias or missteps out of this, the easiest way to do this was to see who ended up with the most prospects that would rank inside of my Top-150. This does not mean I loved every pick that this team made, but they wound up with the largest grouping of prospects that I value. Two teams wound up tying with 14 players: User “Game Over” and PL staffer Christian Mack. Ultimately, I settled on liking Christian’s draft the most. He did a great job of adding upper-tier talent early in the draft and supplementing that with upside late. His first two picks are already major league talents in Samuel Basallo and Sal Stewart. Rounds 3-5 were three middle infielders I am enamoured with in Bryce Rainer, Emil Morales, and JoJo Parker. His pick of TJ Nichols was already discussed, but he also grabbed a sliding Arjun Nimmala in the 10th round, which was great value. Later on, he grabbed two fast-rising pitching prospects with Dasan Hill in the 16th and Esteban Mejia in the 17th. Both have big-time upside. I obviously loved my draft, but Christian also knocked this out of the park.
Jack Mueller
John Villavicencio: 3rd pick, PL Dynasty Staffer
John’s work for Pitcher List is outstanding. If you don’t believe me, just check out his excellent presentation from PitchCon last week. With that said, it’s no surprise his roster stood out in the aftermath of the Draft. His first three picks (Wetherholt, Sloan, Baez) scream upside while maintaining a high floor. Wetherholt and Baez are poised to be major contributors for the next iteration of the Cardinals’ core, and Sloan is going to be a key piece of Seattle’s rotation once he’s deemed to be ready. Grabbing a future 20/20 threat in the fourth round in Kaelan Culpepper was a nice touch, especially considering the turnover the Twins’ roster has gone through in the last year. Oppor slid slightly, and I’m kicking myself that I didn’t capitalize on his fall. He’s going to grow into a legitimate top-100 candidate over the next year. Devin Taylor and Michael Forret are underrated pieces that haven’t received much dynasty buzz, but both could be key contributors to their teams in a matter of years.
John Villavicencio
Jacob Milham: 1st pick, PL Dynasty Staffer
Starting your squad with Konnor Griffin makes for an attractive headliner. Furthermore, I appreciate the process Jacob applied to his team by going back and forth between hitters and pitchers. In addition to the cohesive strategy, the team unit is solid, with some underrecognized pitchers who could take steps forward in their development. Antwone Kelly is pumping high heat and a hard slider. Santiago Suarez has elite extension and control. Johnny King is a strikeout monster in the making from the left side once he figures out his command. David Shields uses his low slot to generate great induced vertical break and high strikeouts despite the load management. Milham put together a great team.
Jacob Milham
Jack Mueller: 7th Pick, PL Dynasty Staffer
Jack’s one-two punch of Sebastian Walcott and Thomas White was my favorite start in the room, and the value later on was strong too. I am also a Gage Jump and Seth Hernandez believer, and Jack landing them in the fourth and fifth rounds stood out.
He kept a similar rhythm to my approach with a loose alternation, then really set himself up with a clean run in the middle rounds:
8th round: Travis Sykora
9th round: Ethan Salas
10th round: Josh Adamczewski
11th round: Hagen Smith
All four are guys I like heading into 2026, and Jack not overthinking those picks is noteworthy. Good job, y’all.
