The 2025 MLB Postseason is in full swing, but the time for fantasy baseball analysis never truly stops. Last Thursday, we started our Rotoworld Staff and Friends Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft for the 2026 season, and we’ll continue to update this piece in the coming days.
While many places do a “too early” mock draft, we’d argue that it’s not really too early to look ahead to next season. Sometimes, drafting now, when we’ve been dialed into games and stats for so long, is more educational than doing mock drafts in February.
Right now, we have the ability to react in a clear-headed way to the results of the 2025 season and think of what we would have done differently. Once we get into spring training, we start to get inundated with narratives about who did what in the offseason, and that can influence our thought process too much.
So we invited our staff and a few of our friends to put together a 19-round mock draft that we’ll complete over the next couple of weeks and continue to break down for you in chunks over on our site. We hope you find it useful.
League Settings
12-team standard 5x5 roto league. It was a one-catcher league with four outfield spots, one UTIL spot, and we did use both Corner Infield and Middle Infield spots. We didn’t draft a bench, and we had just seven pitcher spots, five for starting pitchers, and two for relief pitchers, so we could get a sense of the strategy both both positions.
▶ 2026 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft First Round
1. Shohei Ohtani: UT/P - LAD (Dave Shovein - Rotoworld)
2. Aaron Judge: OF, NYY (James Schiano - Rotoworld)
3. Juan Soto: OF, NYM (Scott Pianowski - Yahoo!)
4. Bobby Witt Jr.: SS, KC (D.J. Short - Rotoworld)
5. Ronald Acuna Jr.: OF, ATL (Matthew Pouliot - Rotoworld)
6. Elly De La Cruz: SS, CIN (Eric Samulski - Rotoworld)
7. Jose Ramirez: 3B, CLE (Jorge Montanez- Rotoworld)
8. Julio Rodriguez: OF, SEA (Justin Mason - Fangraphs)
9. Corbin Carroll: OF, ARI (Frank Ammirante - Rotoballer)
10. Fernando Tatis Jr.: OF, SD (George Bissell - Rotoworld)
11. Tarik Skubal: SP, DET (Chris Crawford- Rotoworld)
12. Jackson Chourio: OF, MIL (Nick Shlain - Rotoworld)
Another year of Shohei Ohtani as the unquestioned top pick? Seems that way from how Dave approached it: “For me, it was a no-brainer. Ohtani is just such an unbelievable talent; the only way that he could fail to return a first-round value would be due to injury. Getting an elite five-category foundation on offense is of paramount importance. Plus, you get the added benefit of his outstanding pitching line if you need to use him there. The only other consideration was Aaron Judge, but I sided with the extra speed and the flexibility to get Ohtani’s pitching numbers over Judge’s advantage in batting average.”
Remember when people were complaining that this was a down year for Juan Soto? Sure, his .263 batting average is not what you were expecting, but he hit a career-high 43 home runs and stole 38 bases. 38! His previous career high was 12 steals. There’s no way to know for sure that that type of speed barrage will continue, but he did it AFTER getting paid a record-breaking amount of money, so why shouldn’t? Even if Soto dropped down to 20 steals and became a 40/20 hitter who was also going to score 120 runs and drive in another 100+ runs, then that makes him the pretty clear third player off the board, and there’s an argument he could go ahead of Aaron Judge.
When I was on the clock with the sixth pick, I was debating between Elly De La Cruz and Jose Ramirez. The debate is pretty simple at its core: we have one of the most consistent fantasy players around at a relatively shallow position who is also going to be 33 years old next season, or we have an ascending player who just posted his highest batting average and lowest strikeout rate and will be 24 years old next year.
I gambled on the upside of Elly, but I can’t tell you for sure that I would do it again. All I can say is that, in that moment, I thought of a young hitter in a great home ballpark who should be in a better lineup next season and has shown an improving plate approach. The increased groundball rate isn’t ideal, but I do think it’s helping his batting average, so maybe Elly is a 25/40 guy next year with a .260 batting average? That would be if he just repeats the skills he showed this year, but what if he gets better?
Justin Mason kicked off a stretch of four outfielders in five picks by selecting Julio Rodriguez. Honestly, there’s a case to be made for taking any of these four guys as the top outfielder in this range, and we know that outfield has fallen off after the first few rounds, so I do like taking an elite outfield bat to anchor a position where you need to start four guys. “I went with J-Rod over the other options because of his safety. I think you can make an argument that he may have the lowest ceiling of those guys, but he has the best health and consistency track record. All 1st/2nd rounders are going to be great talents, but I prefer to draft the ones with the safest outcomes.”
We end the first round with our first pitcher off the board, Tarik Skubal. While there are great cases for both Paul Skenes and Garrett Crochet, it’s not a surprise to see Skubal go first, and I guess Nick was not scared off by the injury landscape among starting pitchers. He wanted to ensure that he had an anchor with one of the best starting pitchers in the game, and he’ll need to now get to work building his office. Particularly, he’ll really need to work to find speed after who he took to start the second round.
▶ 2026 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft Second Round
1 (13). Junior Caminero: 3B, TB (Nick Shlain - Rotoworld)
2 (14). Nick Kurtz: 1B, ATH (Chris Crawford- Rotoworld)
3 (15). Kyle Schwarber: UT, FA (George Bissell - Rotoworld)
4 (16). Paul Skenes: SP, PIT (Frank Ammirante - Rotoballer)
5 (17). Garrett Crochet: SP, BOS (Justin Mason - Fangraphs)
6 (18). Francisco Lindor: SS, NYM (Jorge Montanez- Rotoworld)
7 (19). Kyle Tucker: OF, FA (Eric Samulski - Rotoworld)
8 (20). Gunnar Henderson: SS, BAL (Matthew Pouliot - Rotoworld)
9 (21). Pete Alonso: 1B, FA (D.J. Short - Rotoworld)
10 (22). Trevor Story: SS, BOS (Scott Pianowski - Yahoo!)
11 (23). Jazz Chisholm Jr.: 2B/3B, NYY (James Schiano - Rotoworld)
12 (24). Cal Raleigh: C, SEA (Dave Shovein - Rotoworld)
Coming into the 2025 season, there were questions about how much fantasy value Junior Caminero would have given his lack of stolen base production. While hitting in a minor league ballpark certainly helped him launch 45 home runs this year, there’s also no denying the talent and upside Caminero has, so Nick was happy to take him at the start of the second and was not worried at all about the lack of steals.
“Caminero played in 43 games in 2024, costing him his rookie status for 2025. Still, he hit the second most home runs in a season for a 21-year-old ever, with 45 (Eddie Matthews hit 47). While Caminero certainly benefited some from playing half of his games at a spring training park, the young third baseman isn’t selling out to get to his power. He hit .264 with a 19% strikeout rate. This is a growth stock I want to invest in. Though if we were closer to the start of the 2026 season, I might have also considered Paul Skenes and Garrett Crochet here.”
Two picks into the second round and we have our first really big potential discussion point with Nick Kurtz being not only the first first baseman off the board, but the 14th overall pick in the draft. Chris said, “Simply put, I think Kurtz has the best offensive upside of any player at this position, and it competes with anyone in the sport. What he did as a rookie was so impressive, and while I wish there was a little less swing-and-miss in his profile, the ability to make hard contact at such an elite rate is worth that issue. Does he have the same floor as some of the other hitters taken in this range? Maybe not. Do I think his ceiling beats those hitters? You bet.”
On one hand, it’s jarring to see a 22-year-old with 33 career minor league games who was drafted in 2024 already be a top 15 pick in fantasy baseball. On the other hand, Kurtz hit .290/.383/.619 this season with 36 home runs, 90 runs scored, and 86 RBI in 117 games. So, yeah, he was really good. He’s going to play yet another season in that bandbox in Sacramento, so there’s no reason to believe he can’t produce these kinds of numbers again. With a bunch of other young hitters in the lineup around him, there’s a chance this Athletics offense gets even better next season, and he easily passes 100 runs scored and 100 RBI as well. So maybe that does make him the clear-cut top first baseman in fantasy.
We saw Tarik Skubal be selected as the first pitcher off the board in the last round, so now Garrett Crochet and Paul Skenes both go. It feels like a lock that these will be the top three starters off the board in all drafts next season, and all three of them are likely to be gone after the first 15-20 picks. There really isn’t a bad choice among the three.
Speaking of bad choices, it has been a terrible choice for your mental health to draft Kyle Tucker in each of the last two seasons, as the outfielder has missed extended periods of time in both seasons. However, he has also been a pretty clear first-round value when he is on the field. I don’t believe that Tucker’s injuries over the last two years (fractured fibula, fractured hand, calf strain) present any trend of him being injury-prone. He has simply run into a string of bad luck on the health front. If I bank on him playing 140+ healthy games next season, then he is a great value at this spot, no matter which team he signs with in free agency.
The 20th overall pick in the draft is where the Gunnar Henderson fall ends. The Orioles’ shortstop was a top 5-7 pick in drafts this season and, at 24 years old, seemed like a lock to remain in the first round for years to come. However, he hit .274/.349/.438 with 17 home runs, 68 RBI, and 30 steals in 154 games this year, and drafters seemed to no longer feel as confident with Gunnar as the foundation of their fantasy lineups. However, Matthew was happy to scoop him up in the second.
“I understand being somewhat down on Henderson. His slow start this year could be explained by the strained intercostal muscle he suffered in spring training, but after he bounced back really nicely in June and July (.319/.395/.497), he lost that momentum and came in at .251/.338/.387 over the final two months. That said, he’s still just 24. He hit 37 homers in 2024, and his exit velocity numbers weren’t much worse this year. He’s gone from 10 steals as a rookie to 21 last year to 30 this year. His strikeout rate improved for the second year in a row. I don’t know that he’ll bounce all of the way back to where he was in 2024, but since the entire Baltimore offense has to be somewhat better, he wouldn’t necessarily need to in order to justify a top-15 or top-20 pick.”
So it was Pete Alonso who became the second first baseman off the board, and not Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Yes, D.J. Short is a Mets fan, and, yes, it seems likely that Pete will re-sign with the Mets in the off-season, but this wasn’t just a homer pick as D.J. “wanted the bankable power to balance out Witt.” That’s a solid roster-building strategy.
Bobby Witt Jr. is an elite fantasy asset and gives you a great batting average floor, but he hit just 23 home runs this season and plays in a poor ballpark for power production. Vlad Jr. hit just 23 home runs this year as well and only has two seasons with over 30 home runs, none of which have come in the last three years. Meanwhile, Alonso has hit at least 37 home runs in four of his last five seasons and hasn’t hit under 34 in any full MLB season. If you’re looking for power to balance out Witt, Alonso is the clear choice.
We had another surprise towards the end of the second round with Scott Pianowski taking Trevor Story with the 22nd overall pick. The 32-year-old Story has been banged up over the last few seasons, unable to play in over 94 games since 2021. However, he did stay healthy this season and was tremendous, with a .255/.340/.394 slash line plus 25 home runs, 31 steals, 91 runs scored, and 96 RBI in 157 games. He showed himself to be exactly the player the Red Sox thought he could be when they signed him in 2022. But can he do it again?
“He’s had so many injured seasons that I guess the 2025 return came out of nowhere. But I’m just looking to invest in power and speed and a good ballpark, and even Story’s average should be positive for our purposes. Okay, maybe there’s no floor. But we’re going to say that about a lot of players soon enough. Let’s swing for the fences.”
Dave Shovein then ended the second round by taking Cal Raleigh, which may not be a huge surprise, but then you remember that this is a one-catcher league. Normally, in this format, fantasy managers tend to wait on a catcher and see who falls into the middle rounds. Yet, after Raleigh’s historic season, perhaps that strategy will no longer apply: “Even in a one-catcher league, I prioritize elite production at the catcher position and didn’t think that he’d be there at the end of Round 3. Getting 35 homers and 10 steals on the conservative side with elite runs/RBI and a neutral average at the catcher position is a game-changer and affords me more flexibility with how I construct the rest of my roster.”
▶ 2026 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft Third Round
1 (25). Trea Turner: SS, PHI (Dave Shovein - Rotoworld)
2 (26). Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: 1B, TOR (James Schiano - Rotoworld)
3 (27). Pete Crow-Armstrong: OF, CHC (Scott Pianowski - Yahoo!)
4 (28). Yordan Alvarez: UT, HOU (D.J. Short - Rotoworld)
5 (29). James Wood: OF, WAS (Matthew Pouliot - Rotoworld)
6 (30). Manny Machado: 3B, SD (Eric Samulski - Rotoworld)
7 (31). Cristopher Sanchez: SP, PHI (Jorge Montanez- Rotoworld)
8 (32). Bruce Turang: 2B, MIL (Justin Mason - Fangraphs)
9 (33). Hunter Brown: SP, HOU (Frank Ammirante - Rotoballer)
10 (34). Zach Neto: SS, LAA (George Bissell - Rotoworld)
11 (35). Yoshinobu Yamamoto: SP, LAD (Chris Crawford- Rotoworld)
12 (36). Logan Gilbert: SP, SEA (Nick Shlain - Rotoworld)
Young outfield options lead off the third round with Pete Crow-Armstrong and James Wood being selected by Scott and Matthew. PCA finished as the 8th best outfielder in the Fangraphs’ Player Rater; although he struggled in the second half with a .216/.262/.372 slash line with six home runs, 24 RBI, eight steals, and a 26% strikeout rate in 61 games in the second half. Similarly, Wood hit .223/.301/.388 in 62 games in the second half with seven home runs, 25 RBI, and a 39% strikeout rate. Both players have tremendous talent and the upside to be top 20 overall players in fantasy baseball, but their prolonged struggles in the second half present the clear downside with young hitters who have some approach issues.
A bit of a surprise here as Cristopher Sanchez was the fourth starting pitcher taken in the draft, but Jorge was impressed by his breakout 2025: “After a promising 2024, Sánchez took his game to another level with a breakout season, posting a 2.50 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and a 212/44 K/BB ratio over 202 innings. Behind a killer sinker-changeup combo, he was able to elevate his strikeout rate while maintaining an outstanding walk rate, giving him all the tools to become a reliable fantasy ace.”
Last year, Brice Turang had fantasy value connected simply to his stolen base output. This year, he stole “only” 24 bases, but he also hit 18 home runs and batted .288. A big part of that was a change in approach that led Turang to be more patient and aggressive. He chased less out of the zone but looked to elevate and drive the ball more often when he did swing. That led to some minor drops in his contact rates, but he barreled the ball way more often and made far more meaningful contact. That’s a trade-off we’ll take all day.
There’s an argument to be made that Zach Neto should have been drafted before Trevor Story. On the season, Story finished as the 6th-ranked shortstop by FanGraph’s Player Rater, and Neto was 11th despite having 100 fewer plate appearances. However, that’s part of it. Neto started the year on the IL and ended the year on the IL, so he has some of his own injury concerns. Yet, he hit .257 with 26 home runs and 26 steals, so he is a legit 30/30 threat with continued upside if he can remain healthy.
We ended the round by seeing the starting pitching start to fly off the boards. I think this is how most drafts will play out. The top three starting pitchers remain pretty clear, but it’s a total crapshoot after that. There is a case to be made for about 10 other starting pitchers to be among the first five drafted. As a result, I think waiting until the fourth round to land your top starting pitcher might be the way to go.
▶ 2026 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft Fourth Round
1 (37). Joe Ryan: SP, MIN (Nick Shlain - Rotoworld)
2 (38). Ketel Marte: 2B, ARI (Chris Crawford- Rotoworld)
3 (39). Roman Anthony: OF, BOS (George Bissell - Rotoworld)
4 (40). Jarren Duran: OF, BOS (Frank Ammirante - Rotoballer)
5 (41). Mookie Betts: SS, LAD (Justin Mason - Fangraphs)
6 (42). Bryan Woo: SP, SEA (Jorge Montanez- Rotoworld)
7 (43). Rafael Devers: 1B/3B, SF (Eric Samulski - Rotoworld)
8 (44). Wyatt Langford: OF, TEX (Matthew Pouliot - Rotoworld)
9 (45). Logan Webb: SP, SF (D.J. Short - Rotoworld)
10 (46). Freddy Peralta: SP, MIL (Scott Pianowski - Yahoo!)
11 (47). Max Fried: SP, NYY (James Schiano - Rotoworld)
12 (48). Freddie Freeman: 1B, LAD (Dave Shovein - Rotoworld)
The round kicked off with a starting pitcher, and we saw plenty of managers (James, Scott, and D.J.) get their first starting pitcher here. In fact, after the fourth round, only Nick Shovein, Matthew Pouliot, George Bissell, and I have not taken a starting pitcher. Nick Shlain started with Joe Ryan, who will be a fascinating player to watch this offseason since he seems almost destined to be traded. He was a borderline top 10 arm before the Twins punted on the season at the deadline, and his going to a legit contender this offseason would be great for him. Max Fried is a perennial ace and is frequently underrated. Bryan Woo was healthy for the entire season (until now) and showed that he has ace upside, while Freddy Peralta curtailed some of his command issues to become an ace. Can he do it again?
I was surprised to see Logan Webb taken this high, but he had another season of 200 innings with his lowest ERA since 2022 and his highest strikeout rate ever, so even if he won’t be dominant, he might just be rock solid enough to be a great foundational piece for your rotation.
I saw a few starters still out there that I think can be aces, so I landed another big bat in Rafael Devers, who is now 1B eligible, and that’s where I plan to play him. The move to San Francisco is certainly going to impact his offensive production a bit, but this is a guy who was going in the early 2nd round back when he was in Boston, so I think there is plenty of value on him this late in the fourth. I’m loving the potential production from my top four hitters.
Devers’ former teammate Roman Anthony was drafted before him, going to George near the start of the round: “This pick is less about what Anthony is now and more about what we believe he’s about to become — the projection of a future that feels inevitable. He’s the ultra-rare top prospect who’s lived up to the astronomical hype, showing virtually no weaknesses in his offensive profile despite being just 21 entering next season. He wasted little time establishing himself as Boston’s franchise cornerstone once he arrived in the majors and likely would’ve posted even gaudier numbers had he not spent nearly three months languishing at Triple-A Worcester. His elite five-category upside and opportunity to anchor an emerging Red Sox lineup in the AL East’s hitter-friendly parks make him an easy early-round selection in all fantasy formats.”
However, the biggest name in this round is probably Mookie Betts. The perennial first-round pick fell to Justin Mason here in the fourth after hitting .258/.326/.406 with 20 home runs and eight steals this season. He’ll be 33 years old next year, so it seems like fantasy drafters are going to have to ask themselves if they think Betts’ off-season illness and position change to full-time shortstop impacted his offensive production or if he’s on a career decline. Betts’ batting average dipped last year too, but he had 19 home runs in 516 plate appearances in 2024 and just 20 home runs in 663 plate appearances this year. Is the power dried up, or was it a one-year fluke?
▶ 2026 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft Fifth Round
1 (49). Chris Sale: SP, ATL (Dave Shovein - Rotoworld)
2 (50). CJ Abrams: SS, WAS (James Schiano - Rotoworld)
3 (51). Matt Olson: 1B, ATL (Scott Pianowski - Yahoo!)
4 (52). Hunter Greene: SP, CIN (D.J. Short - Rotoworld)
5 (53). Bryce Harper: 1B, PHI (Matthew Pouliot - Rotoworld)
6 (54). Jacob deGrom: SP, TEX (Eric Samulski - Rotoworld)
7 (55). Riley Greene: OF, DET (Jorge Montanez- Rotoworld)
8 (56). Vinnie Pasquantino: 1B, KC (Justin Mason - Fangraphs)
9 (57). Eugenio Suarez: 3B, FA (Frank Ammirante - Rotoballer)
10 (58). Josh Naylor: 1B ARI (George Bissell - Rotoworld)
11 (59). Brent Rooker: OF, ATH (Chris Crawford- Rotoworld)
12 (60). Corey Seager: SS, TEX (Nick Shlain - Rotoworld)
We saw a few more first basemen go off the board here with Matt Olson, Bryce Harper, Vinnie Pasquantino, and Josh Naylor all being selected. At this point, we know who Olson and Harper are; they’re rock-solid hitters who are going to be in good lineups in good ballparks. They are never really bad picks. Pasquantino finally had a bit of a breakout, hitting 32 home runs and driving in 113 runs for the Royals this season. The batting average stayed around .260, and so that puts him squarely in this tier of players. However, the bigger question is free agent Josh Naylor, who ran wild with the Mariners after the trade deadline, stealing 19 bases in just 54 games. That gave him 30 steals on the season to go along with 20 home runs and a .295 batting average. His home run total predictably dropped after that flukey 31 home run season last year, so his being able to be run will be crucial to his fantasy value. Will his new team let him?
Frank drafted another intriguing pending free agent in Naylor’s current teammate, Eugenio Suarez, who is coming off a career year but comes with plenty of question marks: “For me, this is just about a bet on a 49 HR hitter who everyone seems to approach with caution. I think he’ll sign somewhere that won’t hurt his value.”
A few more starting pitchers also went off the board with Chris Sale and Hunter Greene leading the way, before I took Jacob deGrom. It surprises me that people still don’t want to believe in deGrom. He finished as the 12th-best starting pitcher on the Fangraphs’ Player Rater this season, pitching 172.1 innings with a 2.97 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, and 185 strikeouts. If he wins like 14 or 15 games instead of 12, then he’s a top-eight pitcher in terms of fantasy value. I got him as the 15th starter off the board.
Riley Greene was another interesting pick here, and James Schiano and I broke down his fantasy potential in a video we recorded last week.
▶ 2026 Fantasy Baseball Mock Draft Sixth Round
1 (61). Alex Bregman: 3B, BOS (Nick Shlain - Rotoworld)
2 (62). Bo Bichette: SS, FA (Chris Crawford- Rotoworld)
3 (63). Byron Buxton: OF, MIN (George Bissell - Rotoworld)
4 (64). Geraldo Perdomo: SS, ARI (Frank Ammirante - Rotoballer)
5 (65). Maikel Garcia: 3B, KC (Justin Mason - Fangraphs)
6 (66). Shea Langeliers: C, ATH (Jorge Montanez- Rotoworld)
7 (67). Cole Ragans: SP, KC (Eric Samulski - Rotoworld)
8 (68). Blake Snell: SP, LAD (Matthew Pouliot - Rotoworld)
9 (69). Austin Riley: 3B, ATL (D.J. Short - Rotoworld)
10 (70). Carlos Rodon: SP, NYY (Scott Pianowski - Yahoo!)
11 (71). Jackson Merrill: OF, SD (James Schiano - Rotoworld)
12 (72). Andres Munoz: RP, SEA (Dave Shovein - Rotoworld)
The sixth round started with two more super intriguing names in pending free agent Bo Bichette and likely pending free agent Alex Bregman. Bregman seems likely to decline his player option for 2026, but he was not the same hitter after he came back from the quad injury in the summer, so maybe that will dampen his market. Does he stay in Boston? It would seem to be the best for his long-term value. Bichette is battling a knee injury right now, and we have no idea where he will sign, so there are plenty of questions about his value as well.
Speaking of injuries, we finally saw Byron Buxton stay, mostly, healthy, and he put together a solid season, so even though the Twins seem to be selling every player under the sun, George is buying in: “There’s never been any doubt about Buxton’s talent as a high-octane power-speed fantasy force. After battling hip and knee issues for nearly half a decade, he finally stayed healthy last season. The unfortunate reality is that those omnipresent injury concerns will always linger, but turning in a full season of elite production shows that sustained health isn’t a complete fantasy — it’s part of his realistic range of outcomes now.”
We also see Geraldo Perdomo here after his breakout season and contract extension that keeps him as the starting shortstop in Arizona for a few years. Frank was happy to scoop him here: “Perdomo had a great year that came out of nowhere, which is why he’s available RD6+, but what if this is just a late bloomer? He’s still only 25 years old.”
I picked up my second starter, who I think can be an ace, with Cole Ragans. Maybe I reached a bit here, but when the left-hander was healthy this season, we saw the same elite strikeout upside and solid ratios. Getting him as the 16th starter off the board feels like the right range to me. I also liked Scott’s pick of Carlos Rodon, who has been tremendous since incorporating the changeup back in.
We also saw this round end the slide for two former second-round picks in Jackson Merrill and Austin Riley, both of whom battled injuries in 2025, so it seems like there could be a buying opportunity here for 2026. At least, that’s how James saw his Merrill pick: “A poor sophomore season from Merrill that included missed time from a hamstring strain, a concussion, and general regression has dulled his shine a bit. It’s easy to forget that he was a top-25 pick heading into this season with true 30-30 aspirations. I’m happy to grab him with this discount and chalk up his struggles this season to growing pains. Also, expecting the stolen bases to tick back up next season should he stay healthy (his concussion came on a stolen base attempt, and he didn’t try one for the rest of the season after that).”
D.J. had his eyes on somebody else at third base, but was happy to pivot to Riley: “Third base was getting thin -- in truth, I wanted Maikel Garcia -- so I took a shot on someone who has had his last two seasons impacted by injury. Yes, Riley’s strikeout rate was up this year, but the power metrics still look plenty healthy. He’s a logical bounce-back candidate for a team that is due some better luck in 2026.”
Dave Shovein then ended the round with the first closer off the board in Andres Munoz. We should point out that Dave also took Jhoan Duran at the turn with the first pick in the next round, so if it makes you feel better to say that Duran was the first closer off the board, you can do that: “I built up a strong five-category base on offense through my first four picks, giving me an awesome start in power/speed and a strong base in batting average. After grabbing Chris Sale as my ace in Round 5, I wanted to go back to pitching, but didn’t like the options available for starting pitchers. I’ve always been a big believer in grabbing from the elite options at the position, and as of now, I have Duran and Munoz as the top two closers on my board heading into next year based on their consistency, elite ratios, and big strikeouts -- combined with the fact that they both play for playoff-quality teams as well. The only other one I considered was Mason Miller, who I have just below those other two. I’m just not 100% certain that the Padres are going to deploy him exclusively as a closer. Now I can ignore the position for the remainder of the draft and focus on building up the rest of my team without having to speculate on closers, which can be especially difficult when drafting so far away from the start of the season.”
The draft is continuing for 19 total rounds, so we’ll update you on the later rounds and then take you through the entire draft when it’s complete.
